Simply Christmas pt3

Simply Christmas pt3

Luke 2:1-20

When we put out our Nativity scenes around Christmas time there are always this curious group of interlopers that get added to the picture of the Holy Family and the animals. Depending on the set, they are either leaning on staffs or carrying sheep, basically so we know who they are. Shepherds figure into the story of Jesus.

Of all the people in the story, they are the ones who seem to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. They weren’t in Bethlehem. They were in the fields. They were not religious scholars, in fact that were kind of outcasts. They were not leaders, in fact they were down the list for people who you would want your kids to grow up to be. But unlike all the rest of humanity that night, they were noticed by God, and they got an angelic message. They were called to bear witness to what God had done- even though in society they would have been disqualified from being legal witnesses!

The Gospel according to Luke The Birth of Jesus (2:1–20)

Luke mentions two characteristics of shepherds: living outside in open country (the literal meaning of agraulountes) and taking turns in night watches. Nomadic shepherds who were separated from human communities and culture for long periods of time were inevitably subjected to suspicion and scorn. Popular lore accused them of failing to observe the difference between “mine” and “thine.” Because they could prey on lonely travelers, they were often suspected of practicing “the craft of robbers” (m. Qidd. 4:14). Their prolonged absences—and ill-repute—disqualified them from being legal witnesses

How like God to choose them as His first witnesses- those who would have been suspect and outcasts. In the same way that the first people to witness the Resurrection were women- also not allowed as witnesses in a first century court- the shepherds lead the way at the Arrival. Jesus’ life is bookended by those who everyone else has rejected…which is why He came to save!

(Read verses 1-7)

Before we get to the shepherds, let’s set the stage from the past 2 weeks. Joseph and Mary have both obeyed God. He has taken her as his wife, and she is carrying the Child she has been called to carry. And life intervenes and makes an already difficult situation harder, as the Caesar calls for a census, and Joseph and Mary have to make the trek from where they are living in Nazareth to Bethlehem, Joseph’s ancestral home.

I am sure they weren’t happy about it. I am sure it was a long, and uncomfortable journey for a woman who was 9 months pregnant, and her husband who is worried about his wife. It was a trip of 80-90 miles if they if they went thru Samaria- and uphill much of the day- possibly 3-4 days journey! What they may, or may not, have known was that this was necessary. Jesus being born in Bethlehem was part of the prophecy of the Messiah. We see once again, the hand of God at work, orchestrating everything.

Luke The Birth (2:1–7)

This was important, since the tax itself would have been a painful reminder of Israel’s position before Rome. Nazareth to Bethlehem was about a ninety mile trip, assuming that Samaria was bypassed. Such a journey would have taken around three days.

But it’s the shepherds I started talking about. And it is the shepherds I want to focus on. They are watching their flocks, going about their normal lives when God intervenes.

(Read verses 8-14)

Angels show up. God has an announcement. Hope has arrived, not just for the shepherds, or the region, but for the world. And someone, besides the little family, needs to KNOW. When God is at work, He is not interested in being hidden. His work, His desire, is for humanity to be saved. And in order to do that, His work has to be witnessed.

The Gospel according to Luke The Birth of Jesus (2:1–20)

The shepherds are thus impelled to visit the child because of the spectacle of the heavenly army in vv. 13–14 and because of what “the Lord made known to us.” This last phrase indicates that the shepherds take the angel’s report as the word of the Lord himself. The narrative is thus driven by the divine announcement of Jesus’ birth rather than simply by the visit of the shepherds.

That word “witness” got ruined in the 80s and 90s. We turned “witness” into “witnessing” Another cheap Christian catch phrase that turned something that was to be a normal part of our lives as followers of Jesus into a daunting, onerous task. An entire industry was built out of it- outlines and tracts and methods and classes. All designed to take telling the greatest story ever told into a cheap sales pitch. Right down to “closing.”

It’s disgusting.

I was talking to Glenn Mayes this week about Acts 4. The disciples following their arrest after the healing of the crippled man, pray for boldness to share the Gospel. And God answers their prayer by shaking the building they are in- almost like He is saying “I am with you.”

We need to stop seeing talking about the Gospel with people who do not yet know about Jesus as a job, and see it as a part of our lives. A normal, everyday occurrence because we are constantly being impacted by Jesus. Not some weird sales pitch, but a natural outgrowth of a vibrant, growing relationship with the God of the universe.

