By Joseph Ametepe
Introduction
If you were asked the question: What do people in this world need the most, what would you say? Some may say we need oxygen. Why? Without oxygen, we would perish in minutes. Others may say we need food and water. Without food and water, our bodies would eventually shut down resulting in death. Still others may say, we need clothing and shelter. Especially, in harsh and wintering weather conditions, as we are now experiencing in most places in the northern hemisphere. Others, we need more jobs, or doctors to take care of the sick, or engineers to help design the world a better place, or scientists to solve the global warming problems our planet is facing, or economists to fix all our credit crunch problems and the economic mess around the globe.
The point is clear. We are needy creatures. But our basic needs are few indeed. This is an undeniable fact. You would notice that the needs we've mentioned so far, relate only to our physical well-being. But what about those basic spiritual needs we often overlook? What about our need for spiritual fellowship with our Creator and Maker? What about our need to be set free from the power of Satan? What about our desperate need to be saved from our sins and thus enter a new, fulfilling, satisfying, meaningful, and rich relationship with God, not only in this life but also in the life soon to come? Have you been seeking to have all other needs met, yet neglecting this all important spiritual need in your life? The purpose of this Christmas article is to show that the most important need we have is our spiritual need for salvation from our sins. The world's greatest need is a Savior, and God has provided that Savior in the Person of the Jesus Christ the Lord. We discover this truth in Luke's account of the birth of the Savior recorded in Luke 2:8-14. Although the story is unique to Luke (no other Gospel writer recorded or reported on the events in Luke 2:8-14), yet its message is universal. I would therefore urge all of us to pay careful attention to its refreshing truths.
For this rich and remarkable passage, we will first look at the shepherds at work in the fields at night in Luke 2:8. Secondly, we will discuss the startling appearance of an angelic messenger to the shepherds in Luke 2:9. Thirdly, we will examine the special message given to the shepherds in Luke 2:10-11. Fourthly, we will consider the sign given to the shepherds in Luke 2:12. Fifthly and finally, we will deliberate on the sudden appearance of the heavenly host and their jubilant adoration of God in Luke 2:13-14.
- Shepherdsat work in the fields at night (Luke 2:8)
The story begins by directing our attention to a very ordinary group of people. Who are these? Shepherds who were at work in the fields at night. The Bible simply says of them:
"In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night" Luke 2:8 (NASB).
The shepherds were in the area of Bethlehem, which means "House of Bread." Bethlehem itself, was near Jerusalem, Israel's religious and political capital. The hills of Bethlehem were prime grazing land, and the shepherds worked in the areas day and night, all year round. It is therefore not possible to draw any conclusion about the time of the year. The shepherds worked all year round. The point here is that we cannot judge the specific time of the year from the Bible's statement that shepherds were in the fields keeping watch over their flock by night. In other words, we do know the exact time when Jesus was born. The Bible says nothing about the time of the year. But what we do know is that Jesus' unique birth was not first announced to the religious leaders in Jerusalem. Nor was it first made known to the rich and famous of Israel. Neither was it first revealed to the political or military leaders of Israel. Rather, it was first announced to a very ordinary, simple people, who were faithfully doing their very ordinary work. They were humble men who were faithful at their normal regular job- that is, shepherding.
James S. Steward writes:
"And is there not a world of meaning in the fact that it was very ordinary people, busy about very ordinary tasks, whose eyes first saw the glory of the coming Lord? It means, first, that the place of duty, however humble, is the place of vision. And it means, second, that it is the men who have kept to the deep, simple pieties of life and have not lost the child heart to whom the gates of the kingdom readily opens."
