Answers Bible Curriculum Year 3 Quarter 1 Lesson 8
This week in Sunday school, we look at the birth of Jesus. Though we may feel very familiar with Luke’s account of Christ’s birth, how much of what we “know” is actually just tradition and not really found in the Bible? Moreover, has familiarity made us the lose the sense of wonder of what really happened in the incarnation? How should the Son of God’s incarnation impact our lives today? We’ll consider these questions and more.
Our main text will be Luke 2:1-20.
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it’s really good to be back thank you for being here for Sunday School let us begin We are continuing our study of the gospels today and our lesson is entitled the birth of Christ last week we looked at God’s announcements to both Zacharias and Mary regarding what God was about to do and God affirmed that the two children that would be born of them would begin the Fulfillment of God’s many Old Testament prophecies to bring Salvation and restoration to Israel and not just to Israel but to the world at first child John would be the Forerunner and then the second child Jesus would be the king would be the Messiah would be the Son of God himself everything was taking place and this is what we emphasized last week everything was taking place according to God’s perfect glorious plan it’s a plan that exalts the humble and shames the proud as a plan that includes everyone even the outcasts of Israel even the Gentiles and this had always been God’s plan now what was man to do in response to this plan he was to believe it was to rejoice and he was to live a life that demonstrated submission to that plan now today we’re going to see a little bit more of what we’ve looked at we’re going to see more of just what an astounding salvation plan God has always had and we’ll see what an astounding savior God has always had that God has provided that he had planned to provide and that he did provide for all men now as we look further at the birth of Christ today it is again important for us to remind or I guess I’ll remind you to beware familiarity you probably know this chapter of the Bible or you may have you heard or read this chapter of the Bible more than any other because it’s so associated with Christmas how well do you really know the story of Christ’s birth the account of Christ’s birth have you fallen prey to certain Traditions about Jesus birth that actually aren’t in the Bible and even if you do know all the details of Jesus birth do you appreciate their magnitude let us come to this account with fresh eyes let’s put ourselves back in the place of Mary of Joseph of the Shepherds of the people of Israel and of the converts that were won Under Paul’s Ministry those Gentile converts let’s hear this account or let’s experience this account from their perspectives we cannot take this news lightly we are to be amazed and be affected once again by one of the most astounding one of the most Unthinkable events in history the Incarnation of God we’re going to be focusing on Luke Chapter 2 verses 1 to 20 today we’re going to read we’re going to read and observe the text we’ll interpret it and we’ll apply it to our lives that’s basically our outline for today this is our inductive Bible study method we’re going to see it in action let’s pray God thank you for answering our prayers to bring Emma and me back safely to Calvary I pray God that this time of Sunday school would be rich as we look at your word as we look at the account of Christ’s birth I pray God you give me the ability to explain it but I pray most of all that we would be affected by this word this is really amazing what we’re talking about I pray that you would help me do it display that and help the people to appreciate that understand that and apply it I pray God that you would bless this time work among your people amen okay open up your Bibles to Luke chapter 2.
if you’re using the Pew Bible That’s page 2020 Luke Chapter 2 we’re going to read verses 1 to 20.
