The Angels' Song
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God in heaven
God in heaven
“glory to God”
He is to be highly honoured, because He is highly honourable. He is the Highest, “the Most High” (Luke 1:32, 35)
The word for “glory” is related to the word “think”. The angel and the heavenly host, with “the glory of the Lord” (Luke 2:8) shining around the shepherds, are inviting them — and us — to think of God according to what He is like, Who He is.
God’s glory is displayed “in the highest heaven”. This means that He is
Holy—Deuteronomy 4:39
Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other.
Sovereign—Psalm 115:3
Our God is in heaven;
he does whatever pleases him.
Powerful—Joshua 2:11
When we heard of it, our hearts sank and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.
Majestic—Ecclesiastes 5:2
Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.
“Hush” in the presence of the Majesty on High. Let the earth be silent (Habakkuk 2:20).
This also makes it very clear that Him being in Heaven doesn’t mean He’s unaware of what’s going on on earth, Jeremiah 23:24
Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?’ declares the Lord. ‘Do not I fill heaven and earth?’ declares the Lord.
Do you think of God like that? No wonder the shepherds were “terrified” (Luke 2:9)!
Peace on earth
Peace on earth
“on earth peace”—the reason the angels said: v10-11.
Jesus brings peace on earth. This is not simply the absence of war (that would be quite a feat in and of itself!), but an all-encompassing wellbeing: an actual putting things right and bring on prosperity.
The world is at war—with God
Genesis 3:5: the lie Adam believed
‘For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’
It is clear that they did not become like God: they were filled with shame (Genesis 3:7) and fear (Genesis 3:8). Even today, we are all born with the same rebellion against God in our hearts. And we also carry the guilt. We are not like God. And to try and grasp to be so, to deny Him the rightful place of honour “in the highest heaven”, is both foolish and sinful.
Genesis 3:17: the world cursed by God
To Adam he said, ‘Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, “You must not eat from it,” ‘Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life.
In this verse “the ground” from which Adam was taken is representative of the whole of creation. All created things are subjected to decay (which is why things go wrong), including mankind (which is why we are dysfunctional and die).
But Jesus brings “peace on earth”—He is the Saviour, Who will one day make all things new. He was not born to bring about world-peace by putting aside our differences, but by reconciling us to “God in the highest”.
Who will enjoy this “peace on earth”?—“on whom his favour rests” = “of whom God thinks well”
They are reconciled to God through Jesus. They have peace with God, because their sins have been forgiven. This is why Jesus was born; this is why He is called “Saviour” by the angel, for, as Matthew 1:21 writes:
She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.’
With their sins removed from them, no longer God’s wrath, but His favour rests on them. This is why David writes in Psalm 32:1
Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
Jesus was punished on their behalf, for their sins, that they may know peace with God.
Is this you? Do you know this peace with God? Have you been made right with Him? Do you think rightly of God, worshipping Him as God?
To get right with God, the Bible commands us to
repent from our sins: turn away from our God-less lives, and turn to God and worship Him;
believe on the Lord Jesus: God doesn’t forgive us because of our repentance, but because Jesus’ sacrifice covers our sins. Put your trust in God’s Saviour for all who will believe! Then, you will know “peace on earth”.
