The King Who Chose to Become a Baby

There's something extraordinary about Christmas that often gets buried beneath the wrapping paper and holiday traditions. While we sing familiar carols and gather around twinkling lights, we can miss the stunning reality at the heart of it all: the eternal King of the universe chose to become a helpless infant.

A Song That Points Beyond the Manger
Consider the beloved Christmas carol "Joy to the World." Most of us have sung it countless times during the holiday season, never realizing that Isaac Watts, who penned these words in the 1700s, wasn't actually writing about Christmas at all. He was writing about the second coming of Christ.
Watts drew his inspiration from Psalm 98, which speaks of a future day when the whole earth will receive her King, when sins and sorrows will be no more, when all nations will prove the glories of His righteousness. The carol wasn't meant to celebrate Christ's first arrival as a baby in Bethlehem, but His triumphant return as the conquering King who will make all things right.
Yet we sing it at Christmas, and perhaps that's fitting. After all, there can be no second coming without the first. The baby in the manger and the returning King are the same person, and both advents reveal the same astounding truth: Jesus has always been King.

When Kings Are Born
Throughout history, there have been rare instances when someone became king at the moment of their birth. King John I of France became king the instant he was born in 1316 because his father had died months earlier. Alfonso XIII of Spain was called "His Majesty the King" from birth. These unusual cases happened when a reigning monarch died before their heir was born.
But here's what makes Jesus utterly unique: We've seen babies become kings, but we've never seen a King choose to become a baby.
Jesus didn't inherit a throne at birth. He already possessed the throne of heaven. He was the Creator who spoke light into existence in Genesis 1. He was the eternal God who needed nothing and lacked nothing. Yet He chose to leave that throne, to set aside His divine privileges, and to enter His own creation as a vulnerable infant born to a teenage girl in a backwater town.

The Long-Awaited Promise
The story of this King's arrival wasn't sudden or unexpected. God had been preparing the world for His coming since the moment sin entered the garden. In Genesis 3:15, immediately after Adam and Eve's rebellion, God promised that one day a descendant of the woman would crush the serpent's head. This was the first whisper of Christmas, the first hint that God Himself would come to rescue His people.
The promise continued through Abraham, who was told his offspring would bless all nations. It echoed through Jacob's prophecy that the scepter would not depart from Judah until the rightful King came. Even a corrupt prophet named Balaam, hired to curse Israel, found himself proclaiming instead: "A star will come from Jacob, and a scepter will arise from Israel."
For over a thousand years, people waited. Prophets spoke. Scriptures accumulated. Expectations grew. And remarkably, people far beyond Israel's borders were watching too.

Wise Men and Worship
When we encounter the wise men in Matthew 2, we're meeting members of an elite group from ancient Babylon. These weren't merely astrologers or magicians. They were kingmakers, nobles who had the authority to declare who would rule. For centuries, they had preserved knowledge of Israel's prophecies about a coming King.
When they saw the sign in the heavens, they didn't hesitate. They traveled hundreds of miles, bringing an entourage that likely numbered in the dozens or hundreds. When they finally arrived, they asked a simple question: "Where is he who has been born King of the Jews?"
Notice the phrasing. Not "Where is he who will become king?" but "Where is he who has been born King?" They understood something profound: this child was already King at His birth because He had always been King.
The word used for their response to Jesus is telling. When they came to worship Him, they weren't just offering casual respect. The Greek word indicates complete prostration, falling face-down before someone of incomparably higher rank. In that culture, equals would greet each other with a kiss on the lips. Those of slightly lower rank would kiss on the cheek. But before the highest authority, before a supreme king, you would fall to the ground and blow kisses from a distance, acknowledging you weren't even worthy to approach.
These powerful men, who made kings in their own land, recognized they were in the presence of the King of all kings.

From Throne to Trough to Tree
The gospel message can be traced through a series of movements: from throne to trough to tree to tomb to throne.
Jesus began on the throne of heaven. He willingly descended to a feeding trough in Bethlehem. He lived a perfect life so He could go to the tree of Calvary and die in our place. He was laid in a tomb, but unlike every other king in history, He didn't stay there. He rose victorious and returned to the throne, where He sits today at the Father's right hand.
This is the King we celebrate at Christmas. Not a baby who would one day become important, but the eternal God who chose to become a baby so He could save us.

Living Between Two Advents
Right now, we live in the tension between Christ's first and second coming. The King has come, but His kingdom hasn't fully arrived. We see glimpses of His reign, but we also see brokenness, suffering, and sin all around us.
Revelation 21 gives us a preview of what's coming: a new heaven and new earth where God dwells with His people, where every tear is wiped away, where death, grief, crying, and pain are no more. The one on the throne will make all things new.
But here's the beautiful truth: while we wait for that day when everything will be made new, we can be made new right now. The King who left His throne to enter our world offers us the greatest gift imaginable—not just forgiveness, but transformation. Not just a better life, but eternal life in His kingdom.

The Only Question That Matters
The question isn't whether Jesus is King. Scripture makes that abundantly clear. The question is whether He is your King. Have you bowed before Him? Have you recognized that this baby in the manger is the Lord of all creation who came to save you from your sins?
One day, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. The only question is whether we'll do so in love and gratitude as citizens of His kingdom, or in judgment as those who rejected His gracious offer.
This Christmas, as you sing "Joy to the World," remember that it's not just a nostalgic carol about a baby born long ago. It's a declaration that the King has come, and He's coming again. And the greatest gift you could ever receive is already available: Jesus Himself.
You can have all this world. Just give me Jesus.