this is the specific account of Christ’s birth Luke is the only one who gives us this information the other gospel accounts record things a little differently but Luke’s the only one who gives us what we see here so Luke Chapter 2 verses 1 to 20 let’s read now in those days decree went out from Caesar Augustus that a census be taken of all the inhabited Earth this was the first census taken while quirinius was governor of Syria and everyone was on his way to register for the census each to his own City Joseph also went up From Galilee from the city of Nazareth to Judea to the city of David which is called Bethlehem because he was of the house and family of David in order to register along with Mary who was engaged to him and was with child while they were there the days were completed for her to give birth and she gave birth to her first born son and she wrapped him in Claws and laid him in a Manger because there was no room for them in the Inn in the same region there were some Shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flocks by night and an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them and the glory of the Lord Shone around them and they were terribly frightened but the angel said to them do not be afraid for behold I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people for today in the city of David there has been born for you a savior who is Christ the lord this will be a sign for you you will find a baby wrapped in Claws and lying in a Manger and suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the Heavenly hosts praising God and saying glory to God in the highest and on Earth peace among men with whom he is pleased and when the Angels had gone away from them into heaven the Shepherds began saying to one another let us go straight to Bethlehem then and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us so they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph and the baby as he lay in the manger when they had seen this they made known the statement which had been told them about this child and all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the Shepherds but Mary treasured all these things but Mary treasured all these things pondering them in her heart the Shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen just as had been told them okay let’s begin our study of this text with simple observations notice the timing details and verses one and two we are in the reign of Caesar Augustus Augustus formerly known as Octavian became the first emperor of Rome after he defeated his last remaining rival Mark Anthony at the Battle of actium in Augustus kept the facade of a Roman Republic but in fact he ruled Rome as Emperor from 27 BC to ad14 so we know we’re within that range the text here says though that Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the whole world and we should understand the word the term whole world as all the Roman Empire but multiple senses were administered during Augustus Reign there was a cycle of censuses so Luke clarifies for his audience that he’s referring to the first census that occurred while quirinius was governor of Syria so with that information Luke’s audience is able to know the exact year that Luke is talking about but we’re not as familiar with the government or the time of government of coronius so we have to combine this information from Luke on the information we hear from Matthew and also what we’ve discovered via archeology to try and understand what year Luke is talking about I’m going to leave that puzzle for next week because next week we talk about Herod and that’s the final piece of the puzzle that the Bible gives us concerning the date the date of Christ’s birth but for now I will repeat that we’re looking at a date within or probably within the range of ad6 to 4. so 86 85 or 84 for Christ’s birth that’s the Year we’re in now notice verse 3. this census requires everyone requires everyone in Judea to return to a city of his ancestral tribe Joseph like Mary’s from the tribe of Judah and the line of David so he travels with Mary from Nazareth and Galilee which would be in Northern Israel to Bethlehem and Judea they’d be going south and both of them register there now think back to our previous lessons why is Bethlehem significant Old Testament prophecy about Bethlehem where was it not Malachi but close Micah Micah 5 2.
which says but as for you Bethlehem ephratha too little to be among the clans of Judah from you one will go forth for me to be ruler in Israel his going forth are from long ago from the days of Eternity so the Old Testament said Bethlehem this otherwise common not that important town it’s going to be the place where my ruler is going to come from that’s going to be the place where the Messiah comes from did Joseph and Mary know that when they were on their way maybe it was an but that’s the city that they end up going to also notice Luke uses the phrase the city of David he didn’t have to use that phrase this happens to be where David was from by using the phrase city of David what should this bring back to mind for the reader or hearer who’s at least somewhat familiar with the Old Testament exactly the davidic Covenant that God promised to David your your house is going to have the Throne of Israel forever and when we saw the the davidic line lose the kingship when the kingdom of Judah was ended we we are wondering about that promise when is the davidic king going to return so Luke includes that phrase the city of David and that should perk up his audience’s ears if they know anything about the davidic Covenant oh David ah the Messiah from the davidic line and so all of that is associated with Bethlehem now what form of transportation did Mary and Joseph use to get to Bethlehem donkey possibly but the text doesn’t say just says that they went to Bethlehem we don’t know what kind of Transport if they use their transport if they use an animal at all we don’t know if they did and we don’t know what kind of animal that they did that they used certainly the tradition is that they use a donkey but that’s not actually in the text we also