How insightful and true are these words! God chose to reveal the greatest event ever- the unique birth of His only Begotten Son, His Beloved Son, His Blessed Son- to simple, ordinary shepherds! Amazing indeed! But you ask, what is amazing about that? Here is why. In Jesus' day, shepherding had a lowly place among the occupations. Shepherds were held in low esteem and had a bad reputation in Israel. Their honesty and integrity were often questioned. They were considered untrustworthy, unreliable, and dishonest. Apparently, they could not always observe the rituals or keep the ceremonial laws. As such, they were ceremonially unclean. And as far as their social status in society was concerned, they were at the very bottom and were shunned by the rich and famous. In short, people generally despised shepherds. But God does not care about the views of the world. Nor is He impressed with one's status in society! That is why He chose to announce the wonderful news of Jesus' birth to simple, ordinary shepherds. God chooses the lowly things of the world, to nullify the things that are. The scriptural passage of 1 Corinthian 1:26-29 sheds more light on God's choice of the shepherds.
"For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God" 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 (NASB).
The obvious implication of God's choice of the lowly and despised shepherds is that the Good News first came to social outcasts of Jesus' day. These shepherds were social rejects but they trusted God. They took God at His word. They displayed sincere and simple faith in God. What about you? Do you trust God? Do you take Him at His word? Do you have a simple child-like faith in God? We need to learn from the shepherds.
As the shepherds were at work, watching their flock at night, my question is: Was this night of work going to be another normal night? I imagined that these shepherds had watched their flocks by night for years without any major event or incident. Was this night going to pass on without anything unusual happening in the fields? Was it going to be another night of business as usual? Friends, this night was not going to be another normal night for the shepherds. It was not going to be another night of business as usual. We are so consumed about doing business as usual. But that is not the case with God. He cannot be confined to our mode of always doing business as usual. As such, on this night, something unusual, something extraordinary, something marvelous, something incredible, something stunning, something supernatural is about to happen-a startling appearance of an angelic messenger to the shepherds.
- Startlingappearance of an angelic messenger to the shepherds (Luke 2:9).
This story begins by directing our attention to simple, ordinary shepherds. But now the story brings us face to face with a supernatural being, an out of this world character- an angelic messenger!
Do you believe that angels are real and exist? Please understand that I am not talking about the "angels" you see in the TV show called "Touched by an Angel." The fact is, not everybody believes that. One of these people is Thomas Jefferson, the nation's third president and principal author of the Declaration of Independence. Can you imagine the reaction if word got out that a president of the United States cut out Bible passages with scissors, and glued them onto paper and said, "I only believe these parts?" That's exactly what Jefferson did. An article in the Denver Post on July 6, 2008, entitled, "Jefferson tweaked Bible to be morals without miracles" states:
"In Jefferson's version of the Gospels, Jesus is still wrapped in swaddling clothes after his birth in Bethlehem. But there's no angel telling shepherds watching their flocks by night that a Savior has been born. Jefferson leaves in Jesus' crucifixion, but ends the text with his burial, not his resurrection. Stripping miracles from the story of Jesus was among ambitious projects by a man with a famously restless mind. 'To the corruption of Christianity I am indeed opposed,' he wrote to a friend, Philadelphia physician Benjamin Rush, 'but not to the genuine precepts of Jesus Himself.'"
Fortunately, I am not using the "Jefferson Bible." I believe that angels are real supernatural beings who do God's bidding. In fact, the Bible states that they are ministering spirit sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation (Hebrews 1:14). Now would you please take note of what the Bible (not the Jefferson Bible) says about the startling appearance of an angelic messenger to the shepherds! We read in Luke 2:9 these true and trustworthy words:
"And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened." Luke 2:9 (NASB).
The Bible is simply saying that when the angel suddenly appeared to the shepherds and the visible manifestation of the glory of God, (that is, a bright and brilliant light of God's presence) shone around them, they were terrified. Literally, the Bible says, "they feared fear a great." In other words, they were exceedingly terrified. Think of it for a moment! The shepherds were watching their flocks in the dark. Then all of a sudden the night sky brightened up around them. This was an awesome sight.
