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Luke 2:1-20
Doesn't it seem like you wait for so long for Christmas Day to arrive. Sometimes you think it will never get here. As a child I can remember thinking that the days between Thanksgiving and Christmas just dragged by as those presents began building up under the freshly cut spruce my dad and I would walked through 3 feet of snow for 5 hours looking for. At least that is the story we always told my mom. Each day the house became more and more filled with the aroma of warm freshly baked sugar cookies, my favorite kind, in case you were wondering, or have any left over. By Christmas Eve, I had already shaken and jostled each present several thousand times, and thought I had a pretty good sense of what lay awaiting me in each one. Oh I hoped it was that big yellow Tonka truck that would complete my set of earth moving toys. Could it be, would it be. I wanted it so badly. I wondered if I could wish it into being.
Then the time came. The Swedish meatballs and lefsa had all been disposed of in a ravenous fashion, as nothing could distract me from the treasures that lay under the lighted spruce. My impatience and anxiety almost erupted in anger, as I was told we would have to wait until the dishes had been cleared and put away. How can anyone think about dishes at a time like this! My heart pounded more and more as my dad read the Christmas story from the big black family Bible that had neat colorful illustrations in it. I wondered why they never made them in a pocket version. Then, those words, the final words from the Christmas story--something about shepherds returning and telling everyone what they had seen. That was exactly what I wanted to do, open my gifts and then go and tell everyone what I got.
In an attempt to stem the tide of mass hysteria, our family had a rule, or maybe even a law, that the presents would be handed out in an orderly fashion and opened one at a time. One at a time! There must be 100 presents under there, this could take hours. The anxiety was excruciating. As you grow older you understand better how to appreciate the joy in your aunt Ceila's face as she opens a present containing Windsong perfume, but as a child, it is an almost unbearable torture. Why can't she get that ribbon off, here let me help---just rip it! Oh please hurry, me next. The tension was building at such an alarming rate I began wondering if the odd feeling in my stomach was just nerves or possibly the lutefisk. None of that mattered now, however. It was my turn.
Here it was the grand daddy of all gifts. Never had a finely wrapped present been ravaged with such terror before. The room was a hurricane of bows and ribbons and wrapping paper. Next came the box. Oh why do they tape them shut with that defense department tape which can only be severed with a laser or possibly, if you are lucky a hacksaw. Scissors! Somebody please get the scissors. Yes! Styrofoam squeaks next caused our dog to whimper but then, finally, there it was--gleaming with the brilliance of a thousand suns. The Tonka 950 Super Loader with Traction Tires. Oh it was beautiful. My worrying and waiting had now been turned into joy and exhilaration.
The rest of the night was somewhat anticlimactic as socks and underwear don't provoke quite the same response that Truck did. That night as I lay in my bed, truck beside me, I couldn't believe it was over already. The wait had seemed so long, and I just wanted to hang on to the feelings and the emotions and sounds and smells just a little while (yawn) longer. But you know, it was a good Christmas, and really when all was said and done, I looked back and realized that more important than all the presents and hoopla, Jesus was my Savior. And that was the best feeling of all.
Now how did those verses from Luke 2:1-20 go again? Let me see where is my Bible, ah yes here it is, why don't you follow along with me as I read Luke 2:1-20.
1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to his own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 "Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
As I have been thinking about this Christmas series of messages, I realized that the traditional Christmas texts don't get preached much any more because pastor's are always looking for other passages to preach from and other ways to present the Christmas message. I have done this myself the last 3 years. But then I began to think that I myself had not heard a Christmas sermon preached from Matthew 1 or Luke 2 in many many years. And do you know what? I missed it. So here we are.
Now there is several ways this familiar passage can be approached. One is to hyper analyze the dates and times of year to try to come up with the exact day and year Jesus was born. And as much as I think a historical look at the Bible is important, you must ask yourself the question, You know Luke is no dummy, and he is being inspired by the Holy Spirit, if he and God wanted us to know for certain the exact day and exact year of Christ's birth, Luke certainly could have just come right out and told us. But he didn't. Why is this? Well it gets back to something we referred to last week in our look at Matthew. The books of Bible, the gospel of Luke included, were written to convey theological messages and theological truths. Now certainly there are historical facts and events, but the author only mentions those to set the stage for the theological message he wants us to learn. So this morning we will only look briefly at the historical references and focus in on what Luke wants to teach us about Jesus and about God.
I. The Advent
II. The Meaning of the Advent
III. The Reaction to the Advent
I. The Advent
Advent means "coming" or "appearance." And we are about to discover how the pre-existent Jesus came to be a man.