don’t know how pregnant Mary was when she was uh traveling to Bethlehem our image is that she was very pregnant it’s like whoa get her to a place because she’s about to give birth that’s usually the way it’s represented but the Bible doesn’t actually say that the phrase here about when she gives birth simply says while she was there so that could have been immediately it could have been a little bit afterwards we’re not told specifically in the text but Mary does give birth and or she gives birth and we have Jesus her firstborn the one conceived by the Holy Spirit the one on whom all the promises of the Old Testament Center the one whom Gabriel would revealed would be called the son of God this Jesus comes into the world now notice what Mary does as soon as Jesus is born she raps newborn Jesus in swaddling Claws and lays him in a Manger now what’s a Manger feeding trough for animals this feeding trough was probably filled with straw and made into a makeshift bed or crib for the newborn babe imagine it was somewhat cleaned up too now notice the reason for Mary’s use of the manger it says four wait let me find it again or because there was no room for them in the Inn she laid him in the manger because there was no room for them in the end now this word in the word for in here is kataluma and it means literally lodging place so in is not a bad translation of that word and then it’s certainly a place where someone might launch but there is a good reason or there are good reasons for us to understand this word otherwise than in In this passage the word katalima only appears three times the New Testament one time here one other time in Luke and one time in Mark the other two times it is used and that’s Mark 14 14 and Luke 22 11. it is used to describe the upper room or the guest room in which Jesus has the Passover meal with his disciples the quotation is where is the katalima and which I may eat with my disciples where is their guest room that’s significant furthermore when in appears again in the Book of Luke when The New American Standard translates a word that means in Luke 10 34 that’s the parable of the Good Samaritan we have an Innkeeper there by the way an inn and an Innkeeper it’s not the same word it’s not kataluma it’s a different word also in the book of Acts which is also written by Luke we see another word translated in but it’s not kataluma in Acts 28 15 when Paul passes through the area known as the three Inns it’s not the word katalima it’s the word tavernay where we get Tavern and would Mary and Joseph really have wanted to stay in an inn s in the Greco-Roman world were not like our Inns or hotels today they were usually seedy places where prostitutes applied their trade most Travelers in the Roman World both Jew and Gentile did not go to an inn if they could help it the usual custom was to stay with a relative or friend in the area that you were traveling to this is also partly by the way this understanding of Inns in the Roman world this is also partly why the New Testament commands that Believers practice Hospitality to Christians the traveling Christians don’t make them stay in an inn bring them into your own home even if you don’t know them show Hospitality to your fellow brothers so we have this background of Inns and perhaps Inns in Judea weren’t as bad as elsewhere you’d hope at least the Jewish Inns wouldn’t be the same with the Indians and Jewish lands nevertheless the prevailing custom of travel at the time was to stay in someone’s guest room rather than in an inn so translating kataluma as guest room makes more sense in this context based on the historical background and really common sense I mean because think about it did Joseph and Mary really set out for Bethlehem with no idea of where they would stay wondering hoping there might be room in a local Inn no they probably had relatives in Bethlehem and they plan to stay with one of those relatives relatives that could help marry with the baby help her deliver the baby I mean because Joseph probably was young like Mary herself he’s never dealt with a baby before or labor what help is he going to be no she probably was they probably are going to rely on the help of some relatives but when they arrived in Bethlehem they found that this guest room that they were planning on staying in was already occupied after all many people were traveling to register for the census and another relative happened to Lodge in the same house so does this relative just toss them out on the street sorry guest room’s already occupied you gotta go no would we do that if one of our relatives showed up to our door sorry no room for you I’ve already got someone in our guest room oh we would make room somewhere else in the house and remember the Jews especially were focused on Hospitality it was a mark of Jewish respectability to be hospitable but never throw one of your relatives out onto the street so what does this relative do upon seeing Mary and Joseph in their clear need the relative clears other space in the home space that would be normally reserved for the animals for the animals at night because you see I’ll show you some pictures to illustrate this many Jewish Homes at this time had a small courtyard for animals they might keep that some chickens or a mule or a donkey or something like that normally during the day they’d be out in the courtyard but at night those animals will be brought inside the house into the first floor they’d be brought into what would normally be the living space for the people of the house that’s where they’d stay at night so then whomever is accommodating Joseph and Mary probably sets up the couple in this area normally used for animals where they normally would sleep and they help Mary deliver and take care of the baby the manger probably was part of the nightly setup for these animals or was simply taken from the courtyard as a place a convenient place to place Jesus so with some of this discussion you should be seeing by now that we have to check many of our modern Notions of what giving birth was like in ancient times because that’s not what it’s like for us at all today