STUDY THEME: CHRISTMAS: GOD’S GRACE REVEALED 12-22-02

"SENDING THE SAVIOR." LUKE 1: 8-20

LUKE 2: 8-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-20.

PLEASE OPEN YOUR BIBLE TO LUKE 2.

Most of the world will not celebrate the birth of Christ this year. Many have not yet heard His name. To others He was no more than another figure in history. The secular-minded folks will celebrate the holiday season, but it is a celebration of time off from work, indulgence in materialism, and participation in parties.

In the biblical world-view, Jesus’ birth has eternal implications. His birth signals God’s acting to redeem people from their sins. God fulfilled His promises of a Savior and graciously offered salvation to all people who will put their faith in Jesus. Christmas is the celebration of God’s priceless gift of Himself. It is God become man. The eternal, unchanging, all knowing, all powerful, ever present God of the universe, born as a human child just like each of us. Doesn’t that sort of blow your mind? Doesn’t it fill you with a sense of awe, wonder, at the incomprehensibility of the whole scenario.

What should be our response to this unthinkable truth? I’ve been reflecting this week on the Christmas season, and on its place in our culture, and in our faith. I’ve been thinking about what our response should be to God as we celebrate the birth of our Savior. And I’ve come to one conclusion: our response must be one of worship. Worship of the Christ child, yes, but more so, worship of God become flesh.

The first seven verses of Luke 2 describe the birth of Jesus. The first public announcement of Jesus’ birth was made by an angel, to shepherds. The angel told them that he had come to tell them good news of great joy for all people. He called the new child Savior, Christ, and Lord. A Savior is someone who confronts all the sin of the world with regal authority based upon His redeeming power. Christ is Someone confronting all the chaos of the world; the Messiah. Lord is One Who confronts all eternity and all ages; and "He is born today," said the angel. Jesus is called Savior only two times in all the four Gospels. Here and in John 4:42.

The greeting on one certain Christmas card goes like this: "Christmas is just plain weird. What other time of year do you sit around staring at a dead tree in your living room and eat candy out of your socks?"

There are some things about Christmas that are pretty weird. A virgin teen becoming pregnant, a baby who would save the world from its sins, a God who wanted to become a human being. That’s some pretty weird stuff. But to us, the supernatural will always seem odd. As one person once said, "If miracles happened all the time we would just call them "ordinary."

Talk about something weird; Something odd; Something out of the ordinary. Imagine you are a honest, hard-working sheep tender. Enjoying a calm evening on the hills outside the city of Bethlehem. But the Bible says it better than I can.

In the first seven verses Luke established the birth of Jesus as an event in history by giving the date and location of these happenings. The political ruler with the greatest authority at that time was the Roman emperor Caesar Augustus. Although he appeared to be in control by requiring a census, God revealed His sovereignty as He used this occasion to move Joseph and Mary from Nazareth to their ancestral home of Bethlehem. Thus the birth of Jesus occurred there as the fulfillment of several prophecies.

The crowded conditions in Bethlehem made it necessary for the birth of Jesus to be in an animal shelter where He was placed in a manger. How fitting that this One who came to be the "bread of life" was born in a town whose name means "House of Bread"; and placed in a feeding trough! But even more appropriate is the fact that the arrival of the One who came for the salvation of all persons should first be announced to shepherds.

When we visited Israel we were in Bethlehem observing a cave in which the guide said was the place of Jesus birth. Then he pointed to a field nearby and said, "That is the field of Boaz, where Ruth gleaned." He said it was also the field where the shepherds tended their sheep the night Jesus was born. You sometimes have to take the word of the guide with a bit of salt.

Apparently these shepherds had driven their separate flocks together in the open and were keeping watch during the night over the flocks. They could then take turns resting and standing guard. Since Bethlehem is a suburb of Jerusalem, it is likely that a large part of these flocks were intended for temple sacrifices.

Now step back for a moment. Imagine you’re God and you want to announce to most amazing, incredible, joyous news ever; an event which will literally change the course of history—the birth of your only Son, Jesus Christ. The birth of the One who will be the Savior of the whole world; The One for whom the nation of Israel has been waiting and hoping and praying for many years. Finally, He has come! Who do you announce it to? Who do you tell? Who do you invite to come and see?

So why did God send the angels first to the shepherds? Several possible answers have been proposed, such as the fact that Jesus Himself is later called the Good Shepherd, caring for us as His flock. But I prefer a simpler explanation. God wanted to show that His love does not discriminate on the basis of class, or wealth, or social standing. He does not respect kings and princes more than hourly laborers, He does not value priests and pastors above the people in the pews. God does not show favoritism; He does not give preferential treatment to one group of people over another. His love is available to all on the same basis—faith in Jesus Christ, and faith alone.

God was demonstrating, by His choice of these humble shepherds that His love is offered indiscriminately to anyone who will repent and believe; anyone who will trust in Him as Savior.

Paul makes this same point in his first letter to the Corinthians in 1 Cor. 2:26-37: "Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things---and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before Him. It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God---Let those who boast, boast in the Lord."

So there they are, at night, watching their sheep. In all probability these were temple shepherds watching flocks intended for sacrifice. It was just like 1000 other nights. And then suddenly life changes forever. Suddenly, an angel appears in front of them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them. The angel choir sang the songs for Jesus that it was impossible for the earthly choirs to sing. There is no peace on earth, except among men in whom God is well pleased. The "peace" of which the angels sang is peace with God, a peace that Christ will bring. It is a lovely thought that those who looked after the temple lambs were the first to see the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."

