Experiencing the Birth of Christ With The Shepherds
Luke 2:7-20
The challenge that faces a preacher at Christmas is how to tell the familiar Christmas story in such a way that we do not miss the significance of it. With the annual repetitions the familiarity of the Christmas story can cause us to take it for granted, to overlook just how amazing this event is. As Christians we are so familiar with the Christmas story that we may be tempted to shrug it off as not being especially exciting or relevant to the problems that we are facing in our lives. So this year I want to challenge you to see it again for the first time.
Let’s set the stage by beginning to read in verse seven, “And she (Mary) brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”
When it says in verse seven, “And she (Mary) brought forth her firstborn Son,” the obvious meaning is that Jesus was her first child. Clearly implied is that Mary will have other sons in the process of time. In fact following the birth of Jesus, Matthew writes that Joseph did not consummate his marriage with Mary until after the birth of Jesus (Matt.1:25). But beyond that “firstborn” (prototokos) means “first in place” or “first in importance.” In the New Testament Jesus is called “first born of Creation,” “the first born from the death.”
Next we are told that she “wrapped Him in swaddling cloths.” The word for “cloths” (spar-ganoo) is used to describe medical bandages and wrappings used to bind up the dead. In all prob-ably old clothes were torn up and used for swaddling to keep the baby warm. Even in His birth there is a foreshadowing of His death.
Luke says “there was no room for them in the inn.” There is much discussion of what is meant by “inn.” There are two words translated “inn” in the New Testament. The first (pandocheion) is indic-ative of a place with a host, provisions and rooms. The other (kataluma), which is the one used here, merely means an enclosure, just walls into which a traveler might drive their livestock for the night. The birth of Jesus is not the pleasant and peaceful scene we see on Christmas cards but a barnyard scene with all that implies. The only invitation from God to anyone to come and visit Mary and Joseph and the infant Jesus is to a group of shepherds.
First, What the Shepherds Saw. (2:8-9)
“Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. (9) And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.”
To whom does God announce the birth of His son? Too whom would you expect the announcement to go? We could see how God might choose to announce the birth of Christ to Herod the king. We could see how He would want to announce the birth in a splendid ceremony in the Temple led by the High Priest. But we have trouble understanding why He would choose a ragtag band of shepherds.
The invitation of God comes to the most despised of people, outcasts from all respectable society. They were accused of being thieves and of using land they had no right to. Their honesty and integrity was so questionable that they were not even allowed to testify in a court of law in those days.” I like how Leon Morris phrased it when he wrote. “Most regrettable was their unfortunate habit of confusing ‘mine’ from ‘thine.’ [Leon Morris. “Luke.” Tyndale New Testament Commentaries. (Downer’s Grove, NJ: Inter-Varsity Press, 2008) p. 101] Shepherds were so far down on the list of social outcast that the only people lower were lepers.
At best the shepherds were common, ordinary working class people. They definitely were not at the top of the social ladder. Most likely these shepherds were tending their sheep somewhere on the hills near Bethlehem and the sheep they were tending were probably sheep intended for the Temple sacrifices. They were the last people that you’d expect God to take notice of. I believe that God chose the shepherds because He wanted to show that His love is available to all. Scripture tells us that God is not a respecter of persons, He does not show more respect to kings than He does to hourly wage earners. (James 2:5)
Even today people sometimes think; “I am not sure that God even knows that I exist, and even if He does He probably doesn’t have a very favorable opinion of me!” But no matter how insignificant you may think you are God knows you and you are important to Him. Peter invites believers to, “cast all your unto Him, for He cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7)
The Apostle Paul explains this in his first letter to the Corinthians, “For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. (27) But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; (28) and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are.” (1 Cor. 1:26-28)
It is possible the when verse nine says that “an angel of the Lord” appeared (not “the” angel of the Lord in the New Testament) that it is again an appearance of Gabriel in that he was the one who directed the news to Zachariah and to Mary. But whoever he was he appeared with obvious the supernatural shekinah glory of God. The consistent response of people in the Bible who are confronted by angels is fear!
Not only what the Shepherds saw but…
Second, What the Shepherds Heard. (2:10-14)
• Fear Not. (v10a)
“Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid…”
Note with me that the message that the angel brought from God spoke to their most immediate need when the angel said, “fear not.” The Text says in verse nine that they were “greatly afraid.” When the angelic messenger suddenly appeared the shep-herds reacted as any normal human would, they were terribly afraid.
Unfortunately holidays like Christmas are sometimes the most difficult for people. Life at this moment seems to be like the shepherds filled with fear.
Fear about, your health, your family, your job security, the economy, or the world conditions. But we need not fear we have “good tiding of great joy.” The Savior has come, Scripture has been ful-filled and Christ is still in control and LORD over all.
• Good News. (vv. 10b-12)
“… for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. (11) For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
? It is good news because it is historically true.
