The Three Fear Not’s of Christmas
(Luke 1:26-35, Matt 1:18-25, Luke 2:8-16)
Fear has been a part of the human existence since the fall of man in Genesis 3:8-10. You can see what fear looks like in the face of panic in a car with the sign “Student Driver” – no not in the face of the driver but in the face of the person in the passenger seat. As a public school teacher for six years in the Vilonia High School the biggest part of my day was taken up in teaching Driver’s Education. I know exactly what fear looks like, by remembering what I saw when I caught my own reflection in the rear view mirror of the Driver’s Ed Car. I distinctly remember some incidents that inspired fear.
One was at the beginning of a new term, when I took the new students out to the car to drive for the first time. A young lady slipped behind the wheel and put on her seat belt. I looked at her and said, “Ok, you can start the car.” Her reply was, “How?” I said, “You mean you have never even started a car?” She said, “No, my dad said, that as soon as you taught we how, I could drive his car.” My reply to her was, “Tell your dad, I said, THANKS!”
Another incident that stuck in my mind was when one day as we left the school headed east on Hwy. 64, as we pulled out of the school driveway the little girl behind the wheel looked over at me with a smile and said, “Well how am I doing.” My reply with a forced smile was, “Well your doing just fine, except that you are on the wrong side of the road.”
I could regale you with story after story but I think you get the idea. Everyone, regardless of how brave they seem, is afraid of something it may be any number of things such as Snakes, Spiders, Disease, Financial Setbacks, Old Age, Gray Hair, Rejection, Disappointment, Exposure, Being Forgotten, Etc. Even in the Bible, we can see where men were stalked by their fears.
Nothing has changed! People are still caught in the grip of their fears, and this is perhaps more so during the Christmas Season. It should be a time that is joyous, happy and most of all Christ-centered. Yet the season is full of fear, fear of not having enough money, fear of not meeting everyone’s expectations (what if I didn’t get them the right gift or what if they get me a better gift than I got them); we worry over meals, over who will be there and who will not. We just seem to fear everything.
This morning I want us to see that three times God sent angelic messengers to the earth with messages connected to the birth of His Son, the Lord Jesus. Each time, they brought big news, news which troubled the hearts of their hearers. However, they also came with a message of peace. Three times angels appeared. Three times they spoke the words, "Fear not." Let’s take some time this morning to examine the messages of these angels and learn for ourselves what it means to "Fear Not."
First, We are Told, Fear Not Only Believe (Luke 1:26-31,34-35)
“Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, (27) to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. (28) And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!"(29) But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. (30) Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. (31) And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS…… (34) Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?" (35) And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.”
When our lives do not go as we have planned it is easy to fear that which is unknown. Often, God will allow things to happen in your life and in mine that seem to be hard to bear and hard to understand, yet the Lord sends them our way so that we might grow in Him and come to know Him in a better way. When these times arise, it is easy to question the Lord and His judgment.
Let’s look for a moment at Mary’s situation. If Mary were to be a part of God’s plan then she faced the possibility of having her engagement to Joseph broken; she knew that Joseph would have the legal right to have her executed when it becomes known that she was pregnant. Even if somehow Joseph would still marry her, she knew how people would talk; they would have a reputation for being sexually promiscuous. This was a less than ideal situation for a young Jewish girl to find herself in. God called on Mary to step out on faith in order to be a part of His divine daring plan. But being a part of the plan would cost Mary something. Yet Mary was willing to step out on faith because she knew God loved her.And therein lies the difference between when God challenges us to step out on faith and the world ask us to take a risk. In this world, sometimes the challenge to do something risky comes from those who don’t really love us nor do they have our best interest at heart. The challenge doesn’t even have to be spoken; it may just be the unspoken peer pressure to fit in with the crowd. We’ve all be in that position at one time or another.
God won’t challenge us to do something just for fun; He won’t pressure us to fit in with the crowd. God loves us and only wants what is best for our lives. God is not going to manipulate us and then laugh at us when we fall flat on our face.