What does it take to terrify a group of tough guys? In this case, all it took was the glory of the Lord. The angel shows up, and they are terrified. What do you think might have been running through their minds? Assuming they recognized it as God’s doing, that explains their fear? I think it is the same fear Isaiah had, and that you and I have. We are confronted with the holiness of God and are immediately, painfully aware of our own sinfulness. And in the face of the glory of a holy God, our sinfulness give us reason to be afraid.

We think that God has finally come to get us; that everything we have ever done that is wrong is about to be revealed and we will be punished. But that is not the case here, it wasn’t for Isaiah, and it isn’t for us. I believe that for the vast majority of us, God’s first message is one of forgiveness and salvation and hope. It was for Isaiah, it was for the shepherds. I believe it is for us also. So the angel’s words to the shepherds are for us also! "Do not be afraid! I bring you good news of great joy!"

The initial response of the shepherds was terror. This is not an inappropriate response by the way. It is an honest response. It is a response out of the recognition of the greatness of God contrasted by our own sinfulness. And so this leads me to two conclusions: first, we had better not stay in terror when God’s next words are "Do not be afraid." We had better go beyond that to recognize God’s great desire to come into relationship with us as His children. But alongside that, and this is my second conclusion, we had better never forget that God is God! We had better always approach Him with a recognition of who He is. We dare never get to a place of casual indifference, or of demand, or of taking Him for granted. What I mean is that we need always to show respect and honor in the midst of intimacy with God.

Luke tells us the shepherds were busy in the fields, and that they were well down the social ladder. They were likely hard men, callused, rough, certainly dirty and likely uncouth. And yet, to them God revealed the entrance of God into humanity with the most clarity, The most fanfare. Think about it: Joseph had a dream; The innkeeper was surprised; the Magi followed a simple star, and only after they show up did the theologians have a go at deciphering the location. Mary? You could make a good case that she had more information and clarity than the shepherds.

It was actually the angel Gabriel that visited her and laid out the plan. And I would grant you that point: but the shepherds got a visit from a great company of the heavenly host! They got in on the heavenly party itself! They certainly got a glimpse of the fanfare and the celebration in the heavenly realms that surrounded the birth of Jesus. And isn’t that just like God? Doesn’t it confirm the heart of the message of Christ’s coming into the world, that He came for sinners, that He didn’t come for the elite of humanity, but to the rest of us. In fact he came for you and me.

We may not resemble the shepherds on the outside. On the outside, on the surface we look like descent, respectable folks (at least most of us do). But on the inside, apart from Christ, we are just like those shepherds. We are grubby, low lives. And it is to us that Jesus came!

The shepherd’s response is a model of how people ought to respond to God’s word. (1.) They accepted it as God’s word. This is seen in the words "which the Lord hath made know unto us." They had heard the voices of angels, but they received the words as being from God. (2.) They decided to obey God’s word. This is seen in what they "said one to another. (3.) They recognized the urgency of the need to respond. The angel had stressed "this day." They said "Let us go now."(4,) They followed through with their decision and saw Jesus for themselves. (5.) They told others what they had seen and heard. (6.) They "returned, glorifying and praising God." Earlier the heavenly hosts had done this; now after seeing Jesus, the shepherds did the same. In Vs. 19 "Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart." She must often have recalled the events of that first day in the life of Jesus, especially when she stood at the foot of the cross years later.

The shepherds thus became not only the first people to hear the Christmas message but also the first to have the privilege of telling others. Apparently the shepherds were considered respectable enough for the people of Bethlehem to listen to their strange message.

Thus the shepherds became the first witnesses for Christ.

Suppose the shepherds had not gone to see Jesus. Picture one of them in old age telling his grandchild of the angels’ appearance and words. Then the child asks her grandfather: "Was it true? Did you find the wondrous Child?" The old man would have to shake his head sadly and say, "I don’t know. You see, we never went to see."

Some people today fail to go to Jesus for themselves. They will never know the salvation and joy that going to Him brings. But the real shepherds did go and found for themselves the truth of what the angels had said. Then they went and told others what they had seen.

Christmas is an opportunity to give thanks to the Lord for the gift of His Son and for the salvation He made possible. It is a time of celebration for Churches and families—a celebration that honors the Lord. It is a time for prayer and for giving to missions—the cause for which Jesus came, to reach the lost. I have found much joy through giving to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions so all people can hear this good news that the angels first announced. Many people still have not heard this good news. So we sing:

Go tell it on the mountain. Over the hills and ev’rywhere,

Go tell it on the mountain. That Jesus Christ is born!

While Shepherds kept their watching O’er silent flocks by night,

Behold thro’-out the heavens, There shone a holy light.

The shepherds feared and trembled When lo! Above the earth

Rang out the angel chorus That hailed our Savior’s birth.

Down in a lowly manger The humble Christ was born,

And God sent us salvation That blessed Christmas morn.

Go tell it on the mountain, Over the hills and ev’rywhere

Go tell it on the mountain That Jesus Christ is born!

NEXT SUNDAY FROM MATTHEW 2 THE WISE MEN COME FROM THE EAST TO WORSHIP THE CHRIST CHILD IN BETHLEHEM.   DAUGHERTY 12-22-02