In fact, in Matthew 28, when Jesus gives the Great Commission, He says “go and make disciples,” but that’s the English translation. The Greek does it better- using the word poruthentes- it means in English: as you are going…in other words as you go about your life- make disciples- wherever you are…don’t just drop a tract on someone- walk with them to maturity!

Matthew 2. Resurrection! (28:1–20)

Jesus’ main focus remains on the task of all believers to duplicate themselves wherever they may be

And we can only do this, if we are convinced that Jesus is real and He is really active in our lives.

When is the last time you heard from God and obeyed?

See that is the kicker here. The shepherds hear this message, but then what will they do???

(Read verses 15-20)

In addition to listening, rather than just hearing (throwback to Rick from last week) the shepherds take action. They leave the sheep- the mundanity of their daily lives- to do what God told them to do.

Luke Comments

2:15 Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened. “This thing” is literally this word as in Luke 2:17, 19, but “this word” can refer to an event as it does here.

Which the Lord has told us about. The angelic intermediary is left unmentioned, and only the ultimate source of the revelation is mentioned.

2:16 So they hurried off. This refers more to the obedience of the shepherds than to the actual speed of their travel

That is what so many of us are missing. The lack of obedience, keeps us from experiencing the fullness of joy that comes from following Jesus. If the disciples hear the angels, and stay put, what eventually happens is the angel’s proclamation becomes a dream or a fairy tale or a case of mass hallucination.

But when they follow the instructions and find the baby, there is no denying that they have heard from God!

What is keeping many of us from believing we have ever heard from God is not His lack of speaking, it is our lack of obedience- you don’t know if you have heard from God or not, if you refuse to step out on faith and follow what He is saying.

And the shepherds do not stop at merely going, they tell. They tell people who they have been told this child is! And it causes people to be amazed

“Amazement is not itself faith, but hearing a testimony of God’s word directed to oneself can be a first step in faith”

Luke Comments

“Amazed” is a favorite term of Luke and is found thirteen times in Luke and five times in Acts, whereas it is found only four times in Mark and seven times in Matthew

and Mary to ponder. (pay attention to note here- emphasize some will wrestle with WHO Jesus is before embracing Him as Mary did…and that’s ok!)

The Gospel according to Luke The Birth of Jesus (2:1–20)

Mary, by contrast, is not amazed but “ponders” in her heart (v. 19; NIV “treasured”). In 1:66 the crowd ponders in its heart the meaning of John’s birth, but only Mary ponders Jesus’ birth. The word for “ponder,” syntērein, means to “preserve,” “treasure,” “protect and defend.” The same word is used in the LXX of Jacob’s puzzling over the meaning of Joseph’s dreams (Gen 37:11). This word is in the imperfect tense, connoting something ongoing; thus, “to ruminate,” even “to wrestle with.” In addition to pondering, Mary “interpreted” events in her heart. Greek symballein means to scrutinize difficult events, often with divine aid, for right understanding. Mary is the only adult mentioned in Luke 1–2 who later appears in the Gospel. Already in the report of the shepherds, she becomes a model of faith for Luke; like the good seed in the parable of the Sower (8:15), Mary “hears the word, holds it fast, and preserves a good crop.”

What if you were to simply ask God for boldness, and as you are going, you talked about Jesus to people who you encounter- in a normal, natural way- as if you were talking about Someone you know, rather than a product you were trying to sell. The shepherds were not trying to sell anything, they were simply being witnesses to what they had seen and heard. They left the decision up to those they visited with a to believe them or not.

And look at the end result, for the shepherds. They worship.

Luke Response to the Birth (2:8–21)

The shepherds have found that the angel’s words were true, that events have transpired just as they had been told. God’s word is coming to pass; his plan is again strategically at work. They break out in praise to God because he has sent Jesus, the Savior, Lord and Christ.

Obedience leads to worship- vibrant, personal, joyful worship.

What is keeping you from being a shepherd? What is stopping you from simply, confidently, in a normal fashion telling others about what Jesus has done for you? Not trying to sell something no one wants to buy, but bringing what Jesus has done for you into the conversation- and trusting God for the results.