The Wonder of His Good News

Bible Passage: Luke 2:8-18

Introduction

Do you recall the feeling of getting some really good news. Like when your best-friend tells you she just found out she’s going to have a baby. But you’re not allowed to tell anyone yet, because she hasn’t yet told other people yet. It feels almost impossible to hold onto a secret sometimes. I’ve spent my life keeping some of the secrets of our government. I’ve signed away my life saying I won’t reveal those secrets and if I do I could be subject to imprisonment and even death, depending on the circumstances. At first it was very difficult, to hear about things in the news and know that either it wasn’t true at all or at least not the way the story was being told. But after a while, I came to realize most of those secrets that I know would be utterly meaningless to the majority of the world. There are only a select few who would find them even mildly interesting. Added on top of that, those who would genuinely be interested are the last people on earth you’d be willing to tell; enemies of the state, etc. But what about when you hear a good piece of juicy gossip.

Did you hear? We really need to be praying for so-and-so. Did you catch that, the tendency within the church to disguise gossip as a prayer request. And yet the best news of all, the most important revolutionary bit of truth you know, can be very intimidating to share. What if they don’t believe me? Worse yet, what if they think I’m harassing them and they take me to HR instead of accepting the best news of their life? Sharing the Gospel can be intimidating. You don’t want to mess it up, because someone’s life depends upon it. You don’t want to dishonor the Lord, because, well that’s a pretty bad thing to have happening. You know what the truth of the matter is? You’re not responsible for anyone’s reaction to the Gospel message. It is not your responsibility to ensure that people believe and come to faith in Jesus. You are simply responsible for sharing the message. What they do with it is on them and between them and God. He is the one who can actually make something out of the message you deliver. He is the one responsible for ensuring they believe what is being said, no matter how well or how poorly you deliver the message. It’s not your burden, so don’t try to carry it. Just deliver the message this Christmas season. And let God do His part with the rest.

1. Angels Visit the Shepherds

Luke 2:8–10 “And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”

Shepherds Doing Shepherd Things

Near where Jesus was born

Shepherds were Shepherding

Keeping watch over flock at night

Angel Appeared to Shepherds

One Arrived

Revealed to shepherds

Glory of Lord shone around the shepherds

Angel Spoke to Shepherds

Fear not

Good news of great joy

Message for all people

As we discussed last week, angels appearing must have been an overwhelming experience. What starts as one with the shining light of God, turns into a whole host of angels singing praise. Music is such an important part of our experience of life. Scripture encourages us to sing praise to the Lord. We’re called on to share our song of hope this Christmas and every day of the year. You can almost hear the rambling report when the shepherds got back into Bethlehem. I still remember the wonder and awe of knowing for the first time, God existed and He loved me. The feeling of life and hope and joy that knowledge brings cannot be contained. You see that same wonder in the eyes of little children when they see Santa Claus. Recognize that wonder has not changed. Spend sometime this Christmas season trying to recapture the joy of your salvation and the wonder of His presence in your life. It is the reason we celebrate.

2. Angel Delivers the Good News

Luke 2:11 “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

Angel Announces a Savior

Baby born today

Born in Bethlehem

Born to be the Savior

The Messiah has Arrived

The Christ is Born

Long Promised Messiah has Arrived

Wait for Him is Over

The Lord is Here

Not only Savior and Messiah, but Lord

God is in the Manger

Humbled Himself to Become Human

Angel delivered the news of the triumphant arrival. He was announcing the completion of a long standing prophecy. Israel had been waiting for thousands of years and the Savior, Messiah, God had finally arrived on the scene. Though the announcement was to workers just doing their job and not a very glamorous one at that. God knew who would listen and what would be their response. Notice He didn’t send the angel to the Synagogue, to the Spiritual leaders of the nation of Israel. We find out much later the reason why this was so. Their eventual response would be jealousy and murder. So He announced the good news to people who would go and share it. The same is happening today. God’s showing up not in the Spiritual havens of the world. He’s showing up in the lives of ordinary people who will do an extraordinary thing, go and tell the people they know that the Savior came and wants a relationship with them.

3. The Proof of the Good News

Luke 2:12–18 “And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.”

You will Find a Baby in a Stable

Baby will be swaddled

He’ll be lying in a feed trough

News Wroth Celebrating

Angels Praised God in Song

Whole Host of Angels Appeared

Singing Glory to God

Peace to Those Who Please Him

Shepherds Obey the Call

Go Quickly to See What’s Happened

Found Exactly What Angels Proclaimed

Scattered Sharing the Good News

Angels appearing must have been an overwhelming experience. What starts as one with the shining light of God, turns into a whole host of angels singing praise. So what was one was now 10s, 100s, or 1000s of angels worshipping God in song. That’s the future we looked forward to in Heaven. We’ll be singing praises to the Lord with millions or even billions of other believers. Yes it will be overwhelmingly good to see the friends and family we’ve lost over the years. But it will be overwhelmingly overshadowed by being in the presence of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. So much so that marriage won’t continue to be what it is today. I can’t hardly fathom this part of the mystery of Heaven. Pam is integral to my life. I don’t like even going away for one night anymore. I have a very difficult time imaging a state where this will no longer be the focus of my life. At the same time I understand it perfectly. This one I’ve longed to see for so long, to embrace and to worship face-to-face will be there, forever in our midst. I can’t contemplate perfection because it is so not a part of the life we now live. The Good News for us is its coming soon. The life we now live that some days seems to go on forever and other days seems to go by so quickly, will be the blink of an eye. 1 million years from now it will make more sense, but I’m still not certain how we’ll grasp the enormity of it all. But go out this Christmas season and tell someone. Share with them the Good News, the savior came for them and wants to know them by name.