Actually, this is the third time an angel has appeared to someone in Luke's Gospel. First, the angel Gabriel, whose name means, "God is great," appeared to Zacharias in the temple. Zacharias was gripped with fear (Luke 1:12). The angel Gabriel appeared a second time, this time to Mary. Mary, we are told was very perplexed or troubled at the greeting of Gabriel (Luke 1:29). Now in Luke 2:9, the Bible tells us "an angel of the Lord" (so we do not know his name) appeared to the shepherds and they froze in fear. I have never seen a real angel. But I am pretty sure that if I did see an angel with a visible display of God's bright and brilliant splendor, I would be completely paralyzed with fear. Please take note of this! Seeing the visible manifestation of the glory of the Lord of the universe is not a fun thing, but a fearful event. It is not an entertaining encounter, but an extremely dreadful event. It is not something we should treat lightly. In some Christian circles today, people talk about experiencing God's glorious presence as if it was purely an entertaining and fun experience. May I say to us! Nobody in the Bible, who really encountered the awe inspiring glorious presence of the God, ever came out giggling and laughing out loud (lol). Rather, they were terrified, gripped with fear, stunned. This was the situation with the shepherds in the fields that night.
An important set of questions arises in our story at this juncture. Why did the angel of the Lord come to the shepherds in the fields? Did he come to scare them to death? Did he come to destroy their flock? Did he come to expose their sins, so as to condemn them to the sentence of hell? Did he appear to them in order to threaten them of the coming wrath of God? Why did the angel come from the invisible world to the visible world, to simple shepherds staying out in the fields of Bethlehem and keeping guard over their flock by night? The answer to these question is simply, yet significant. The angel of the Lord came to deliver to the shepherds a special message from God centering on the birth of a Savior.
III. Special message centering on the birth of a Savior (Luke 2:10-11).
The angel of the Lord did not come to scare the shepherds to death. Nor did he come to expose their sins and condemn them to hell. Rather, he came to bring a special message concerning the birth of a Savior. This is clearly seen in Luke 2:10-11, where the Bible records one of the greatest, if not the greatest news of hope and joy and salvation.
"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" Luke 2:10-11 (NASB).
Please notice carefully that before the angel of the Lord conveyed to the shepherds the special message, the good news of great joy, he calmed their fears. If the angel had come to scare the shepherds to death, he would not have calmed their fears. He would not have comforted their troubled hearts. He would not have commanded them to stop being afraid. Actually, the angel's words, "do no be afraid" literally means "stop being afraid" (Greek construction: me [not] with present imperative). In other words, the shepherds were already gripped with fear. But the angel exhorted them not to allow the fear to continue to control their hearts. How wonderful it is to see that the angelic messenger didn't leave the shepherds in their panic-stricken condition! He didn't leave them paralyzed with fear all night. As the shepherds recoiled in absolute terror, the angel calmed and comforted them and broke the news. He dealt first with their fears before delivering the good news of great joy to them. Actually, the angel of the Lord was following in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus Himself. Whenever Jesus discovered fear in the hearts of His disciples, He dealt with it first before doing anything else (Mark 5:36; Luke 8:50).
Let me ask you: Do you have any fear in your heart today? What is the fear that is buried deep down in your heart? May I say to you, on the authority of God's Word, that God Almighty is interested in dealing with that fear! He wants to deliver you from that fear. Would you turn to God with that fear? It may be the fear of the future. Or the fear that your life would not make any difference. Or it may be the fear of failure, fear of rejection. Or it may be the fear of being neglected by your children in your old age. Or it may be the fear of losing your job as has already happened to millions in the recession. It may be losing your home, your health, your relationships, or the fear that your marriage may not survive the tough times. Or it may be the fear of death. It doesn't matter what your fear is, if you would humbly turn to God with that fear, I guarantee you; God will deal with it, calming and comforting your heart. But the question is: Do you desire for God to deal with the fears in your heart? Or do you want to continue to be enslaved by the fears in your heart? The choice is yours! My heart's desire is that you would not allow any fear to continue to dominate your life. God is willing to take care of it. Turn to Him and you will find the calming peace that the shepherds enjoyed in the glorious presence of the angel.
