Seed for Dec 24

The Year of the Census

The old grey beards were sitting at the gate of Jerusalem talking back and forth about what had just happened. Pilate had just executed several men in Jerusalem. One of the old grey beards said, “Surely that Jesus was Messiah, for I, personally witnessed Him open the eyes of a man born blind!” Another of the grey beards sitting at the gate agreed saying, “I was there when Jesus feed over 5,000 men and women and children with just a small boy’s lunch, can you imagine that?” And another agreed that he too had witnessed a miracle of Jesus raising a dead boy to life at a funeral. And each of the elders in took their turn in describing what miracles they had seen this man called Jesus do. They all agreed that only Messiah could have done such great and mighty miracles and yet their rulers had put Him to death. One of the old grey bearded elders, who was an innkeeper, said, “Oh, I would have given anything to have seen this great one, Jesus, and one of his miracles.“. “I just can’t believe they really crucified Him.”.

Someone in the group responded to the inn keeper, saying…” You did see Jesus….remember the year of the census?”


The old innkeeper smiled while thinking back to the year of the census and what a shrewd business man he was….”The census…oh, I remember, many years ago, during the census, everyone had to go to land of their fathers to be counted and taxed. That is when I had my inn in Bethlehem. In those days travelers would have to pay 2 prices to stay at my inn!” and he said that with a gleam in his eyes. I can still remember that great camel train that came in late that cold crisp night…with gold and silver weaved in the reigns of the camels. There must have been 10 or 11 camels in that train and I knew that rich merchant had come from far far away and being tired and would pay a premium price to stay in my inn. So of course, I keep the “best” rooms back for rich travelers that I knew would be arriving late in the night. I charged double for my rooms in those days. There were many folks that needed a room, in the City of David, but I just told everyone I had no rooms left! But I had secretly saved back my best rooms just for the rich travelers, arriving late. Being wise as I am, I wasn’t about to give away my best rooms to any of those poor travelers.” He smiled as he thought about what a crafty business man he was! “But I’ll assure you, if Jesus would have ever come to my inn, well, I would have given Him my very best room for free! But alas no one famous has ever comes to Bethlehem, he said sadly. I wish I could have see this man they called Jesus, Messiah. I wish Jesus would have come to Bethlehem, and stayed at my inn, I would have treated Him like a King.


Then one of the old grey beards said, “But he did come to Bethlehem.” And the Inn keeper asked puzzled, “Who?”. “He did come, Jesus did come to Bethlehem. And the Inn keeper said, “No, why, no, because if he ever came he would have surely stayed at my Inn, because I had the best inn in Bethlehem. No! Jesus never came to Bethlehem. I am sure!”

“No, He did come, Jesus really did come. Don’t you remember? On that cold night during the census…?”

And the old Inn keeper lifted his eyes up as if thinking back long ago….”No, I just don’t remember.” “Yes, the old man said. A man and a woman riding a donkey came from Galilee during the censes, and the woman was heavy with child.” “Oh, yes” the Inn keeper said, “I remember a young couple with a donkey. It was cold and late, and she was ready to give birth at any time, so they told me. But, you know, I had reserved my best room for the rich, so I told all the poor folks there was no rooms left in my inn, and for them to go elsewhere. But this poor couple begged me, so I let them sleep in the barn. And someone said that she gave birth that night…but, I really don’t know.”

“It was, that was Him.”

“ Who?”

“ That was Jesus.”

“ Who was Jesus?”

“ The baby that was born that night in your stable was Jesus. Jesus came to Bethlehem and came to your inn but you had no place for Him…”

And a deep sadness gripped the Inn keeper, as he thought back to that night, tears filled his eyes…. for the King of Kings had come to visit the Inn keeper, but he had just turned Him away.

Then the inn keeper spoke the saddest words ever,….”If I had only known…”