For Di Fifteenth Year of Tiberius

Emperor. Governor. Kings. High priests. Luke call di name of every powerful person for di land. Then e tell us where di word of God really land. No be for palace. Na for desert. On top one man wey dem call John.

About thirty years don pass since dat night for Bethlehem. Di baby don grow become man for Nazareth. Di shepherds wey see di angels don old now, or dem don die. And Luke, wey carefully investigate everything from di beginning, want make im readers know say dis no be tale by moonlight wey happen once upon a time. E happen for real time for history, for real place, with names wey you fit check. So e set di scene like historian.

For di fifteenth year wey Tiberius Caesar dey rule, Luke write. Tiberius na di emperor of Rome, di master of di whole Mediterranean world. Pontius Pilate na governor of Judea. Herod Antipas, one son of Herod di Great, dey rule Galilee. Im brother Philip dey rule di land for di north-east side. One man wey dem call Lysanias dey rule Abilene. And Annas and Caiaphas na di high priests for Jerusalem. Seven names of power. Rome, Jerusalem, palaces and temple. If you want know where di important things dey happen, na there you go look.

But then Luke write: di word of God come meet John, di son of Zechariah, for di wilderness. John. Di baby wey old Zechariah and Elizabeth born, di cousin of Jesus, wey grow up and live for desert. No be for di emperor court. Even no be for di temple, where im papa serve as priest. Na for di wilderness. And John come enter all di area around River Jordan, dey preach baptism of repentance for forgiveness of sins. Turn back, e talk. Change your heart. Make una ready.

Luke talk say na dis one di prophet Isaiah don write long before. Di voice of one person wey dey shout for di wilderness: make una prepare di way of di Lord, make una straighten im road. For dat time, when king wan come visit, workers go go ahead to repair di road: dem go fill di pothole, cut di bumps, straighten di corners. Isaiah see whole valleys wey dem fill, and mountains wey dem bring down. And Luke quote di last line of Isaiah with special joy. All human beings go see di salvation of God. Everybody. No be only di powerful people for Luke list. Everybody.

Di names wey Luke call na real names. For nineteen sixty-one, archaeologists for Caesarea, for di coast of Israel, find one stone wey dem write Pontius Pilate name on top, as prefect of Judea. For nineteen ninety, dem find one fine bone box for Jerusalem wey dem write di name Joseph son of Caiaphas on top, and plenty scholars believe say e belong to di high priest. And Roman historians tell us say Tiberius become emperor for AD fourteen, so im fifteenth year fall around AD twenty-eight or twenty-nine.

For Di Fifteenth Year of Tiberius. You go find am for Luke chapter three, verse one to six. Di promise of Christmas no stay inside manger. E enter di stage of real history. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. Wetin fit need straightening for your own heart, to prepare di way for Jesus?