Some perceive the story of the birth of Jesus on the same level as Santa and the Elves. It is a nice story that we tell to children. But Luke wants us to understand that the events of Jesus birth were historically accurate. They could be believed because his own research had verified them to be historically true.
? It is good news because it is universally relevant.
The angel says that the news that he brings “will be to all people” (v. 9). This news is not just for a select few. Scripture says, “Whosoever will let him come” (Rev. 22:17). Jesus came to pay the penalty for the sins of all sinners. He is available to all, but unfortunately not received by all. The angel announced where Jesus was to be born, “in the city of David” – Bethlehem and who He was “a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” But in the original language there are no articles at all: so it is not one title but three, literally “Savior, Christ, Lord.”
Unlike Zechariah (Luke 1:18) the Shepherds did not ask for a sign but they received one. Verse twelve says, “And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” The sign to them is that they will find the Christ child lying in a manger. Perhaps there were other children born in Bethlehem that night but it is unlikely that any other child was born in a cattle stable that night, and that His first resting place was a crude feeding trough designed to feed cattle.
? Its good news because it brings glory to God and peace to men. (13-14)
After the angel’s reassurance that they need not be afraid verse thirteen says, “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heaven-ly host praising God and saying: (14) “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
Luke says that “suddenly” there was a heavenly flash and then the shepherds, who are already afraid, are literally surrounded by angels! The word “multitude” – (plethos) is the word we get plethora from. So how many angels are there? John in his vision of Heaven recorded in the book of Revelation says, “Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thou-sands of thousands.” (Revelation 5:11) Thousands here is literally “myriads” means 10,000 which is the largest number used in ancient Greek, so 10,000 x 10,000 means beyond counting. So Luke is not saying there were 150, nor 1,500, or even 15,000 angels – but beyond counting.
The word “host” is most often used to describe an army – the host of heaven would be the Army of Heaven. In my imagination I wonder if when the Shepherds did looked up they did not see the whole heavenly host stretched from horizon to horizon to witness the most amazing event in the history of the universe. Then the heavenly host began to sing praises. Scripture says in Job 38:7 that at creation the angels “sang together and all the angels shout-ed for joy,” now they join voices again to welcome the birth of the savior of mankind.
It is good news because it brings glory To God in verse fourteen the angels are recorded as singing, “Glory to God in the highest” (v. 14a) The Latin translation of this is where we get, “Gloria In Excelsis Deo”- (Glory in the Highest, God). This is not merely a wish (may glory be given to God) nor just a statement (God has glory), but rather a statement of that which is in terms of a praise of God. “In the highest” does not mean in the highest degree, although that is true. It means above, Heaven, the dwelling place of God. The angels praised God at Creation and now they praised Him at the beginning of the new creation. The whole purpose of the plan of salvation is bring glory to God. God’s glory had dwelt in the tabernacle and in the Temple, but had departed because of the nation’s sin. Now God’s glory was returning to earth in the person of His Son. That lowly manger was a holy of holies because Jesus was there!
It is good news because it contains the pro-mise of peace to men, the second part of verse fourteen records the angels as singing, “And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (v. 14b).
The message of the angels is “On earth Peace…” but peace for whom? Christmas does not bring peace to all. But what kind of peace? This verse has been misinterpreted to promote the idea that there can be peace on earth if people will simply try to get along. But because of sin this kind of peace is impossible. The peace that is promised is the kind of peace that only the Messiah can bring – not peace from war or conflict but peace with God. Peace between sinful man and a holy God.
Although the King James Bible translates verse 14 as saying, "On earth peace, goodwill toward men" - the Greek literally says, "Men of His good pleasure.” It is translated "with whom He is pleased." (NAS) and translated “on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests” (NIV). That can be very misleading, if you are not careful. It sounds like God is going to bring peace and goodwill toward those who earn it, those who deserve it.
It's not men who have earned it. It's God who has given it because it's His pleasure to give it. It's not the result of what good men have done. Angels are not rejoicing and glorifying God for what men have done or will do. Angels are not rejoicing that some men will merit salvation. They are glorifying God because, though none can merit salvation, God is pleased to give it by His own good pleasure. It is available for all, and when and if they receive what God want to give us, we have peace.
Not only what the Shepherds heard but…
Third, What the Shepherds Decided. (2:15)
“So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.”
“They could have doubted what they had been told. They could have said, “It cannot be like we were told. In fact why should we have been told at all. We better just forget about it.”
They could have ignored it. They could have any number of excuses that would keep them from checking out the story they had just heard.
They could have debated it. They could have sat down and analyzed what they should do. Could they afford to leave the sheep? What if something happened while they were gone? Talking, talking and more talking. Sometimes we actually talk ourselves out of responding in faith.
