A Virgin, a City and the Shepherd’s
Introduction
This is a wonderful time of the year for Christians; we have the opportunity to remind ourselves just how special Jesus the Son of God really is to the fulfillment of prophecy and mankind.
Today the Sermon will include the usual discourse and the congregation will also be asked to participate with singing at various times.
Prophets and prophecies of God should never be understated, for the true prophets of God help prove that the Bible is the inspired word of God. Truth seekers in the word of God should find special joy in the realm of messianic prophecy because it ties the New and Old Testaments together in unique and wonderful way. Together we should expect to see exactly what God wants us to see and that should include how His plan for all mankind is always unerring and perfect.
Main Thoughts
Sing – Silent Night, Holy Night (Verse’s 1, 3 & 4)
This popular Christmas carol (song or hymn) has been enjoyed for almost 200 years. It has been translated into more languages around the world then any other Christmas song, it is one of the most popular carols of all time and often sung without musical accompaniment.
It is part of our teaching this morning because it speaks of a virgin, who will give birth to a Holy Infant and this fulfills Messianic Biblical Prophecy.
Luke 1:26 In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."
29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32He 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, 33and 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?"
35The 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.
Luke tells of the virgin birth of Jesus, but to tie this blessed event back to the original prophecy we need to go back 700 years from the virgin birth to the book of Isaiah.
Throughout scripture the prophet Isaiah is a prominent figure. The New Testament quotes the book of Isaiah over 20 times and when you add allusions and quotations from the book of Isaiah you have more references to it then any other Old Testament book. In fact Jesus began His ministry with a quote from…
Luke 4:16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. 17The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
18"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,19to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor."
Then the listener’s heard Him say, Luke 4:21and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
Obviously the book of Isaiah contains some very important prophesies and messianic prophecies.
The virgin birth prophecy is located in the 7th Chapter of Isaiah verse 14 which reads, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” (English Standard Version)
Seven centuries later the Holy Spirit led Matthew to refer to that statement of Isaiah.
Matthew 1: 23 "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us." (NIV)
Sing – O Little Town of Bethlehem – All Verse’s
Before we contemplate the significance of the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, I would like to remind you that only prophecies given by God are correct 100% of the time.
Illustration - Prophetic Goofs
The book, The World’s Worst Predictions lists some of history’s all-time prophetic goofs.
• King George II said in 1773 that the American colonies had little stomach for revolution.
• An official of the White Star Line, speaking of the firm’s newly built flagship, the Titanic, launched in 1912, declared that the ship was unsinkable.
• In 1939 The New York Times said the problem of TV was that people had to glue their eyes to a screen, and that the average American wouldn’t have time for it.
• An English astronomy professor said in the early 19th century that air travel at high speed would be impossible because passengers would suffocate.
Luke 2
The Birth of Jesus Christ
1In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3And all went to be registered, each to his own town. 4And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. 6And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. 7And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. (ESV)
Point of interest: Christ’s birth in Bethlehem was apparently not by the choice of Mary and Joseph; Caesar Augustus issued a census decree which necessitated Joseph to leave his home in the city of Nazareth and return to his ancestral home of Bethlehem.
The fact that Jesus was born in Bethlehem is prophesied by a contemporary of Isaiah, the prophet Micah. This prophet of the nation of Judah tells of a promised ruler from Bethlehem.
Micah 5:2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans [a] of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins [b] are from of old,from ancient times. [c] " (New International Version)
Footnotes:
a. Micah 5:2 Or rulers
b. Micah 5:2 Hebrew goings out
c. Micah 5:2 Or from days of eternity (EXPLAIN)
Sing – Go Tell It on the Mountain – All Verse’s
The Shepherds and the Angels
Luke 2:8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9And an angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. 10And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. 11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger." 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
14"Glory to God in the highest,and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"
15When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us." 16And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. (ESV)
Please try and imagine the excitement of the shepherds, when the testimony of an angel of the Lord had been confirmed. The bible says, they spread the word concerning what they were told about the child. Upon returning to their duties in the field Luke tells us they glorified and praised God for the things they had hear and seen, which were just as they had been told.
Conclusion
Prophecies of God never fail!
Today we have briefly considered the Messianic Prophecies of two prophets of God, Isaiah and Micah. Apostles and eye witnesses tell us that some 700 years later, the word God gave them was confirmed when Mary the virgin mother gave birth in Bethlehem to Jesus the Son of God.
We have the truth and now we need to learn from the shepherds and share the joy. They went out and shared the joy! Then they glorified and praised God!
This Christmas season take the joy of knowing the Son of God to a lost and dying world. Glorify and praise God through your actions and your witness this day. Your co-workers, neighbors, friends, and family need to know the Messiah and the real reason for the season. They could share in unspeakable joy and glorify and praise God all of their days.
Give the eternal gift, tell them about Jesus!