Mary asked some legitimate questions; if she was going to become pregnant she would like to know how this was going to happen. However, Mary did not let her questions stop her. Mary said, “YES!” to the part of the plan that God had given her. When God challenges you to move out on faith and be a part of a God-given dream, it’s alright to ask some questions. It is okay to say, “God, that’s a great dream, but how are we supposed to get there?” God answered Mary, and He will give you an answer too. Now it’s important to understand that God didn’t give Mary all the details; Gabriel only gave Mary enough information so she could make a willing response to God’s plan.
God will give us just enough light for the path that is before us; as the Psalmist says, “Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path” (Psalm 119:105 NLT).
We are Told, Fear Not Only Believe and..
Secondly, We Are Told To Fear Not Only Obey (Matt 1:18-25)
“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. (19) Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.”
How often have we read the Christmas story without stopping to consider the emotions that Joseph had to deal with in order to submit to God in ways which are contrary to his every natural inclination?
The Bible does not tell us when Joseph learned of Mary’s pregnancy nor who told him. But when Joseph learned of the situation there appeared to be only two possible solutions
1. He could divorce Mary quietly and have her sent away until the baby was born. or
2. He could divorce her publicly, and thereby subject her to the ridicule and humiliation of the public. This option could even have resulted in Mary’s death according to the Old Testament law (Deut. 24.). But as he thought on these things he received a message from heaven beginning in verse twenty. “But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. (21) And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins." (22) So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: (23) "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us." (24) Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, (25) and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.”
While the Bible does not say much about him, we know this one thing: Joseph kept his ears tuned to heaven. In spite of the cultural expectations and practices Joseph listened to the voice of God even when it took him through all the tough times ahead. I am sure that Joseph must have thought something like this: “I don’t understand all of what I have been told. I sure can’t explain it. I’m not even sure I’m all together happy about it, but if it’s God’s will then count me in!”
So for you today, “Do not fear God’s purposes. They may look bad in the beginning, but in the end, He will be glorified and you will be blessed.”
Paul tells us in Romans 8:28; “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Nowhere does God say that all things are good, but rather that “all things will work together for good” when we are following his purpose in our lives. Later in his letter to the church at Corinth Paul says, (2 Cor. 4:17) ”For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” Whatever we are called upon to endure in this life for his sake will in the end be found to be worth it all.
We Are Told To Fear Not Only Obey and…
Third, We Are Told, Fear Not Because You Are Important To God (Luke 2:8-11)
“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. (10) Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, 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.”
Why were these shepherds afraid? Well the truth is that ordinary people have always displayed fear when they were confronted with the reality of God, because coming face to face with the Almighty has a way of making one face up with who we really are. You may think that if God is even aware that you exist, He probably doesn’t have a very favorable opinion of you. A lot of people, deep down, secretly feel like that!
The appearance of the angels to the shepherds tells us, “No matter how insignificant you may think you are, God knows you and you are important to him.”
The Apostle Paul says in 1 Cor. 1:26-28, “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…”
Shepherds were just ordinary common people. They were not the social elite, they were just common working folks. Most likely these shepherds were tending sheep outside Bethlehem and these may have been sheep being prepared for temple sacrifice.
In verse fifteen we read, ‘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."
This decision by the shepherds was a wonderful example of people acting in faith in the Word of God. They heard the message and they did something about it. They trusted what God had said and went and checked it out. Verse sixteen says, “And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. (17) Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child.”
The shepherds did what we all must do, they came to Christ in faith. God had brought the shepherds to the stable as witnesses of the supernatural events which happened that evening and the shepherds did that marvelously.
Conclusion
Three times the angels came and three times there was a reaction based in fear. However, when the fear had been dealt with and the Lord’s message was allowed to come through, the message was seen for what it really was, a promise of grace. So it is this Christmas season. There may be those things around you that you fear, but if you can learn the lesson that Mary, Joseph and the shepherds learned, fear not only believe, fear not only obey, fear not because you are important to God.