Please notice very carefully that in delivering the special message to the shepherds, the angel boldly and convincingly made it clear that the good news of great joy "will be for all the people." This means that the special message centering on the birth of a Savior, it's not just for the shepherds. Nor is it just for the people of Israel. Rather, it's for all the people of all continents. It's for all the people living on the face of the earth. Rich or poor. Great or small. Black or white. Young or old. Men or women. Boys or girls. My friends, the Good News is for everyone. The Bible says of the Gospel or the Good News in Romans 1:16: "It is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek." Mark this well! Through the Good News, Jesus Christ reaches out to everybody irrespective of race or rank, color of skin or country of origin, salary or social status in life, education or employment status, age or ancestry, gender or group. May I say to those of us who are true followers of Christ: It grieves the heart of God to see His people who have believed in Him and have come to understand that the Gospel is indeed for everyone, and yet have no fire in their hearts to share, to spread the Good News and seek out the lost. The church has Good News of hope and salvation to offer to the world. In our world today, there is little hope and yet God's people are not passionate and zealous about telling others about the hope God provides in His Son, Jesus Christ. May this Christmas season be a new beginning of spreading the God News with the excitement and enthusiasm of the Holy Spirit!
Speaking in a confident and convincing manner and with great authority, the angel declared in verse 11; "For today (that is, this very moment, not tomorrow, not some unknown or unspecified date) in the city of David (that is, Bethlehem, the town where David was born), there has been born for you (that is, not just for the shepherds, but for all the people, that includes you and me), a Savior!
Please notice that the angel reveals three important truths about the Baby that had been born in Bethlehem. First of all, the angel describes Him as a "Savior" (Greek: Soter). This is very important. Why is that? The world desperately needs a Savior and God has provided that Savior for us. The greatest need of the world is a Savior to save sinners like us from our sins. If our most pressing need were a for scientist, a sociologist, a specialist, a soloist, etc., God would have provided him for us. But the truth is, our most important need in this life and in the life soon to come, is a Savior. Thanks be to God for giving us a Savior to save us from our sins!
Actually, this is one of only two places in the Gospels where Jesus is referred to as a "Savior." The other place being John 4:42, where the Samaritans confessed Jesus as "the Savior of the world." Of course, the rest of the New Testament repeatedly referred to Jesus as Savior (see Acts 13:23; Philippians 3:20; 2 Timothy 1:10; Titus 1:4; 2:13; 3:6; 2 Peter 1:1, 11; 2:20; 3:2, 18). Jesus, whose name means "The LORD or Yahweh saves" was born to save sinners like us from our sins. In fact, the two Gospel accounts of the birth of Jesus in Mathew and in Luke both emphasized our need for salvation. In Matthew's account of Jesus' birth, the angel who spoke to Joseph in a dream, revealed God's purpose for His birth in these words: "And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21).
Is Jesus truly your Savior today? If He is, how I often do you thank Jesus for His saving grace in your life? Often, I sing the song, "Thank you Lord for Saving My Soul," as a way of expressing my gratitude to Christ for bestowing on me His indescribable gift of salvation. Again, I ask, if Jesus is your Savior, how often do you tell others about the salvation Jesus came to provide? And if Jesus is not your Savior, have you asked Him to save you from your sins? Have you acknowledged to Him that your greatest need in life is for Him to save and set you free from the power of sin and Satan? Sincerely acknowledge to Jesus that you are a sinner in need of His salvation. Ask Jesus to forgive and cleanse you from your sins on the basis of His shed blood and sacrifice of Himself on the cross. Accept His forgiveness on the basis of faith, that is, confident trust that Jesus will do what He's promised to do - save you. You can do it today. The Bible says "Today a Savior has been born for you." It also says, "Now is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6:2). Don't procrastinate. Today is what you have! Tomorrow may not be yours! It also says, "Today, if you hear His voice do not harden your hearts" (Hebrews 3:15; 4:7).
