While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night C

Many people have an intellectual knowledge which they accept as true about Jesus Christ, but they have never experienced Jesus in a personal way. They are what I call “cultural Christians.” Cultural Christians are people who grew up in church and all the stuff about church and God and Christ and salvation are all a part of their culture. But those truths have not been PERSONALLY appropriated. Or a person marries a true believer and kind of “joins the club,” so to speak, to keep peace and harmony; but in his or her heart of hearts, they know they do not possess true, life-altering, transformative Christianity.

You see, it’s not enough to accept intellectually with your head the facts ABOUT Jesus in the same sense that you believe in the existence of Julius Caesar or Abraham Lincoln. To be saved is to experience Christ PERSONALLY by KNOWING Him through a salvation experience in which Christ comes into your life and makes you His child. To know Jesus personally, you must voluntarily receive Him by faith into your life.

John 1:12 says, “But as many as received him, to them he gave power to become the sons of God, even to those who believe on his name.”

Can you look back to a time when… you realized that you were a sinner before a holy God... and you realized that Jesus died on the cross in your place to pay the penalty for your sins… and you believed upon Him and turned to Him to save you?

If not, PLEASE don’t leave this auditorium today without being settling the matter of your relationship with God!

III. NOTE THIRD THE ANGEL’S INTRODUCTION – verse 11 – “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

The angel introduced Jesus to these lowly shepherds. Note the three titles he uses for this Person who was born in the city of David:

• He called him SAVIOR.

Jesus came to save us from our sins. Listen to a couple of other passages in the Gospels.

Matthew 1:21 – “And she shall bring forth a son, and you shall call his name JESUS: for he will save his people from their sins.”

The name Jesus means “Savior.” Why was Mary told to call Him Jesus?—The answer is right there in the verse: “…for he will save his people from their sins.” You see, we need someone to save us from our sins because we’re all sinners, and NO ONE can meet God’s standard of perfect holiness.

This is the whole purpose for which Christ came, which Jesus Himself said in Luke 19:10. – There He said of Himself: “For the Son of man has come to seek and to save those who are lost.”

The PURPOSE for Jesus coming to this earth is to save you from your sins. Have you been saved and fulfilled Christ’s purpose in YOUR life?

• Back in Luke 2:11, the angel also called this One who would be born in Bethlehem CHRIST.

Christ is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word for “Messiah.” The meaning of names had greater significance in Bible times than today. A name was often given to a child because of its meaning—not because it sounded cute, or was popular at the time. “Jesus,” as I said, means “Savior” and “Christ” means “Messiah.” So, when we refer to Him as “Jesus Christ,” we’re actually calling Him “Savior Messiah.”