Luke sets the historical stage, as we have said, here by placing Jesus birth within a particular time frame, but note again, he does not give us, nor apparently feel we need to know the exact time and date of Christ's birth. We know that Augustus is the emperor of Rome at the time (27bc to 14ad) and he has decreed that a census be taken. We are not certain whether this was a special census or just the regular every 14 year census of Rome, but whatever the case, the Roman emperor has decreed that everyone must return to his home town to register. The emperor is probably doing this so he can use the information to tax the people within the Roman ruled world. At least that is what he thinks he is doing.
Notice verse 4. We are told that Joseph, who belonged to the line of David (which Luke will trace for us in chapter 3) must leave his home in Nazareth and go to Bethlehem, the town of David. In verse 5 we find out that he takes Mary with him to register. Mary is still his betrothed and she is expecting her baby. Joseph surely did not want to leave Nazareth and his very pregnant wife. But he knew he must, by Roman order. So he decided to take Mary with him on the 65 mile journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem. This idea probably did not appeal to Mary much either, but there didn't appear to be much choice.
All these events seem to be happening by coincidence, for one reason or another, but God was orchestrating everything. The prophecy of Micah said that the Messiah was going to be born in Bethlehem. But how was this going to happen, Joseph and Mary lived in Nazareth. How will God get them to Bethlehem so the baby can be born there. In the somewhat ironic fashion God is often fond of, he has the evil Roman emperor issue a decree. Augustus thinks it is a great idea, because he will be able to raise taxes--he must have been a liberal. But his own decree brings about the fulfillment of a 400 year old prophecy which will deliver a true King to earth. Once again we see that God can and does use anyone to accomplish his holy and perfect plan. I think it is fascinating.
So now Joseph and Mary, at the orders of Augustus, are on there way to Bethlehem. I think it must have been a very long journey for them. Mary, 9 months pregnant. Joseph, probably still confused about the whole past year and how everything in his life is changing so rapidly.
Perhaps it was because of all of these things going on in his mind, that Joseph was not able to make any advanced plans for where to stay when they got to Bethlehem. The little village swelled to 3 times it's normal size for the census, and there were just no rooms available anywhere. Kind of like how it will be here during SuperBowl week. We are told that there was no room for them in the inn. Sometimes we think of this "inn" as being like a hotel where one would ride up, park your donkey out front and go check in with the manager. But this really wasn't the case. An "inn" as described here by Luke was probably more like just a family home that perhaps was more like a bed-and-breakfast. A local family would rent out rooms when there was an event in town, and they probably made a small fortune during census times.
Joseph and Mary were poor though, and they didn't have much money, and they were unable to find a spare room anywhere in the city. So instead they must have found a small shelter, perhaps a cave, where animals sometimes are kept, and made it home. It was probably cold and damp and smelly, but at least it was a place to sleep.
Luke tells us that while they were there, it came time for Mary to have her baby. Can you imagine how Joseph must have initially responded to that. "Joseph, it's time." "Time for what? OH, you mean its time! Oh brother, what else can happen? You know God, you sure have an odd way of bringing a Savior into the world." Odd yes, but exactly the way it had been prophesied. The almighty of the universe, God the creator and sustainer's son was born in a shelter, wrapped in strips of dirty cloth, and laid in an animals food trough. What is Luke conveying to us about this Messiah?
The Messiah came not to be an earthly King dressed in purple and honored. No, this Messiah, came to humble himself, be a man, live a poor life, and serve others. This was the absolute antithesis of what most Jews expected, and yet here he was, the Savior of the world, a tiny baby. Think of it. Infinite yet infant, eternal, yet born of a woman, almighty God, yet nursing from his mothers breast, sustainer of the universe, yet needed to be carried in his mothers arms. King of angels, and reputed son of Joseph, heir of all things, and yet wrapped in rags, Ruler of the earth, yet rejected by men, Prince of Peace, yet hated and despised, holy and perfect yet would be nailed to a tree like a common criminal.
II. The Meaning of the Advent
That was Jesus at his first Advent. But what did his coming into the world really mean. Lets look at Luke's account again and see what he tells us. Look at verses 8-14.
Shortly after Jesus birth, angels reveal this amazing event to all the kings of the world. Nope. They reveal that Jesus the messiah had been born to the chief priests and Pharisees. Nope. The angels visit shepherds in a field nearby. Shepherds!? They weren't the bottom rung on the ladder in that day, but you could sure see it from where they were. Shepherds were usually considered dirty, ceremonially unclean, and often they were thought of as cheats and untrustworthy. Not a very likely group of people to approach with such lofty and significant news. Again though, what is Luke's purpose in telling us this? That the Messiah has not come into the world for those who think themselves important, but rather for those who are outcasts.