is it for us it’s the father and the mother going alone to the hospital and coming out with a baby but that’s nothing like what it was like in Jesus’s time on the contrary and ancient cultures you have the whole family coming together when someone is giving birth the whole family is coming together to help relatives coming together to help and celebrate the birth of a new member of the clan it was a family time and it’s not as if you say didn’t she have this baby without being married to Joseph wouldn’t they be shunning her because of that well later on in this chapter we see Joseph Mary and Jesus traveling to Jerusalem and they’re traveling with relatives both to and from relatives and acquaintances they were not outcasts from Jewish Society whatever people thought about her pregnancy they were still connected to their relatives and to other people they were not ostracized so having a family coming together having Joseph and Mary seeking to stay with a relative in their guest room makes sense therefore we probably should get rid of The Innkeeper stable the cave and other similar elements that come from our imaginary Recreations of the nativity these elements are simply tradition they do have strong tradition but they’re simply tradition and not really supported by what the Bible says or the Bible’s historical context but if you set up a nativity in your home and have a stable in the donkeys and all that kind of stuff you’re not doing you’re not sinning that’s okay now saying all this I don’t want you to think that Jesus being put into a feeding trough was normal that certainly was not common baby care practice also even though Jesus probably wasn’t born in a stable per se he nonetheless was born in a very humble setting there’s no glory even being born in a common house for common people in an area where animals normally sleep or in being laying in an animal’s feeding trough what Luke is describing then it’s a very poignant entry of the Son of God into the world this is how he came now it just so happened that there are also some Shepherds tending flocks in the same area at night tending flocks by night and so what class of society did Shepherds belong they’re low class lower class not not very important not very respected but notice what these Shepherds see suddenly an angel stands before them and the glory of the Lord shines all around them now what do we call the visible glory of the Lord the Shekinah the Shekinah glory of the Lord the special dazzling Glory of God’s presence and when was the last time in the Old Testament that God’s Shekinah Glory was seen on Earth yes when did that Glory depart the temple it did happen before the Exile what book of the Bible features a vision of that Glory departing the temple Ezekiel that’s right Ezekiel Ezekiel sees the glory of God departing he also sees the vision of the glory of God coming back at the prophecy of what God is going to do in the future but the glory Departed the visible Glory the visible um dazzling presence of God the sign of God’s presence left Israel but now we see that Shekinah again we see it back on Earth and it’s all around these Shepherds as this angel speaks to them and notice the shepherd’s response they are terribly afraid are we about to die they probably fought you see something Supernatural like that you think your life is about to end but notice what the angel says and we’re not surprised by this by now because we’ve seen it twice already in the Book of Luke do not be afraid don’t fear why for I bring you good news of great joy which will be for whom for all the people I just set off a little alarm Bell in your mind ding ding ding all the people what was Luke’s purpose I mean he’s showing that salvation is for all men then we get another four in the text another reason another explanation for why the Shepherds should not fear for a savior has been born for you in the city of David that is Bethlehem the city that you’re right nearby the town that you’re right next to with your flocks a savior has been born there for you who is this savior Angel says he is Christ the lord remember Christ just the word for messiah anointed one the Lord that praised the Lord of the term Lord means Master but it is also the new testament’s way of rendering the the name of God from the Old Testament Yahweh we usually see the term Yahweh in the Old Testament sometimes in in all capital letters in the New Testament we don’t see the the term Yahweh or Jehovah spelled out instead we see Lord the Lord even later on in this passage there’s the use of the term Lord to describe God and so many argue that that’s actually what’s being declared here this is Christ God this is Messiah God that’s what the angel declared and then he gives a sign the angel gives a sign to the Shepherds regarding this announcement he says you will find a baby wrapped in claws lying in a feeding trough when you see a newly born baby swallowed in Claws and lying in a Manger you know that what I’ve declared to you is true and you will have found the Messiah and notice their next action or notice the next action not the shepherd’s acting yet suddenly a multitude of the heavenly host and whenever you see the term host think Army host is an army term military term a multitude of the Heavenly Army of angels appears and they are all praising God and saying glory be to God in the highest place and peace be on earth among men with whom God is pleased now this statement is where or the statement about the multitude of angels is where we get the lines for the Christian hymn Angels We Have Heard on High glory to God in the highest is the same as Gloria in excelsis Deo and Latin now the hymn describes the angels as singing but notice that’s not actually what it says here it says that we see the verbs they were praising and they were saying a good praising mean singing it could possibly though or possibly but it’s interesting when I just did a a brief study on angels singing in the Bible I can only find two places where angels are explicitly said to sing most of the time in the Bible they just speak they do praise they do say not very often sing