JESUS SAVES
What is something you would love to add to your celebration of Christmas? Today we look at the birth of Jesus and we are reminded that He came to be with us. He is Immanuel, God with us. The Christmas story is a familiar one to many. However, familiarity may cause many people to lose sight of what God accomplished with the birth of Jesus and the reason He came. Of many just don’t believe Jesus is God. Unfortunately, there are so many people who leave Jesus in the manager, and fail to look beyond His birth to discover that God came to earth to bring us to Himself. So, Jesus was born to bring us into a relationship with God.
Read Luke 2:4-7
The Gospel of Matthew begins with the genealogy from Abraham to Jesus. Then Matthew writes how Jesus was born, with no background or great detail. The Gospel of Mark begins with the prophecy from Isaiah about how John the Baptist would be sent to prepare the way for the Messiah. Mark does not write about the birth of Jesus. The Gospel of John begins by stating that Jesus existed before the birth. Then John writes about why John the Baptist came but does not tell about Jesus’ earthly birth. The Gospel of Luke is the only account of the birth of John the Baptist and that the mother of John the Baptist and Mary (mother of Jesus) were cousins. Luke then describes the birth of both John and Jesus. Luke also tells us more details about Jesus’ birth than does Matthew or the others. So, when we read about Jesus’ birth at Christmas, we almost always go to Luke.
Here we see that Joseph and Mary was facing discomfort and a lot of inconvenience. They may have thought that they may have misread God’s will or that God had made a mistake in having them travel so far because Mary was “with baby”. We all probably have all thought at some time that you were being obedient so why aren’t things going better. God did not soften Joseph and Mary’s bumpy road, but strengthened them. God did not provide a luxurious inn for Joseph and Mary, but brought His Son into the world in humble surroundings. When we see God’s will, we are not guaranteed comfort and convenience. But we are everything, even discomfort and inconvenience, has meaning to God’s plan. He will guide us and provide all we need. Like Joseph, live each day by faith, trusting in God.
When Mary gave birth, she wrapped baby Jesus “snugly in strips cloth” (NLT). Strips of cloth were used to keep the baby warm and give the baby a sense of security. These cloths were thought to protect the internal organs of the baby. The custom of wrapping babies this way is still practiced in many Mid-eastern countries. In the U.S., babies are wrapped to keep them warm if the child is the first born. However, the second baby may be lucky to even get a blanket.
Read Luke 2:8-14
God continued to reveal the news about His Son, but not to those we might expect. Luke records that Jesus’ birth was announced to shepherds in the fields. These may have been the shepherds who supplied the lamb for the temple sacrifices that were performed for the forgiveness of sins. Here the angels invited these shepherds to greet the Lamb of God (John 1:36), who would take away the sins of the world forever. What a birth announcement! The shepherds were terrified, but their fear turned to joy as the angels announced the Messiah’s birth. First the shepherds ran to see the baby. Then, they spread the word. Jesus is our Messiah, our Savior. We have discovered a Lord so wonderful that we should that we can’t help but “spreading the word” like the shepherds did.
While the sheep were considered valuable, the shepherds were among the lowest members of the Jewish society. Many were known to be dishonest, and they were unclean in respect to the Jewish ceremonial laws. The fact that the shepherds played such an important role in the nativity account, indicates how Jesus came to restore those who were “sinners” and social outcasts- the least of these. The choice was deliberate. Since the gospel is for all people, “polite society”. But God would not exclude them from the good news.
Verse 11 focuses on the One whose coming was heralded. Each of the three titles- Savior, Christ, Lord-is significant. The word Savior was familiar to Jews and Gentiles. It meant healer, deliverer, benefactor. It was a word often used of the great men of the day. Caesar Augustus, for example, was often heralded as a savior. Christ means Messiah, the anointed one to rule as King in fulfillment of God’s promises to David. Lord is the word used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament to represent Yahweh, thus it speaks of the divine nature of the One who was born.
The angel who spoke verses 10-12 was joined by a heavenly host who praised God with theses words: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests” (v. 14 NIV). Some translations have “peace to men of good will”. The word translated “good will” is consistently used of God’s goodwill, not humanity’s. A paraphrase of this passage would be, “peace to people who are the objects of God’s good will”. The angels were not distinguishing a select group of people of goodwill on whom God bestowed His blessings. Rather, the heavenly host praised God for the good news of great joy to all people described in verse 10. This indicates that some translations were not done as accurately as they should. (I will try to remember to copy the chart that tells how accurately all translations are and bring a copy for all.)
Read Luke 2:15-20
The shepherds were not only the first to hear the proclamation of the good news, but they also were the first humans to tell others. They were quick to respond to the announcement by the heavenly messengers, and they were equally diligent to make this known to others. They also returned praising God for what they had seen and heard. The reference to Mary’s pondering all these things in her heart (v.19) probably means that Luke considered her the source of much of what is told in Luke 1:5- 2:52. This is the same statement made in 2:51.
The greatest event in history had just happened. The Messiah had been born! For the ages the Jews had been waiting for this, and when it finally occurred, the announcement came to humble the shepherds. The Good News of Jesus is that He came to all, including the plain and ordinary. He comes to anyone with a heart humble enough to accept Him. Whoever we are, whatever we do, Jesus is there for any of us to accept through belief. We don’t need extraordinary qualifications- He accepts us as we are.
The story of Jesus’ birth resounds with music that has inspired composers for 2,000 years. In fact, Isaiah chapter 9 has inspired one of the greatest musicals of all time – Handel’s Messiah. I had the blessing of leading a good portion of this musical with a choir in The First Baptist church of Klamath Falls Or. in 1965. The angels’ song, here in Luke, is often called the “Gloria” after its first word in the Latin translation, is the basis for many modern choral works, traditional Christmas carols, and ancient liturgical chants.