They could have rejected it. They could have said, “This is not for me! This sounds king of flaky to me.” We often reject what we think demands too much of us.” [Stephen Cole. “When Shepherd Meet.” Luke 2:8-10. www.sermonnotebook.org/new%20testament/Luke%202_7-20.htm]
But the shepherds chose to believe. The belief of the shepherds in the message of the angel is shown in their words, they did not say, “Let us go and see if these things are true” but “let us now go …and see this thing that has come to pass.”
Not only what the Shepherds decided but…
Fourth, What the Shepherds Did. (2:16-18, 20)
• They went without Delay. (v. 16)
“And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger.”
“It is not enough to hear about Jesus. It is not enough to look into the manger and say, ‘Oh how nice. What a lovely scene it gives me such good feelings.’ The truth is, even if Jesus were born in Bethlehem a thousand times and not within you, you will still be eternally lost. ….Religious sentiment, even at Christmas, without the living Christ is a yellow brick road to darkness. [R. Kent Hughes. “Luke: That You May Know the Truth.” Vol. 1. Preaching the Word. (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1998) p. 89]
• They shared the Good News. (vv. 17-18)
“Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. (18) And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds.”
As the first evangelists they did not emphasize what it was like to see an angel, or to hear the angelic choir. Nor did they dwell on how frightened they were. Their main interest was in reporting, “that which was told them concerning this Child” (v. 17).
Every individual is important. It is impossible to live, even for a few moments on this earth and not influence somebody in one way or another. We are always influencing someone, either for good or for bad.
• Returned to Work With Joy. (v. 20)
“Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.”
The last verse of our text says that the shepherds who had seen such wondrous sights had to go back to the normal lives. That is true for us each year, for the celebration of Christmas is a special time. But when the fun and excitement is over we have to return to our jobs and our responsibilities. But the shepherds returned so full of what had happened in their lives they could not keep them-selves from sharing the good news with everyone they came into contact with.
Don’t forget who these shepherds are, they are real men, I think it fair to say that they were a little rough around the edges and you probably wouldn’t want your daughter or your sister to date one. The celebrating that these shepherds were doing was not the refined praise spoken by the cultured, nor the quiet reflection of the scholar. When the Bible says that they were “glorifying and praising God,” (v.20) it is describing something like the last second of the playoff game in seventh over-time when your team finally wins! That’s when the whooping and hollering starts. It is likely that is the only kind of praising and glorifying they knew and I think it brought a smile to God’s face.
The text does not say that they glorified God in the temple, though that would have been appro-priate. No, it says they “returned” to where they had been. Back to the tiring and largely unapprec-iated work of caring for sheep. That is, within 48 hours (and probably less) they were back where they were when the angel found them in the first place. Having seen the Babe in the manger, it was time to go back to work.
And so they did. And so must we. Christmas eventually ends for all of us. Soon enough we will take down the tree, pack away the ornaments, and either use our gifts or join the line at the store to exchange them. In a few days the children will go back to school and life will return to normal. But will we truly be changed by Christmas? Or will it be business as usual in 2017? For the shepherds, life would never be the same. Oh yes, the work was the same but they were different. They went back to work change by an experience with God.
Application.
The Christmas story is not merely about an event that happened over 2,000 years ago but it is an event that can take place in our lives in the present if we allow Christ to be born into our hearts and lives.
If you are already a believer you do as the shepherds did, you are like the shepherds in that you had a “before” and “after” story that you can share. The story of your experience with Jesus Christ.
Experiencing the Birth of Christ With The Shepherds
Luke 2:7-20
First, What the Shepherds Experienced. (2:8-9)
(1 Cor. 1:26-28)
Second, What the Shepherds Heard. (2:10-14)
• Fear Not. (v.10a)
• Good News. (vv. 10b-12)
? It is good news because it is historically true.
? It is good news because it is universally relevant.
? Its good news because it brings glory to God and peace to men. (vv. 13-14)
Third, What the Shepherds Decided. (2:15)
Fourth, What the Shepherds Did. (2:16-18, 20)
• They went without delay. (v. 16)
• They shared the Good News. (vv. 17-18)
• Returned to Work With Joy. (v. 20)
Experiencing the Birth of Christ With The Shepherds
Luke 2:7-20
First, What the Shepherds _____________. (2:8-9)
(1 Cor. 1:26-28)
Second, What the Shepherds __________. (2:10-14)
• ______ Not. (v.10a)
• Good News. (vv. 10b-12)
? It is good news because it is historically _________.
? It is good news because it is universally ___________.
? Its good news because it brings _______ to God and ________ to men. (vv. 13-14)
Third, What the Shepherds ____________. (2:15)
Fourth, What the Shepherds _______. (2:16-18, 20)
• They went without __________. (v. 16)
• They ___________ the Good News. (vv. 17-18)
• Returned to Work With _________. (v. 20)