but whether they were singing or speaking this must have been an awe-inspiring sight you have this Mighty Angelic Army All Around are all in the sky you’ve got the Shekinah Glory all around you grab this Angel standing before the Shepherds and they are praising God and announcing peace to men and isn’t it striking that it’s an Angelic Army that is proclaiming peace and notice that when this Vision ceases the Shepherds hurry to Bethlehem to see what God had made known to them and eventually they find their way to marrying Joseph now how did they find Mary and Joseph it’s funny when they look up the pictures of this scene you’ll type in Luke two Shepherds on Google Images or something like that you see them following the star well I don’t know if we can really say that there’s no mention of a star in this passage and yes the wise men are associated with a star that’s how they find Jesus but did the star really appear now maybe that wasn’t the way that the angel said that they would find them they had to be looking for a different sign my guess as to how they found Mary and Joseph is that they basically were searching the town for a residence where their people were still up that they’re still up in the middle of the night so remember this isn’t a world without electricity before electricity and so nighttime there’s much less activity night time is primarily meant for sleeping you could stay up if you had a lamp and do something like that but most the time night was for sleeping so perhaps they were just looking for a home that was all lit up because most the other houses in Bethlehem would be dark and there probably was an extra amount of noise coming from this house because you’ve got the birth taking place you’ve got the relatives all working and oohing and awing over the baby talking with one another asking get this get that so there’s some noise coming from a certain house this house is lit up there’s noise from this house and maybe the neighbors nearby they’re up too because they want to know what’s going on what’s the commotion what’s going on so maybe they’re up too so they’re just looking for the light and looking for the sound in some way or other Shepherds do find the house of Marion Joseph and then they see the sign they see what the Angels had foretold there’s the swaddle newborn Jesus in the manger in a feeding trough the arrival of the Shepherds probably created even more noise got we don’t know how many Shepherds there were at least more than one and they they come through and they’re talking and they they probably are celebrating and so they’re getting more people awake oh what what is going on out there people start coming to their doors trying to figure out what’s going on and there was notice what the Shepherds do next they make no neogellic vision they declare an angel appeared to us told us that the Savior and Messiah had been born they told us that we would find him here in Bethlehem swaddled in a manger and here he is just as the angel had said we saw a whole host of angels giving glory to God and declaring peace to men this child is our Messiah and notice to whom do the Shepherds say this to everyone everyone who’s there and then notice the responses we see three different responses the people wondered what the Shepherds declared Mary treasured and pondered these things in her heart and the Shepherds returned to their flocks glorifying and praising God so we’ve made our observations on the text let’s now go to step two let’s consider interpretation work through some interpretation questions notice that the Angels appear to Shepherds near Bethlehem and not to the people of Bethlehem or even the priests in Jerusalem this was God’s choice how does this choice of God connect with the themes of Luke and even of the New Testament as a whole announcement was made to Shepherds and not to others how does that connect with themes of the New Testament Irma yeah exactly and we see that most explicitly declared in First Corinthians it says God has chosen the weak of the world to shame the strong this is fundamental to the gospel this is fundamentals of Salvation God takes the hormone and exalts them and he takes the proud and he shames them he brings them low and we see another instance of that here God has chosen the Shepherds to be the ones who would Herald the coming of Jesus that’s the ones to whom he made the announcement low class not important he says they’re going to be my Heralds and even that is a theme we see throughout all of Luke it’s these not important people it’s these outcasts of society that are frequently having an important role we had Zacharias and Elizabeth old Barren couple they had the shame of not having children and you have Mary some no-name young woman in Nazareth she’s chosen to Bear the Son of God now we have these Shepherds Shepherds being highlighted for a special blessing and for declaring that Messiah has come this is not an accident this is God’s choice exalting his gospel now notice the emphasis on Joy in the Angel’s message I bring you good news of great joy what’s so joyful about this news perhaps this is obvious to you but what’s so joyful about this What’s Happening Here we have the birth of a savior and what do we need what do we need saving from Sin from death from the curse this is great news this is joyful news God has provided a savior that savior has finally come he had foretold a savior was coming but now he’s come the one who’s going to save us from our sins the one who’s going to buy us back the one who’s going to cover us and we could even broaden that to connect Jesus and his coming with many other Old Testament promises God is going to remember Israel God is going to exalt Israel restore Israel keep his promises to them but those promises are going to be broadened to embrace even the Gentiles throughout the world all this is coming to pass it’s beginning to happen those promises are being fulfilled this is great news this is a huge benefit to mankind that is now Manifest this is joyful news now in what sense was God announcing peace peace on Earth what sense was God announcing peace in verse 14.
