Luke 2:18
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
[READING - Luke 2:1-18]
1 Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth.
2 This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria.
3 And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city.
4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David,
5 in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child.
6 While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth.
7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.
10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;
11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
12 “This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 And suddenly there appeared 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 men with whom He is pleased.”
15 When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.”
16 So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger.
17 When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child.
18 And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds.
[PRAYER]
[CONTEXT] In the introduction to Luke’s gospel, Luke told his first reader, Theophilus, that he had written an orderly account of the life of Jesus so that Theophilus would know “the exact truth about the things (he had) been taught,” (Lk. 1:4).
The earthly life of Jesus begins, of course, with His birth, so right off Luke gives the exact truth about the birth of, not only Jesus, but also His relative John the Baptist.
John’s father, Zechariah, was ministering the temple when the angel Gabriel appeared and announced to him that he and his wife, Elizabeth, would have a son in their old age, a son they were to name “John.”
Zechariah didn’t believe at first and was made mute as a result. Even so, he learned that his son would go great in the sight of the Lord, be filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb, turn many Israelites back to God, and go as a forerunner before the Messiah, the Christ, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.
When Zechariah’s priestly service was finished, he went home, and just as the angel said, Elizabeth became pregnant.
In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, the angel Gabriel appeared to her cousin, Mary, and told her that she would give birth to a Son whom she was to name “Jesus.”
Mary’s Son would be great and called the Son of the Most High, and He would rule from the throne of David and reign over the house of Jacob, and His Kingdom would never end (Lk. 1:31-33).
Mary isn’t married, and Mary has never been with a man, but this Child will be conceived miraculously as the Holy Spirit comes upon her and the power of the Most High overshadows her; therefore, Mary’s Son will be called the holy Child, the Son of God (Lk. 1:35).
Then Mary learns that her relative Elizabeth, who was once called barren, is now in her sixth month on pregnancy (Lk. 1:36).
“For nothing is impossible with God,” (Lk. 1:37 NIV).
Mary visits Elizabeth, sings her magnificat, Elizabeth gives birth to John, and then Mary gives birth to Jesus.
7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
It’s then that an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared to some shepherds who were keeping watch over their flock by night;
it’s then that the glory of the Lord shone around them;
it’s then that the angel said, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will 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,” (Lk. 2:10-11).
Suddenly an heavenly host, a multitude of angels appeared praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased,” (Lk. 2:14).
it’s then that the shepherds go straight to Bethlehem.
When they saw the baby Jesus wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger just as the angel said they would, they told anyone in or around Bethlehem what had been told to them about this Child (Lk. 2:16-17).
18 And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds.
[INTER] Do you feel the wonder? Do you feel the marvel? Do you feel the astonishment? Are you amazed at the true story of the birth of Jesus?
There are lots of questions for us to answer during the Christmas season.
Will I decorate? If I do, when will I decorate? What will I decorate with?
Why are my neighbor’s decorations so tacky?
Who do I need to buy gifts for? What do I need to get them? How will I wrap them?
Why are these prices so high?
When will I get together with the rest of the family for Christmas? What do I need to bring?
What!? Why is everyone coming to my house?
But the question I want us to think about this morning is this: Have I taken the time to wonder (i.e., to marvel) at the birth of Jesus?
[CIT] In Luke 2:18, the shepherds told everyone what had been told to them about this Child, Jesus, and all who heard it wondered.
[PROP] We must make sure that we take the time to wonder at the birth of Jesus this Christmas season…
[TS] …and there are three PLACES that we can find the wonder of Christmas in Luke 2:18…
Major Ideas
Major Ideas
PLACE #1: The wonder is in it.
PLACE #1: The wonder is in it.
Luke 2:18 “And all who heard it wondered…”
[EXP] It is what the angel said and what the multitude of angels said to the shepherds concerning the Child Jesus.
First, the angel said that the birth of the Child Jesus was good news of great joy for all the people.
The phrase “all the people” in Luke 2:10 could mean “all the Israelite people,” but because of Luke’s emphasis on the salvation of Gentiles, it most likely means “all the peoples” or “all the nations.”
The birth of Jesus is Gospel; it is good news of great joy for the whole world!
But why is that?
Because, second, the angel said that the birth of Jesus was the birth of a Savior, Christ the Lord.
The word “Savior” means deliverer, redeemer.
The Greek word for “Christ” is equivalent to the Hebrew word for “Messiah” and both mean anointed one, as in, the one anointed to be King over God’s people.
“Lord” was a standard term for anyone ruler, but in the Hebrew OT it was the normal way of translating God’s personal name, YHWH.
The angel said to the shepherds that the Son of God, the King, had come to save His people, and He was lying in a manger in Bethlehem.
Third, the multitude of angels said that the birth of Jesus meant peace on earth among men with whom God is pleased.
Why would God be displeased with men?
Because all have rebelled against Him. Listen to Romans 3:9-12…
9 What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; 10 as it is written, “There is none righteous, not even one; 11 There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God; 12 All have turned aside, together they have become useless; There is none who does good, There is not even one.”
And because all have rebelled against Him, all have made an enemy of Him, but He has graciously offered peace through His Son, Jesus.