Within the proclamation of the angels is a great message. As we said last week, the angel proclaimed that he was bringing "good news" of "great joy." The Greek word translated "good news" here is euangelizo. It basically meant to bring a favorable or good message to someone. Hereafter though, the word becomes synonymous for the NT writers with the Gospel. The whole story of Jesus and salvation become known as the Gospel or the "Good News."
And not only was this good news, the angel also tells the shepherds that it will bring an incredibly great joy for all people. The word here for people usually denoted the people of Israel, but Luke might be implying here that in fact this Savior has come for than just Israel.
Then look at verse 11 with me. Through the words of the angel, Luke defines precisely for us who this baby really is. First of all, he is a Savior. A deliverer, a rescuer, one who is able to save people from destruction. Remember what we said his name was and meant? Jesus is really Yeshua, which mean Yahweh is salvation. God's purpose for sending his son to earth. Then he says that this Savior is Christ the Lord. Literally in the Greek it is "Christos Kurios" or Christ Lord. Not only is Jesus the Savior, he is also God's anointed one--which is the Greek word Christ or the Hebrew word Messiah. He has been chosen by God and anointed as King. But, he is also Lord. The word Kurios is used in the Septuagint often to translate God's Holy and perfect name Yahweh. This lets us know that Jesus is God himself, in the ultimate sense.
The angel tells the shepherds to go find this baby and instructs them how they will recognize him. Again, the irony of it all. You will find the Savior of the world, Christ the Lord, wrapped in rags and lying in a feed trough. You wonder if the shepherds didn't maybe have to laugh to themselves for a minute.
But just then, a great company, or literally an army of angels joined with the angel in the sky and began praising God by saying, "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." Kind of ironic again here that an "army" of angels was singing about peace. I remember when I first read the NIV translation of this verse I found it a bit awkward. I was use to the KJV and its familiar "goodwill to men" line. But the NIV better translates the thought here by telling us that Jesus Christ has come into the world as a Savior, and because of that, there will be peace for men on earth, whom God favors. The emphasis is on God, and whom he chooses and not men choosing God. God always acts first. God will bring some to salvation and thereby create peace between God and man which man has broken by his sin. As we have studied in James, to continually sin is to set yourself up as an enemy of God. But God in his good pleasure has chosen to bring peace to those he chooses to bestow mercy on. That is the meaning of the Advent.
III. The Reaction to the Advent
How did the shepherds respond to this incredible revelation. First, they recognized that it was truly a sign from God. They admit that it was the Lord that sent this message to them in verse 15. The angels were simply the messengers of God, and were not to be worshipped themselves. Our culture would do well to follow the example of these lowly shepherds. Instead many have begun to glorify angels over and above God and Jesus. They have become popular and the focus of a lot of attention. Attention which I believe ultimately detracts from God and from his son Jesus.
Secondly, the shepherds hurried off. They didn't wait around until daybreak or until they made sure everything was secured. This was more important than their daily earthly concerns. Does Jesus have that effect on you, or do you think that once everything is organized and you can schedule Him in, then you will go to him? Are you willing to put aside the world to come to Jesus?
Finally, the shepherds spread the word. They saw Jesus, and recognized that what the angels had said about him was true, however ironic. Jesus, the baby, was truly the Savior and the Christ and Lord. Even though they didn't see him do miracles or didn't fully understand what this all meant, the shepherds trusted that what God has said was true, and they acted on that faith and told others. Have you done that? Have you acted on your faith and told someone else about the Jesus you have seen and know? Think back. When was the last time you shared your Jesus with someone? Has it been that long? Why?
As I laid in my bed with my Tonka truck beside me, I was kind of rapt in wonder by the joy of the day and my new gleaming toy. I wanted to tell all my friends what I had received for Christmas. The shepherds were rapt in wonder at what they saw. The were taken over by the awesomeness of God and the incredible truth of this baby Jesus. It made them want to tell others about him. Is that your experience with Jesus. Are you ever rapt in wonder at what he has done for you? You should be? Jesus coming to earth was the greatest gift ever given--Savior, Christ, Lord. But many of us just stand in our field of sheep and say, "Ah, what is the big deal." Others of us are just curious enough to take a peek at the baby, but then walk away scoffing at what we have just seen, denying what we know is true. And still others of us, see Jesus, acknowledge who he is, and then simply go home in silence, afraid or embarrassed to tell others who he really is.
That is not the response Luke wants us to have. Luke wants us to know who Jesus really is and respond to that by telling other about this miraculous event. We call it Christmas now, but it is really about Jesus my savior. Won't you come to him. Won't you accept him into your life. Won't you believe in him and tell others about him. You know my friends, that is the only way celebrate Christmas. Make this Christmas real. Because Jesus came to earth 2000 years ago, and he is coming again soon.