Secondly, the angel speaks of Jesus as "Christ" (Greek: Christos), that is, the Anointed One of God, or the Messiah. The Savior God has provided for the salvation of sinners is none other than the Anointed One of God, the Christ. Actually, both Old and New Testament Scriptures affirmed that Jesus is the Anointed One (see Isaiah 61:1 cf. Luke 4:18; Acts 4:26-27; Hebrews 1:9). The Lord Jesus Himself would later quote the Isaiah passage in the synagogue in Capernaum. There He spoke confidently of being anointed to preach good news to the poor (see Luke 4:18).
Thirdly, Jesus is described as "the Lord" (Greek: kyrios)-that is, not just "master" -but God manifest in the flesh. The Savior God provided for our salvation is the Lord, a title of deity. This reveals that this Savior is unique and altogether different from all others who claim to be "saviors." May I ask you: Is Jesus truly the Lord of your life today? Are you one of those who call Jesus "Lord, Lord," and yet do not do what He says to you? Is the Lord Jesus the One in control of your life today, or is it someone or something else? Please let it sink in! Jesus was born to the Lord of your life and mine! Does Jesus have the right of ownership over your life? Does He reign as Lord in your heart or is someone else ruling as Lord on the throne of your heart? Are you submitting to Jesus' rule each day of your life? Is Jesus really your one and only true Lord and Master in life? May I say to you: If Jesus is your one and only true Lord; it will be evident in your life! And if you are faking it, you will soon be exposed. Your facade will soon be removed. Folks, I tell you, no one can pull the wool over the eye of God!
Now the question arises: How would the shepherds recognize the Savior, who is Christ the Lord? The answer to that question brings us to the point in our where we discover that a sign was given to the shepherds.
- Signfor the shepherds (Luke 2:12).
The angel of the Lord gave the shepherds a twofold sign in verse 12, where the Bible says:
"This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Luke 2:12 (NASB).
Earlier, in the Gospel of Luke, signs have been given to Zacharias (Luke 1:18-20) and Mary (Luke 1:34-35). Now, for the third time in Luke's Gospel, a sign is given to the shepherds. Signs were given in the Old Testament as well (see Judges 6:17, 21, 36-40; 1 Samuel 2:34; 2 Kings 19:29; 20:8f; Isaiah 7:11, 14; 37:30; 38:7-8).
Dr. McGee writes:
"It is wonderful to see a little baby come into the world, and your heart goes out to him. There is a sympathy that goes from you to him. That is the way God entered the world. He could have entered-as He will when He comes to earth the second time-in power and great glory. Instead, He came in the weakest way possible, as a baby."
George Macdonald puts it this way:
"They all were looking for a King to slay their foes and lift them high: Thou cam'st, a little baby thing that made a woman cry."
This is the way the Savior of sinners came into the world. By speaking of Jesus as a "baby," the Bible is emphasizing His humanity. He came into our world as a human being. This implies that Jesus knows and understands us because He came into this world just like all of us- as a human being. He partook of our nature and therefore sympathizes with all our weaknesses of being human (see Hebrews 2:14-18; 4:15). No one understands you like Jesus.
Please notice the first of the twofold sign the angel gave the shepherds! The Baby would be wrapped in swaddling cloths. What are swaddling cloths? They are strips of cloths used to bind a baby tightly. Babies were snugly wrapped in long strips of cloth, giving them warmth, protection of the hands and feet, and a sense of security in their newborn existence. The swaddling cloths kept the baby from injuring sensitive facial skin and eyes with its own (often sharp) fingernails, and was believed to strengthen the limbs. Actually, this is still the custom in some Eastern cultures. Ezekiel 16:4 indicates that the absence of swaddling cloths was a sign of lack of parental care. For sure, the shepherds had seen babies in swaddling cloths before. So what is special about this Baby in swaddling cloths? What is special about this Baby in swaddling cloths is that the angel had just announced to them that the Baby was the Savior, the Messiah, and the Lord!