Jesus was born in a manger but great in wisdom and favor with both God and man. He lived a sinless life and died a perfect sacrifice to pay the price for ours sins. He was raised from the dead three days later, and all who place their faith in Him will live eternally just as He does.
Therefore, Romans 5:1 says…
1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
And Romans 5:10 says…
10 For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!
This message of salvation is where the wonder is!
This is Gospel is where the marvel is!
This is where the astonishment is this Christmas and every Christmas!
All people the world over are offered peace with God through Jesus who lived, died, and rose again to bring us peace with God!
This is the it in Luke 2:18, and there is wonder in it!
[ILLUS] David was anointed King of Israel. Saul lost the crown because he had defiantly disobeyed God and refused to repent. Saul knew this was the case, so he tried to murder David. He pursued David near and far, but God gave Saul into David’s hand. David had the opportunity to kill Saul on at least two occasions.
Once in a cave, David and his men were hiding, and Saul chose that cave to use as a restroom.
David could’ve killed him.
He had the opportunity, the ability, and the right, but David sparred Saul’s life.
David offered peace to Saul.
David had another opportunity while Saul camped in the field with his men.
Saul slept soundly and David could’ve driven a spear through him as he slept.
David had the opportunity, the ability, and the right, but David sparred Saul’s life.
David offered peace to Saul.
[APP] God has the opportunity, the ability, and the right to strike us down because of our rebellion against Him, but God offers us peace in Jesus Christ.
O, the wonder of it all!
The wonder of it all!
Just to think that God loves me.
[TS]…
PLACE #2: The wonder is in all who heard it.
PLACE #2: The wonder is in all who heard it.
Luke 2:18 “And all who heard it wondered…”
[EXP] Why did those who heard it wonder?
Sometimes when we have been confused, we say, “I wondered about that,” but the folks who heard this from the shepherds weren’t confused; they were in awe!
They were astonished that the promised Savior had finally arrived and that he was lying in a manger, a feeding trough, and that they were among the first to hear the good news of His birth.
These people knew that they needed a Savior.
Some of them thought they needed to be saved from Roman oppression.
Some of them thought they needed to be saved from life’s hardships.
Some of them thought they needed to be saved from material poverty.
But those with real spiritual insight knew they needed to be saved from sin.
They wondered because salvation had just been born in the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem.
[ILLUS] When King Solomon was dedicating the Temple of God in Jerusalem, he prayed for the people, “When they sin against You (for there is no man who does not sin)… if they return to You with all their heart and with all their soul… and pray to You toward… the house which I have built for Your name; then hear their prayer and their supplication in Heaven… and forgive Your people who have sinned against You…” (1 Kgs 8:46-50).
Solomon knew that all men were sinners. He knew that all men needed forgiveness. He built the Temple so that all who repented of sin and desired forgiveness could find it in YHWH.
But the forgiveness provided by Temple sacrifices could never permanently remove the guilt of sin, so with the birth of Jesus YHWH stepped into creation to offer Himself as the perfect sacrifice for sin, the perfect sacrifice that has permanently removed our sin.
[APP] Before Jesus was born, Jesus’ adoptive father, Joseph, was told to name the Child in Mary’s womb “Jesus” for He would save His people from their sins.
He has saved us, not temporarily, but permanently!
Our biggest problem isn’t bad government, hard times, or poverty; Our biggest problem is sin and that’s why Jesus came to save us from it.
We can go to Heaven oppressed by government, beleaguered by trials, and poor in material goods, but we can’t got to Heaven dead in sin.
And that’s what Jesus came to save us from.
O, the wonder of it all!
The wonder of it all!
Just to think that God loves me.
[TS]…
PLACE #3: The wonder is in those who told it.
PLACE #3: The wonder is in those who told it.
Luke 2:18 “And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds.”
[EXP] The shepherds job was considered a lowly job.
When young David volunteered to fight the Philistine giant, Goliath, David’s oldest brother, Eliab, belittled his role as shepherd, saying, “Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness?” (1 Sam. 17:28a).
We can imagine the other soldiers snickering along with Eliab, but David the shepherd had an important role to play, and so did these shepherds in Luke 2.
Bethlehem was close to Jerusalem, and these shepherds in Luke 2 may have been keeping the sheep later used in temple sacrifices. It is, therefore, fitting that they would first hear and spread the news about the birth of Jesus, the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world (Jn. 1:29).
The rest of the world may have considered them just lowly shepherds, but they were given the high honor of announcing to many the birth of the Savior.
No wonder they wondered!
[ILLUS] In Psalm 9:1, David wrote…
1 I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart; I will tell of all Your wonders.
In Psalm 40:5, David wrote, “Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders which You have done…”
George Beverly Shea wrote, “There’s the wonder of sunset at evening, The wonder as sunrise I see; But the wonder of wonders that thrills my soul, Is the wonder that God loves me!”
That’s the wonder you should feel when you ponder the birth of Jesus.
O, the wonder of it all!
The wonder of it all!
Just to think that God loves me.
[APP] Will you tell of His wonders this Christmas season?
Will you tell of the wonder of wonders that “God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life”?
[TS]…
Conclusion
Conclusion
[PRAYER]