Luke 2:1-21
The Birth of Christ
Woodlawn Baptist Church
December 4, 2005
Introduction
This month more than a billion people will celebrate Christmas. Amid candlelight, carols and the smells of cedar and incense, the old story will unfold again: Gabriel’s visitations, the journey to Bethlehem, the arrival of the baby in a stable, the glorious announcement to the shepherds in the night, the star in the East, the mission of the Magi. The story is familiar, and in a world of great religious diversity where there is great doubt and disbelief about all things biblical, it is not doubt or disbelief that you and I who have gathered here must typically guard against. The danger we face each year is simply familiarity: knowing the story all too well, so well in fact that we miss its wonder.
Mark Twain said that familiarity breeds contempt. In the beginning we coveted the presence of the Lord, but today perhaps we take it for granted. In the beginning we were awed by Him, but today perhaps we are not so amazed. His visits become more routine, more ordinary, more commonplace. The songs we sing become a habit. The Bible we read becomes dry and old. The testimonies of our brothers and sisters do not move us because we have seen and heard it all before, and the birth of Christ? The wonder is gone.
Five hundred years ago Martin Luther said that the mystery of the humanity of Christ, that He sunk Himself into our flesh, is beyond all human understanding. That God who was fully divine took upon himself a human body to live among us is certainly beyond me, but in reading the Bible account I can see that His doing so was absolutely necessary for our redemption. This morning I want us to revisit Luke 2:1-21, then I want to show you that the birth of Christ resulted in three things.
If you look at the text you see in the first few verses that throughout the Roman Empire people were commanded to return to their ancestral homes to register for the census. Joseph, who was a descendant of King David, took his fiancée, who was pregnant and near delivery, and made the long journey back to Bethlehem. It is evident that as thousands of people were traveling for the same reason there was no room for them when they arrived. When I think about the scene I remember the news showing the lines of cars coming out of Houston before hurricane Rita hit. Thousands of people were moving along, driving, walking, and sleeping on the side of the road. People everywhere told stories about how there was no room for them when they looked for a hotel. After a week of walking and riding, Joseph and Mary experienced the same thing. Having been turned into a stable, Mary gave birth to Jesus, wrapped him in strips of cloth and laid Him in a manger in verse 7.
While this was going on, the angels appeared to the shepherds and told them the good news. It was then that they broke out in song giving glory to God. They told the shepherds that the Savior had been born. They told the men where He was and what to look for when they got to town. When they were gone, the shepherds went into Bethlehem to see for themselves what the angels had said. For hundreds of years this event had been foretold, and now it was taking place before their very eyes. They told everyone what they saw, spreading the wonder concerning the news of a Savior. Verse 18 says that “all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.” On the eighth day Mary and Joseph circumcised the boy, and following the Lord’s instructions they named the baby Jesus.
Some wonderful things happened on that night long ago, and from this passage we can see that Christ’s birth resulted in three things.
The Birth of Christ Resulted in Praise
We can only speculate how much the angels knew about what all would take place when Christ was born, but there’s no questioning that they were excited when it finally occurred. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Creator of the universe and the angels themselves left the glories of heaven and made Himself completely vulnerable as He inhabited the womb of Mary. Here is their Creator, their Lord and Master who has submitted Himself to this lowly position.
While we sing Silent Night, we forget that Revelation 12 tells us this night was far from quite and peaceful. There was an all out war being waged. Satan and all his demons vehemently opposed this birth. In fact, they had been working since the Garden to prevent the birth of Christ, and now that it has happened and Christ has shown Himself to be the victor the angels are singing great praises in the plain sight of the shepherds.
Luke 2 tells us that after the shepherds raced to town and saw for themselves the things the angels said, they too left the stable praising God. Imagine the scene with me as these men left that place with great joy in their hearts, knowing they had just seen the salvation of Israel, the Promised Messiah, the King of kings before their very eyes! They told everyone what they saw.
C.S. Lewis said one time, “I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment. It is not out of compliment that lovers keep on telling one another how beautiful they are; the delight is incomplete till it is expressed.”
Why bring that up? Because I want you to understand why praise is so important in your life, and why the absence of it ought to be an alarm to you. We all praise what we delight in and enjoy. Did you ever know a fisherman who told no one about his catch? Did you ever know a golfer who never talked about his game? What parent in this room told no one when his or her child was born? We praise those things and communicate to others our love for them because we delight in them.
The absence of praise ought to serve as a spiritual indicator in your life. You do not praise, in fact you have no real desire to praise what you do not enjoy. The birth of Christ resulted in great praise from everyone involved because they delighted in the news they heard and the baby they saw. When they got a glimpse of the hand of God at work in their midst they rejoiced and praised God. God’s work should end, should culminate in praise from your lips.
The Birth of Christ Resulted in Great News
A farmer went into his banker and announced that he had bad news and good news. "First, the bad news...""Well," said the farmer, "I can’t make my mortgage payments. And that crop loan I’ve taken out for the past 10 years -- I can’t pay that off, either. Not only that, I won’t be able to pay you the couple of hundred thousand I still have outstanding on my tractors and other equipment. So I’m going to have to give up the farm and turn it all over to you for whatever you can salvage out of it. "Silence prevailed for a minute and then the banker said ,"What’s the good news?" "The good news is that I’m going to keep on banking with you," said the farmer.
