Still the Greatest Story Ever Told
Introduction:
• Each of the gospels presents the Savior in a different light:
Matthew: the Messianic King
Mark: the Divine Servant
Luke: the Son of Man
John: the Son of God
• Luke paints for us the human aspect of our Savior in vivid detail. Jesus had a birth announcement, a posse of spectators, and nurturing mother who took care of her child.
• Luke explains to us that though in His Divine nature He was completely different from us, yet in His human nature He shared many commonalities with every human being.
• It reminds us of Hebrews 4:15, “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”
• As we come to our passage in chapter two, Luke points out some very important details about who our Savior is and what purpose He came for.
• In doing so, Luke, a Greek, shows us that the Savior didn’t just come for the Jews but He came for all people. He didn’t just die for the elect, but He did that all might know Him.
I. His Pedigree (vs.1-5)
Luke writes and tells us that this baby that had been born “was of the house and lineage of David.” This tells us that Jesus was part of a royal line of succession.
Matthew, in his gospel traces the family tree of Jesus all the way back to David and even farther back to Abraham.
Thus, being of the House of David, Joseph was from Bethlehem. So, Caesar Augustus requires ever man to return to his hometown to be taxed, and in doing so he helps fulfill the prophecy of Micah 5:2 that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem.
Caesar took the title Augustus because it is a title with a religious nature and he wanted to make Himself into a God.
Little did he know that though he had a plan to be a god and rule the world, he was sending the one true God in human form to the place of His birth Bethlehem were He would be given a throne that He would never give up.
Luke 1:32-33: “He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” (emphasis added)
So, Caesar sends the parents of our Savior back to Bethlehem so that He can be born in the hometown of His father David. There is some spiritual symbolism for Him being born in Bethlehem that we need to see to understand His Kingly pedigree.
There are two (2) things I want you to notice about the city of Bethlehem:
1. It’s a place of bread.
o In fact, if you translate the word Bethlehem, it literally means “house of bread.”
o God told the children of Israel that as long as they stayed in the Land of Promise, which included Bethlehem, they would never go without what they needed.
o This bread could only meet their physical needs. Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the house of bread and He said, “I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger;”
2. It’s a place of water.
o 1 Chronicles 11:15-17, “Now three of the thirty captains went down to the rock to David, into the cave of Adullam; and the host of the Philistines encamped in the valley of Rephaim. And David was then in the hold, and the Philistines’ garrison was then at Bethlehem. And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem that is at the gate!”
o David said “there is a well in Bethlehem filled with precious water that I need to drink from.”
o There is a well in Bethlehem that you and I need to drink from, and it’s the Well of Living Water. Jesus said you’ll never thirst again!
II. His Presence (vs.6-7)
Not only do we need to understand the pedigree of the Savior, but we also need to understand the importance of His earthly presence.
Jesus is called Mary’s “firstborn son.” This implies that Mary had other sons. So, what was so different about this firstborn son?
We know that the passage we preached last week said “But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law.”
One of the great points of emphasis about the birth of Jesus Christ is that when He was born that God Himself had made His arrival on the earth.
John 1:14 says it this way, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”
That word John uses “dwelt” (Gr. skenoo) is translated to mean that Jesus pitched His tent among men.
That word is an allusion back to the Old Testament when God would come down among the Children of Israel for a limited period of time and dwell with them.
There is only one other place where that noun is used in the New Testament: Revelation 21:3. Here, John says “And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.”
God’s presence back then was temporary, but now when Luke tells us that Mary had birthed the Son of God we realize that God has taken up residence among His people and what’s even better is that He is never going to leave!
When He ascended into heaven, He promised the Comforter would come and He did. When this world and all its glory fades away, God’s going to gather us all home in His very presence.
He said “I’ll never leave you nor forsake you.”
Not only was born the Son of God, but He was a human being just like us. Luke tells us that Mary “wrapped Him in swaddling clothes.”
Babies would be wrapped in these clothes in the ancient world to keep their limbs straight and ensure proper growth.
Luke goes on to tell us later in chapter two that Jesus “grew in stature and wisdom.” He lived a human life just like every other human being save one detail; He lived sinless.
Jesus left us an example; He left us a better way to live. He invites everyone to follow Him and walk in His footsteps.
III. His Purpose (vs.8-11)
Not only is His pedigree and His presence important, but His purpose is also important.
Luke tells us in verses 10 and 11 that an angel came to the shepherds and said “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”
That word “savior” means deliverer or rescuer. The angel came to the shepherds who were in those days the lowest of the low in the social classification. The angel tells them that the Savior of all men has been born.
The Good Shepard has come to gather His flock unto Himself. Luke tells us in verse 10 that the good tidings are “to all people.”
The world did not stop for the birth of this King. Example: Royal Birth of Prince William and Kate’s baby.
This baby was born of the most humble means. Not even born among the humans, but born among the cattle in a stall and laid in a feeding trough.
But, oh how fitting for one who had come to be the sacrificial lamb. The Lamb slain before the foundations of the world.
Why did He come? To be a Savior for all men.
Jesus stated His own mission in Luke 4:18 when He said “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.”
Not only does Luke teach us that Jesus came to be the Savior for all men, but he also teaches us that all men need a Savior.
There is not one among us who can make it into eternity with God without having had an encounter with this Savior that was born in Bethlehem.
“Pass me not oh gentle Savior, hear my humble cry. While on others thou art calling, do not pass me by.”