peace between men and God has that you’re right has that um let me say it this way does that apply to all men automatically no how will men be at peace with God it will be through this child this is first of all not a mere announcement of that ambiguous feeling of Peace everything’s okay everybody Don’t Worry Be Happy peace on Earth no that’s not what it’s about this is about as you correctly identified this is about peace with God man has been in Rebellion man has been at war with God and God is heralding an overture of peace and this piece does lead to that feeling of wholeness that feeling of everything being okay but man ought not to feel that way until he actually is that way with God until he actually is at peace with God yes Roy right thanks Roy I’ll just repeat your comment briefly this this phrase can be easily mischaracterized especially by people in the world peace on Earth to Men of good will actually talk about that latter phrase in just a second but no this is not about men earning peace or men automatically having peace God is saying peace is available you can be at peace you’re not automatically already at peace with God but you have a way to be at peace and that way is now being revealed the mediator has arrived The Advocate has arrived the high priest has arrived peace is now available to men through this one now getting to a little bit of what Roy was saying in what sense is God pleased with men in other ways that are this verse is the second part of the verse 14 is translated but The New American Standard says peace on Earth and actually let me go back to the verse so I don’t misquote it among men with whom he is pleased and what sense is God pleased well this is certainly not men earning God’s favor or that man is innately good somehow and therefore they please God no we know the rest of the scriptures they get rid of that idea so we must understand this phrase similarly to how we understood the statement given to Mary Hail Mary full of grace is how it’s often quoted but that just means favored one you’ve received favor from God not based on what you’ve done but because God simply was pleased to give it to you greetings you have received God’s favor just by his own Grace same thing with men you’ve received the pleasure of God you’ve received the favor of God not based on anything that you’ve done but based on how good God is he’s chosen to show you favor he’s given you unmerited favor what we call Grace he’s giving you unmerited favor by sending this this child sending this one he will save you from your sins that’s unmerited favor and that God was pleased to do that now why do the Angels after this announcement why do the multitude of angels appear and they all give glory to God why would that be a necessary next action glory to God in the highest why why appear and say that yeah that’s so that we don’t miss the point that what’s happening is extremely glorious the Angels cannot help but appear all of them the multitude the hosts and say glory to God what is happening right now is incredible glory to God and the Incarnation is glorious God has done many glorious and praiseworthy things in the Bible but what is happening here in the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem is one of the most glorious acts I won’t say the most glorious act because we haven’t seen the cross yet but it is one of the most glorious acts the Son of God has become a man in order to save men how glorious and we see specifically in this act some of the attributes of God what attributes of God are being a highlight here Grace it’s Mercy this was undeserved but look he’s pouring it out he’s pouring out Grace what else humility that is really interesting this is a striking display of the humility of God and you’d think someone like God who deserves all glory how could he be humble how could even demonstrate humility ah but that’s what he did in sending his son in the Incarnation we would otherwise never be able to see the humility of God but we see it here because consider the depth to which the Eternal God is stooping in this act the uncontainable god is taking on the form of a finite man he who dwells an unapproachable light is being born in a common home in Bethlehem and laid in a feeding trough he who has all power and Majesty is being born as a helpless baby with all that being a baby entails burping diaper changes feeding what a downgrade but the sun does it willingly for the sake of the father out of love for the father for the sake of the ones the father has given him for the sake of us for the sake of his elect truly without the Incarnation we would never know the profound humility of God as displayed in the Sun and that humility is beautiful that humility is glorious so we see the humility we see God’s grace we can also say we see God’s love just think about the incredible loss of privileges that God has that God the son is willingly choosing to save unworthy men he’s choosing to suffer to do us good that is love as a love and that is deep compassion and we also see the faithfulness of God of course this is throughout but God promised us what happened and he’s bringing it to pass all these things are glorious but who would have ever thought who would have ever thought that God would do it this way that God would do such a thing that he would show such love and such humility such loveliness and such beauty it is as Isaiah 53 says Lord who has believed our report and to whom has the strong arm of the Lord been revealed the Old Testament foretold that God would do this yet it was too wonderful to be fully understood and believed no one could have expected that God would reconcile man to himself by becoming a man yet that was what was completely necessary it couldn’t be any other way reconciliation could not happen any other way but this certainly is not how man would do it man would have God come in Pomp and Circumstance right into Jerusalem be born with a splendor of royalty really man would have God affirm a man’s innate goodness and congratulate man on earning God’s favor man would have God deliver man from just the temporal evils yes stop our sickness and our poverty Deliver Us from political oppression and you don’t really need to worry about sin or our hearts that’s what man would have man would rather have God deliver man so that man could actually serve idols just let us keep going after our Idols we would really appreciate that but God will have none of that God will not come in the way that man desired and not come for the purpose that man desired God will deliver man in his own incredible way and he the whole time will affirm man’s unworthiness and God’s greatness truly God’s way is far better than anything man could come could come up with in God’s way make sure that God gets all the glory so brothers and sisters behold with Wonder the astounding plan of God’s salvation and the astounding savior who was born a man to save all men now just to confirm the magnitude of what’s Happening Here in Luke 2 let’s briefly turn over to John 1.