That’s really not the kind of good news we’re talking about. Let’s read verses 10-11.
“And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”
The words “good tidings” mean good news. They brought good news of great joy. It was great joy because it had been long anticipated. It was great joy because this was the Messiah, the Savior. He was finally here! The great joy didn’t end with that. It had to do with the joy He would give to all who called on Him as their Lord and Savior. It brings me great joy to know that the all powerful and all knowing and omnipresent God of the universe was born into this world for me! Yes He did it for you and for all the world, but He did it for me. He was born for me. He lived for me. He died for me. He rose from the grave for me and today He ever lives to make intercession for me! I want to tell you that I have great joy today knowing what the birth of Christ has done for me.
Not only was there good news of great joy, but this was good news concerning peace. The angel said in verse 14,
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”
In Isaiah 9:6, it was prophesied that a child would be born, “and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end.”
When the apostle Paul wrote about Jesus and the gospel, he called it a gospel of peace. God is called the God of peace. Jesus is called the Prince of peace. The book of Ephesians says He is our peace, that by His blood He made peace, purchased our peace and that He came and preached peace.
Listen, if the peace you’re looking for is peace and quiet and a life without troubles, then Jesus is not for you. The Bible says that in our natural sinful condition you and I are at enmity with God. We’re out of sorts with Him, but Jesus came to change all that. He came to remove that enmity and reconcile us to God. The greatest peace a man can have is to have peace with God: to know that he is right with His Creator and that when it is all said and done here on earth that something even better awaits us on the other side of death.
How can you have peace with God? The Bible says that “being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” In other words, when you place your faith in Christ, that is, when you finally admit that you have no hopes of eternal life in and of yourselves and that nothing you can do will earn you favor with God; when you quit trusting yourself and your ability to please Him and simply trust that the sacrifice Jesus Christ made for your sins; when you place your faith in Christ God declares you to be forgiven of your sins and He gives to you the righteousness of Christ. When you do your part (exercise faith in Christ), God does His part (forgives you and gives you Christ’s righteousness), you have the peace Christ came to offer.
That is why the angel could say that he brought good tidings of great joy, because unto you and me was born that day in the city of David a Savior: not a politician, not a doctor, not a military commander, but a Savior, Christ the Lord!
The Birth of Christ Resulted in Glory
Christ’s birth was glorious in its fulfillment. Daniel foretold about when Christ would be born. Isaiah said that a virgin would conceive. The prophet Micah told us where Christ would be born. Jeremiah foretold the killing of all the innocent babies.
The life of Jesus Christ is an amazing testament to the glory of God in that over and over God put His name on the line by giving us exact details about the life of Christ. Who else but God can say what will happen tomorrow with exactness? I can tell you what I think the weather might do. I can tell you what I hope to get done this week. I can tell you that I think this or that will happen, but only God is glorious enough to see tomorrow just as clearly as He sees yesterday and today!
Christ’s birth is glorious in its wonder. The whole story of the incarnation is full of wonder. God promised Eve a son who would crush the head of Satan. The entire Old Testament is the story of God preparing a body for Jesus. The virgin birth is a wonder. That the King of kings would be born in a stable with donkeys and cows is a wonder. That He would be laid and nursed in a feed trough is a wonder. It is a wonder to me that God would choose to do what He did the way He did it! When I think of all the wonders surrounding the birth of Christ: the angels, the shepherds, the star of Bethlehem, the 600 mile journey of the Magi to see the Christ child; I cannot help but revel in the glory of God.
But let me tell you why else I believe Christ’s birth results in glory to God. It is because we can experience it personally. Can you imagine the feelings experienced by these shepherds? The angels did not appear to royalty. They did not announce the birth even to the Magi. They appeared to these shepherds, common men who served a common purpose, but were given an uncommon experience. They were told, then they went to see.
But listen, while they may have been uniquely privileged to see Christ in his infancy, they were not unique in having been given the opportunity to experience Christ. Verse 20 says,
“The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.”
That can be your experience too. Today the Holy Spirit is extending to each of you the opportunity to see with eyes of faith the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is not in a manger today, nor is He on a cross on Calvary, but today He sits at the right hand of the throne of God awaiting His Father’s command to return to earth and finish the work He began long ago.
You see, the incarnation of Christ, His birth in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago was only the first of two visits Christ will make to earth. On that first visit He came to purchase your salvation. He came to live and die and raise from the grave to pay for your sins. He came to offer to you and me eternal life. His invitation is for you to be reconciled to God by turning from yourself and trusting in the work that He did. God will forgive you of your sins and will look upon you as though you had never sinned and never again will sin when you place your faith in Jesus Christ.
In December 1903, after many attempts, the Wright brothers were successful in getting their "flying machine" off the ground. Thrilled, they telegraphed this message to their sister Katherine: "We have actually flown 120 feet. Will be home for Christmas." Katherine hurried to the editor of the local newspaper and showed him the message. He glanced at it and said, "How nice. The boys will be home for Christmas." He totally missed the big news--man had flown!
I want to plead with you today not to miss the wonder of the birth of Christ. Do not allow familiarity to rob you of the joys God has for you. He is worthy of your praise today. His birth is the greatest news in the world! Everything about His birth ends in the glory of God. Come today and catch a glimpse of that glory!
