In The Still of the Night
Luke 2:8-20
Introduction:
In the movies if the director wants to produce a dramatic effect, many times he will have the event happen at night. It seems that in the movies, the monsters (remember Jurassic Park?), criminals, and enemies always attack at night. Likewise many great events in the movies were set against a night sky. “Titanic” “E T” “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” It is no different in the Bible. Many of the great events in the Bible happened at night. The Passover (Exod. 12) and Gideon’s great victory over the Midianites (Jud. 7). Many of God’s visitations to His prophets and other leaders such as Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Solomon, and Daniel occurred at night. However, one of the most spectacular events to ever occur during any night, is recorded in Luke 2:8-20, when the angels appear to the shepherds in the field to announce the birth of Jesus.
I. Place.
Near Bethlehem “in the same region” Not in the city but not far away.
II. Time of year
Probably sometime between April and September. Sheep give birth to their lambs in the winter or early spring. During that time the sheep are kept in pens to protect them from predators. The sheep are not taken into the fields until sometime in the spring and are removed from the fields before the weather turns cold.
III. The scene: The shepherds
A. Are abiding/living/staying in the fields.
Most of us live in one place and work in another. But these men lived where they worked . . . in tents . . . in the field. Today sheep are often confined by fences and do not require a shepherd with them 24 hours a day. But then, there were no fences and sheep without a shepherd were easy prey for wild animals and thieves.
And a word about shepherds. They were at the bottom of the social ladder. Herding sheep was a 24 hour a day job, so shepherds had little time to mix and mingle with “normal people.” And, oh yes, since they lived with sheep, they SMELLED like sheep. When a shepherd came into town, there was no doubt in anyone’s nose, what a shepherd did for a living.
B. Keeping watch
The shepherds worked together as a team. Someone was awake and watching the sheep at all times. With sheep, disaster is always just around the corner.
C. At night
Luke does not tell us what time of the night the event happened. This doesn’t matter. If it was night it was dark. No street lights, no automobile lights, no lights of any kind. The only possible exception would be light from a camp fire.
It was quiet. They are in the pasture away from any city and the noise that would be found there. The only possible sound would have been from the occasional bleating of the sheep or the snoring of sleeping shepherds.
It was really, really dark and really, really quiet.
IV. Lights, camera, action!!!
A. Suddenly...BEHOLD!
WHAM! WHO TURNED ON THE LIGHTS???
B. An Angel of the Lord stood before them.
Flying in the air above them? Probably not. This angel STOOD before them like any other normal human being except...as he stood before them...
C. And the glory of the Lord shown round about them.
Glory...The presence of God manifested in light, fire, clouds, or all of the above.
One minute the shepherds are enjoying a quiet night out in the field with the sheep. The next they are confronted by an angel and surrounded by God’s glory.
Talk about a wake up call.
D. “And they were terribly frightened”
The shepherds could not have been more frightened. Their teeth chattered, their knees buckled and no doubt they hid their faces from this awesome sight. Throughout the Bible men have cowered before the presence of God.
Moses (Exod 3:6) Before God at the burning bush. “Then Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.”
Isaiah (Isa. 6:5) When he saw God sitting on His throne. “Woe is me, for I am ruined...for my eyes have seen the Lord of hosts.”
Daniel (Dan. 8:17) Before the “holy one” “I was frightened and fell on my face...”
Daniel (10:9) Before the “man” “No strength was left in me, for my natural color turned to a deathly pallor, and I retained no strength.”
Peter, James and John (Matt. 17:6) At the transfiguration. “They fell on their faces and were much afraid.”
John (Rev. 1:17) Before the vision of Christ. “I fell at His feet as a dead man.”
V. The message
A. “Do not be afraid”
Peter, James and John (Matt. 17:7) “And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, ‘Arise, and do not be afraid.’”
John (Rev. 1:17) “...and He laid His right hand upon me saying, ‘Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last.’”
B. “Behold, I bring YOU...”
1. “GOOD News”
2. “Of GREAT joy.”
3. “For ALL THE PEOPLE.”
Just what is this good news of great joy?
C. “Today”
1. In the city of David
Bethlehem - Luke had already established Bethlehem as the city of David in vs. 4. Micah 5:2 had prophesied that Jesus which Micah described as a “ruler of Israel” would be born in Bethlehem. Just as you and I would understand that the phrase “state capital” would refer to Austin, so the shepherds, along with everyone else in that part of the world understood that the “city of David” referred to Bethlehem.
