The final portion of this sermon is copied from a message that I found here on Sermon Central. I do not remember the author of the sermon.
The Gospel of Luke
Chapters 1 & 2
Today we are starting a new series on the Gospel of Luke
My goal is to start today with the birth of Jesus and end on Easter with His resurrection
I’m not sure that I’m going to be able to pull it off though
Why? Simply because there is so much in the Gospel of Luke that I could easily spend the next 2 to 3 years going through it in detail!
The Gospel of Luke is the longest book in the New Testament and was written by Luke
Luke was a physician and also a Gentile – this makes Luke the only non-Jewish author in the entire Bible
In addition to writing the Gospel of Luke, Luke also wrote the book of Acts (which is what we will be studying this summer!)
When you combine the Gospel of Luke and the book of Acts you get 28% of the New Testament, which makes Luke the most prolific writer in the New Testament – Paul wrote more books, but Luke wrote longer books
The Gospel of Luke was written primarily to a Gentile audience and Luke states his purpose right in the beginning:
Luke 1:1-4 Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. 3 Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.
We first of all see that Luke is addressing this book to someone specific – a man by the name of Theophilus – the fact that he is called “most excellent” tells us that he was either a noble or in some high level position within the government
Luke also states that “many” have written about the life of Jesus, but apparently there were confusing and conflicting reports because Luke felt the need to do an in depth investigation and write about what he had discovered
We need to realize that Luke was not an eyewitness to these events, but rather gathered information from those who were
Luke was a traveling companion to the Apostle Paul and was therefore in touch with many of the original Apostle’s and eye witnesses to the events that he writes about
In the Gospel Luke goes through the life and family of Jesus chronologically
After his introduction he talks about the birth of John the Baptist and then goes right into the account of Jesus’ birth
That’s where we are going to pick up today –
Luke 1:26-38 In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.
There are a couple of things to note here –
Luke specifically mentions that Mary was “pledged to be married” – or engaged – to a man named Joseph, who was a descendant of David
This is important for 2 reasons – first is the fact that Joseph was a descendant of King David
Although this was a pretty cool thing we must also remember that David had LOTS of wives and concubines who gave him LOTS of children
Add to this the fact that several hundred years had passed between David and Joseph and there could easily be literally thousands of descendant of David at this time
SO even though being a descendant of David was cool, it was not all that special – what makes it special however is the fact that Old Testament prophecy specifically states that the Messiah would be a descendant of David
So Luke is establishing Jesus’ Davidic lineage and therefore His right to claim to be the Messiah
The other thing that is specifically mentioned is that Mary was engaged to Joseph, not married to Joseph, and that she was a virgin
Why is this important?
Explain “genetic moral depravity” (as humans our sinful nature is genetic. Since Jesus was only half human – e.g. human ova & Holy Spirit fertilization – He was able to escape the genetic sinful nature)
There’s something else to note in this passage – Mary and Joseph were from the town of Nazareth
During the first century Nazareth was a little hole in the wall town with a population estimate of about 500 people
About twice as big as Liberty, not quite as big as Tioga
Not only was it small, it didn’t have a very good reputation – in John 1:46 Nathaniel says “can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
God could have chosen anyone to be the parents of Jesus
God could have chosen to have Jesus born anywhere under any circumstances
Yet he chose two plain people from a little hick town with a bad reputation
WHY?
Because He loves us and wants to be accessible to us
28 The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31 You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." 34 "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" 35 The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. 37 For nothing is impossible with God." 38 "I am the Lord’s servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.
Put yourself in Mary’s shoes for just a moment
Most scholars agree that Mary was a teenage girl somewhere between 14 and 17 years old
She’s minding her own business when suddenly an angel appears to her and calls her “highly favored”
The angel then goes on to tell her that she would become pregnant and would give birth to a son who would “be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.”
That “God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."
There was no way Mary could mistake the words of the angel – these were direct prophetic references to the Messiah
Mary just found out that she, a nobody from nowhere, would give birth to the Messiah!
How exciting that must have been!
Then Mary realizes something – “How can this be since I am a virgin?”
She might have been a nobody from nowhere but she certainly understood biology
The angel told her not to be worried, and that the Holy Spirit would make her pregnant
I love Mary’s words – “I am the Lord’s servant, may it be to me as you have said."
Last night my family was doing our Christmas eve tradition of drinking hot chocolate while reading the Christmas story by candlelight
After I read this part my daughter Bekah asked a very good question – she said “what would have happened if Mary had said no?”
I had never thought about that and I really don’t have a good answer
I know that some of you might be thinking “why in the world would she say no?”
Because times were very different then than they are now
Mary was not married, and although a single mother today is no big deal it could have gotten her killed
There was also a huge social stigma attached to out of wedlock babies that could accompany the child their whole life
Everyone knew that Mary was not married so there is no doubt that if she suddenly showed up pregnant that the gossip would be freely flowing
Add to this the fact that she would have to explain this pregnancy to Joseph and her family and you have a pretty big deal
This was a huge thing that God was asking Mary to do
It would ruin her reputation, it could cost her her family, and could even have her put to death
Mary knew the price she would have to pay to follow God’s will, but it was a price that she was willing to pay
Folks did you know that there is a price to pay to follow God’s will?
Following God is not always easy, in fact sometimes it can be the hardest thing you will ever do
It can cost you your reputation, your family, and even your life – but it is always worth it!
Mary certainly paid a price, but I bet if you asked her she would say that she’d do it all over again
The story continues on Luke 2
Luke 2:1-20 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.
Again Luke specifically mentions that Mary and Joseph were not married
He wants there to be no doubt in anyone’s mind that Joseph was not the biological father of Jesus
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.
Again, imagine the situation – because of the census there was no room for Mary and Joseph anywhere in Bethlehem
Every room in the town was taken so they had to take shelter in a stable - a barn if you will
The son of God, God in the flesh, was born in a barn and placed in a feeding trough
WHY?
Because He loves us He wants to be accessible to us
He wants to be able to relate to us and us to Him
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.
Think about this situation for a moment
God announces the birth of His son not to kings, emperors, politicians, and people of influence – but to plain, ordinary, smelly shepherds
It’s this whole accessibility thing all over again
And can you imagine being the shepherds?
{elaborate}
I love how Luke writes “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
Yeah, I’m sure that exactly what they said
It was probably more along the lines of “Dude! Did you hear that? Let’s go check it out!”
“Well what about the sheep?”
“Forget the sheep, let’s go see the Messiah!”
I can see them abandoning their sheep and running full speed towards Bethlehem
Why? Because the Messiah was there!
They, along with everyone else in Israel, were anxiously awaiting the Messiah and now He was here
Nothing else mattered to them other than going to see the Messiah
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.
I can imagine that the shepherds very excitedly told everyone they met that the Messiah was finally here
Luke tells us that Mary “treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart”
What’s up with that?
Remember earlier when I said that Mary would not have had an easy time following God’s will?
Ridicule and gossip are hard enough on a normal person, but throw in the hormones of a pregnant woman and you can only imagine what she experienced
I’m sure that there were times that she doubted, wondering if it was all real
Or maybe that maybe she wished she would have said “no”
But here she was, holding the Messiah in her arms and “treasuring all these things and pondering them in her heart”
That baby she was holding is the greatest paradox of all time
God in the flesh
The all powerful, all knowing, creator of the universe in the form of a helpless baby
I’m reminded of the lyrics to a Mark Lowry song “Mary did you know”
Closing – What are you going to do about this baby in the manger?
Are you going to embrace Him or reject Him?
Is He your Lord and Savior, or just another good person born in antiquity?
You must decide
