The Miracle Of The Manger

Title: “The Miracle of the Manger” Scripture: Luke 2

Type: Christmas Series Where: GNBC 12-31-23

Intro: A wife said to her husband, “Shall we watch the six o’clock news and get indigestion or wait for the eleven o’clock and have insomnia?” One wag put it, “The evening news is where they begin with ‘Good evening’--and then tell you why it isn’t.” We live in a world filled with tragedy. If there’s anything this hurting world desperately needs, it is good news. Not only the world in general, but individuals need good news because their lives are strewn with suffering and sorrow. The Christmas story as told by Luke offers not only good news, but the best news in the world: The angel told the shepherds, “I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10-11). Now, you’re right, today is the week after Christmas, but I was sick on Christmas.

Prop: Exam. Luke 2, we’ll see 4 Insights into the Miracle that Took Place in the Manger.

BG:1. Last year we were in Poland at this time. Everything was closed due to it being Epiphany. Celebration of Christmas goes on for much more than one day.

2. I have been preaching a series this year: Miracle of the Moment, Message, and now the Manger.

Prop: Let’s look at Lk 2 so as to see 4 Important Insights into the Miracle that Took Place in the Manger.

I. The Miracle of the Manger: How Silently He Came.

A. The Manger Demonstrates How Silently the Savior Came.

1. Christ Came Silently to a World that wasn’t seeking Him.

a. Erwin Lutzer has said: “The manger scene is often depicted as a quaint and heart-warming moment. But it wasn’t. It was ugly, dirty, and poor. When Jesus entered our world, He could have been born in a palace, but He chose to be born in an impoverished, ordinary, and very humble way. And though there was no place for Him at the inn, there was a place made specifically for Him and Him alone—the place where He would save us—the cross of Calvary.

b. And so a census goes out and the young couple are forced to comply with Rome’s demands and walk 70 miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem so they could be registered so the Empire could tax them. Although Bethlehem would have been but a small village, its population would have swollen with hundred if not 1000’s of poor peasant, indistinguishable from Mary and Joseph, all silently trudging towards this little village a few miles outside of Jerusalem.

2. Powerful People Rarely Do Anything Silently.

a. In this passage as well as in Matthew’s we see several prominent politicians were listed. Mt. 1 mentions King Herod. 40 years prior Mark Anthony had appointed this Idumean pretender as Tetrarch and king over the region of Judea. He was nothing more than a pawn and puppet, but his self-importance and his cruelty were legendary. Luke introduces us to “Quirinius”, the Roman appointed governor of the region of Syria where he would remain until 12 AD. The “big cheese” we are introduced to by Dr. Luke is none other that Caesar Augustus, the Emperor of Rome.

b. Illust: Who was this Caesar Augustus? He was the adopted son of Julius Caesar. His name was actually Octavius. “Caesar” came to mean emperor of Rome. “Augustus”, however, was a title of deity that he bestowed on self with Senate approval. See how little has changed in 2000 years? Politicians think they are gods and they want your money!

B. What Insights Do We Gain from Considering How Silently Christ Came?

1. Although His people were looking for a loud and powerful political deliverer, He didn’t come that way. He came silently. The overwhelming impression of the nativity scene is one of silence: the silence of the sleeping God-Child; the silence of Mary and Joseph gazing upon the child with tenderness and wonder; the silence of the animals looking on, curiously; the silence of the worshipping shepherds who leave the jubilation of the angels in the hills behind for the silence of the stable. The silence, too, of poverty, of weakness, simplicity, and humility.

2. The Political Leaders Luke mentions in this account

a. I want you to consider the names of those three powerful politicians: Herod, Quirinius, Caesar Augustus. They were pretty big deals in their day. They had a lot of people bowing down and kissing up to them. They made a lot of noise in their day. But you know what? I don’t hear a lot of people talking about them today. They’re barely mentioned anymore. They made a lot of noise in their day but they are as silent as the grave today. Jesus, however, came pretty silently, but He is still being proclaimed today.