The second part of the sign was that the Baby Jesus would be lying in a manger, that is, a feeding trough. The Lord Jesus, who was born in Bethlehem, that is, "house of bread," in a feeding trough, would later declare that He is the Bread of Life (see John 6:35, 41, 50-58). How humbling it was for the Lord of life and glory to be born in such a lowly and an unlikely place; not in a palace, not in a multi-million dollar mansion-but a manger, a feeding trough for animals. Think of it! The Lord, Creator, King, Ruler and Sustainer of the universe, entered human history not as a conquering military hero, but as a little babe, born in a feeding trough for animals! The truth of our Lord's coming in the flesh is truly mind-boggling! This knowledge is too high for our finite mind to grasp.
William MacDonald writes:
"God visited our planet in a Person of a helpless Baby, and in the poverty of an ill-smelling stable. The wonder of it!
Nelson Darby expressed it well:
"He began in a manger, and ended on a cross, and along the way had nowhere to lay His head."
Immediately after the angel of the Lord finished giving the twofold sign to the shepherds something awesome and amazing happened. The Bible turns our attention to a sudden appearance of the heavenly host and their jubilant adoration of God.
- Suddenappearance of the heavenly host and their jubilant adoration of God (Luke 2:13-14).
The Bible speaks of the sudden appearance of the angelic host and their jubilant adoration of God in Luke 2:13-14.
"And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased" Luke 2:13-14 (NASB).
The shepherds had never, in all their lives, experienced such a stunning and spectacular, a marvelous and mind-boggling, a glorious and glittering sight! What a night it was for the these simple and ordinary shepherds! Think of it! An angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and stood before them with the blazing and brilliant manifestation of God's glory, announcing to them that a Savior had been born! And as if that was not startling enough, all of a sudden, a great and innumerable heavenly choir of angels burst into a glorious, jubilant, and adoring praise of God, right before their eyes. Actually, Revelation 5:11 indicates that the number of angelic host may be too large for the human mind to understand thoroughly. Imagine that! What a sight! What a scene! What a spectacle!
Now, here is an important observation I do not want you to miss. Notice that when the heavenly host suddenly appeared and broke forth into adoring praise of God, the Bible didn't say a second time that the shepherds became terribly frightened. Why is that? This is why! Remember, the angel of the Lord who first appeared to them had calmed their fears. So they were able to enjoy the adoring jubilant praise of God by the supernatural heavenly host of angels. Would you like to see and revel in such a sight? I tell you friends, that was the best "Praise Concert" ever performed on earth. And you know what? It was free of charge? The heavenly host didn't take a love offering from the poor shepherds.
At this point in our story, it is the heavenly host that brought a message of peace and good will to the shepherds. They declared, "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased"(Luke 2:14). The Christmas carol, "Angels We have Heard on High" with the refrain "Gloria in Excelsis Deo" is based on Luke 2:14. Notice praise relates to heaven and to earth respectively. God deserves the glory. But people on planet earth need peace. But please understand that the peace spoken here is not to be taken as a universal declaration of peace toward all humanity. Rather, it is peace with God received on the basis of faith alone through the Lord Jesus (see Romans 5:1). It is the peace Jesus Messiah, the Prince of Peace Himself (Isaiah 9:7) brings to repentant sinners. In other words, to experience true peace in our troubled and tumultuous life on earth, you must have Jesus as your Lord and Savior. We live in a wicked world. In fact, the Lord Jesus Himself predicted that wickedness would indeed increase (Matthew 24:12). However, if you give your life to Jesus, you can know the peace of God. And no one, not even the devil, can steal that peace from your heart. Please mark this well! The people who experience God's peace and upon whom God's favor rest are those who repent of their sins and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Do you want to experience true peace? Do you want God's favor to rest upon your life? Then, you must turn away from your sins and wholeheartedly embrace Jesus in your life today! Jesus is waiting for you to come to Him. Jesus is waiting for to call upon His name. Jesus is waiting for you to confess your need of Him. Jesus is waiting to cleanse you from all your sins. Jesus is waiting to change you into a new creature. For the Bible says, "If any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come" (2 Corinthians 5:17).
Remember, our greatest need is a Savior. And God has provided that Savior in the Person of His only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ. He is the reason for this season. Please don't leave Him out of your life in this season and the other seasons of your life.