2. There has been born FOR YOU
Shepherds were the last people in the world who would have expected to be the ones to whom God would announce the birth of the Savior of the world. Shepherds saw themselves as everyone else saw them . . . NOBODIES. But God through the angel is telling them that the “good news of great joy for all the people” includes them. With God no one is a nobody!
3. A savior
A deliverer. The angel was talking about one who would deliver the shepherds from their sins. Mary is told by the angel to name her child “Jesus” which means “Jehovah is salvation” because he will save his people from their sins. The shepherds heard savior understood “deliverer.” But did they understand that the angel was talking about their deliverance from sin? I don’t know but they did understand oppression for a Jewish shepherd at that time was probably one of the most oppressed persons in the world. As a Jew he was oppressed by the Romans and as a shepherd he was oppressed and ostracized by his own people. When the angel said “Savior” the shepherd heard “deliverer from my oppression” and said to himself, “YES!” For the shepherds, this was indeed good news of great joy.
4. Christ the Lord
The name of this savior was Christ the Lord. This is the only place in the New Testament that Christ and Lord are combined in this fashion.
This savior was the “Christ,” the anointed Messiah of God, the son of David and ruler of Israel. He was the one who, for thousands of years, the prophets of God had said would come.
This savior was also the “Lord.” This is a word which in classical Greek was always applied to the gods. It implies one with supreme power and authority. In the mind of a Jewish shepherd, it would identify this savior as the almighty God, Jehovah. Thus the angel identified this savior born in Bethlehem as the promised Messiah who is God Almighty.
D. The sign (Illus: meeting someone at the airport that you have never seen before.)
“And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby...”
1. Wrapped in swaddling cloths
Swaddling cloths = the customary wrapping of a newborn child. God’s gift s gift to the world came gift wrapped. No naked as portrayed in paintings and nativity scenes. Swaddling clothes were like this - they consisted of a square of cloth with a long, bandage-like strip coming diagonally off one corner. The child was first wrapped in the square of cloth, and then the long strip was wound round and round about him.
2. Lying in a manger
Manger = feeding trough. The manger was perhaps made of wood but it may have also been a block of limestone that had been scooped out to provide a feeding place for the cattle.
God was giving the shepherds identifying markers so they would know when they had found the one they were looking for; a newborn child in a feeding trough. Notice that the angel does not tell the shepherds to go and find Jesus. The angel just assumes they will want to go.
E. The heavenly hosts praise God.
1. “Glory to God in the Highest.”
2. “Peace on earth”
3. Among men
4. With whom He is pleased.
VI. The reaction: Let’s GO! No doubt, no hesitation.
A. Straight to Bethlehem
They made a “bee line to Bethlehem.” No side trips and no sight seeing. The shepherds were on a mission.
B. And see this thing
C. Which the Lord has made known to us. They clearly recognized who had given them this message.
VII. What if? The shepherds had:
A. Allowed themselves to be paralyzed with fear.
“No. I’m afraid.”
B. Delayed taking any action.
“No. Not now.”
C. Doubted what they heard and saw.
“No. I’m not convinced.”
D. Ignored what they heard and saw.
“No. I’m going back to sleep.”
E. Rejected what they heard and saw.
“No. I’m not going and you can’t make me.”
Fortunately for us, the shepherds did not fear. They did not delay. They doubt. They did not ignore and they did not reject the angel’s message.
VIII. The action
A. They came in haste. (No delay and no side trips)
B. They found Mary, Joseph and Jesus. (No wise men, kings, or religious leaders) They kept searching until they found them.
C. They related (to Mary and Joseph) the statement given to them by the angel.
D. They returned praising and glorifying God.
They returned to the fields and their sheep but not without telling everyone they met about the glorious birth of the Messiah. The shepherd’s occupation, lifestyle, and social position did not change, but their hearts and lives were changed forever. They had been the first human beings outside of Mary and Joseph to see the Savior of the world.
Conclusion:
On that still dark night so long ago, God announced to the world that the long awaited Savior to the world, Messiah and God in the world, was born. Christ was born in one of the most insignificant towns in Judah, to an insignificant carpenter and his young wife, in a stable of all places and announced to the lowest members of society. Why?
Do you suppose that God is trying to give you and me a message. The Savior of the world is YOUR PERSONAL SAVIOR. Jesus Christ came into this world to be a savior to the world. That world not only includes the somebodies...kings, presidents, movie stars and CEO’s...but the nobodies...store clerks, truck drivers, farm workers, poor, disabled, homeless, YOU and ME.
In that stable so long ago “in the city of David there was born for you, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
How do you feel about that? How are you going to react to that? With fear, delay, doubt, or rejection? Or will you like the shepherds, come in haste to find Christ and change your life forever? The choice is yours.