John chapter one we’ll just look at the first 14 verses all the gospels affirm the deity of Christ but perhaps due to some of the issues of his own day John is even more explicit than the other gospels about Jesus deity and we see that even here in the beginning of John 1. so John 1 we’re going to read he won’t really analyze this passage but we’ll make a few observations on it John 1 verses 1 to 14.
here’s John’s version of describing the Incarnation of Jesus in the beginning was the word and the Word was with God and the Word was God he was in the beginning with God all things came into being through him and apart from him nothing came into being that has come into being in him was life and the life was the light of men the light shines in the Darkness and the Darkness did not comprehend it there came a man sent from God whose name was John he came as a witness to testify about the light so that all might believe through him he was not the light but he came to testify about the light there was the True Light which coming into the world enlightens every man he was in the world and the world was made through him and the world did not know him he came to his own and those who were his own did not receive him but as many as received him to them he gave the right to become children of God even to those who believe in his name who were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God we’ll read one more verse and the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we saw his glory glory is of the only begotten from the father full of grace and truth when Jesus was born God himself came into the world not a god the god you know probably John 1 1 from the Greek there’s no reason to supply an indefinite article a and the Word was a god no John 1 1 equates the word with God they are the same and yet they can dwell together they are the same yet different they are plural godhead they are Trinity and verse 3 makes this point even more emphatic it’s like John wants to make sure there’s no way that you can come away from this passage and not know that Jesus is God because what does he say in verse 3 all things came into being through this word through him nothing came into being without the word two ways of saying the same thing essentially what he said in verse one the only uncreated being is God and everything that was created came into being through the word so how could the word be a created being if all the things came into being through the word and nothing came into being without the word then the word is uncreated it can’t be created because it’s the one that caused everything to be created conclusion the word is God the word that dwelt with God is God so the Mormons and Jehovah Witnesses they have no leg to stand on here John will not let them the word the light God himself he took on flesh he entered this following World he dwelt with sinful even rejecting men and he manifests the truth and the glory of God our brothers and sisters this all really happened this is not some story we rehearse as part of our culture part of our tradition this is not some mere element of religion that we make sure that we have straight so that we can feel good about ourselves I know the story of Jesus well no this is history God actually did this he sent his son into the world to save Sinners Like You and Me isn’t that not wondrous we did not deserve it we didn’t deserve this here’s what we did deserve we deserve God sending Jesus into the world to destroy us we deserve God to announce peace not by sending an advocate on our behalf but by sending his Commander to wipe us out he would have made peace that way that’s the way he could have made peace but that is not what God did that’s not what God did in Luke 2 tells us that’s not what good what God did he instead sent he sent his son to become a man to save all men who would have ever thought it who could have ever imagined it how beautiful how glorious so how should we apply this word and many things we could say I want to highlight Five Points of application but I urge you to think more on this yourself think other ways this account makes a difference in your life number one we should believe this message was declared to the Shepherds that they might believe the same was true of the announcement made to Zacharias and to Mary they heard what God was about to do we hear what God has already done but our response should be the same as what was expected of them we must believe the good news we don’t work for it we can’t work for it simply to believe it we should not dawdle the Shepherds heard this word they hurried to Bethlehem to see the child we too must hurry to believe there’s no reason to wait a reason to remain in darkness second we should praise God what God has done is glorious and deserves praise not just in your heart but publicly the angels are praising God here the shepherds are praising God here we too should be praising God extol the greatness of God declare his wondrous Works give thanks in the Assembly of Believers as the psalmist says praise is fitting for the upright we should be giving thanks we should be giving thanks publicly we should be glorifying God publicly for what he’s done number three Ponder what God has done is so profound that it deserves way more of your mental attention than we have in this hour of Sunday School be like Mary be like those who heard the shepherd’s message treasure Ponder this truth Ponder this text think about what God has done consider its implications meditate on how you personally are connected to the Incarnation and work of Jesus that’s not a one-time thing really that should be an ongoing habit that should be a habit for all of us we should constantly be thinking about Jesus Incarnation and work on our behalf number four Proclaim lots of Peace here notice not all mrps God declared good news to the Shepherds but it wasn’t for them alone nor was it only for the people of Bethlehem what did God say this is for all the people it was for all the people Jesus commanded his disciples to share the good news and if you’re a disciple of Jesus that applies to you tell others how God has provided a way of Peace tell others about the Overture of peace that God has made tell them that God has provided a way for Wicked Rebels to be reconciled to him for how will they know how will they believe unless we tell them but you say but I thought God was Sovereign he’s in control of all things he can save all people without my sharing a peep God is Sovereign but what does God sovereignly determined to be his means of salvation you us his people Romans says how will they believe on him and whom they have not heard and now they hear without a preacher and how will they preach unless someone is sent behold how beautiful are the feet of those who announce good news brothers and sisters evangelism is obedience F4 let us tell people the good news but you say but they’ll never believe it they’ll only reject me and they’ll persecute me I don’t want to suffer like that for no reason well some will reject your message many of them but some will not because God says all that the father gives me will come to me God has laid the elect in your life paths you’re going to meet people who are elect and as you share the good news those people will believe and they will be saved you will be used by God if you seek to be obedient now you’re still going to glorify God whether that person believes or not some are merely going to be confirmed in their judgment because of your message that’s part of God’s will but don’t think that oh it’s going to be useless to share the message no God will draw those that he’s known from the foundation of the world we don’t know who the elect are we know that they are out there so let us obey Christ let us imitate these Shepherds that we see in this passage and joyfully Herald what God has done and then number five finally walk worthy this exhortation contains many of the others in it but what God has done is so amazing it is an unthinkable Act of mercy and love do we dare to live in such a way that does not take this truth seriously yeah God what you did in sending Jesus is great and all but it’s not enough for me to turn from my my sin I’m just going to keep going on my own way I’m going to hold on to my sin how dare we how dare we say such a thing to God yeah God the Incarnation is pretty cool but I’m really more amazed by the things of the world so if you’ll excuse me I need to get back to them how dare we how dare we say such a thing to God yeah Jesus you humbled yourself to the point of becoming a baby in a Manger in an unremarkable town of Judah but I’m not really interested in Humble service I’m not really interested in doing anything that cost me something or that makes me uncomfortable how dare we how dare we say such a thing to God you say well I don’t say that well maybe your actions do remember what Hebrews says the book of Hebrews how shall we escape God’s judgment if we neglect so great a Salvation brothers and sisters if we haven’t done so already it’s time to get serious it’s time to get serious about this truth let us be where anything less than a complete Devotion to Jesus you cannot serve two masters if you don’t follow Jesus totally then you don’t follow Jesus at all if you believe in Jesus yet continue in the Same Old Paths of sin you do not really believe and you’re not really at peace with God you cannot yet claim a part in the good news of Luke 2 if you live in such a way true Disciples of Jesus walk on a manner consistent with the greatness of the Salvation that’s been revealed so if you’re in Christ you should seek to be like your head you should seek to obey your Master’s commands such is our reasonable Service as Khalif was saying last week listen how Philippians specifically cites the Incarnation as part of our call to holiness Philippians chapter 2 verses 5 to 8.
Philippians 2 verses 5 to 8.
have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus who although he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped or that is held on to but emptied himself taking the form of a bond servant or slave and being made in the likeness of men being found in the appearance as a man he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death even death on the cross and therefore Calvary let us walk worthy of our calling God is worthy of such worship that ends our lesson today questions or comments about what you’ve heard all right it is an incredible word that we’ve seen this morning thank the Lord that he’s revealed it to us next week we talk about Herod and we talk about the visit of the wise men and then we’ll finally tackle why do we believe that Jesus was born between six and four B four BC let’s pray as we close my God I’ve done my best to communicate how wondrous it is that you sent your son to take on flesh to dwell Among Us and to save us God I pray that you would really imprint that truth on the minds of your people it’s so easy for us to take this truth lightly it’s so easy for us out of familiarity or whatever reason to think this is not that great to not be affected by it I pray that that would not be the way this morning I pray God that your people would be really affected by this truth well that we would take seriously that this actually happened when Jesus that you actually did this that you humbled yourself to the point of becoming a baby oh God that is so great that is so merciful and so instructive oh God forgive us for where we have trifled so much in a world where we have just wasted ourselves wasted our time serving idols oh Lord you deserve everything from us and it is a great way that you’ve called us to live God I pray that your people would get serious would be serious about this truth walking joyfully proclaiming your good news living a life worthy of the calling that we’ve been given thank you for your salvation your plan is So Glorious thank you that you’ve unfolded it thank you that you will conclude it by coming to the Earth by bringing us to yourself I pray that you bless the rest of the service today in our fellowship in Jesus name amen thank you
