Sermon Tone Analysis

Earlier this evening, we heard the text from Luke 2:1-20 which tells us about the birth of Jesus Christ, to the announcement of the shepherds by the angels, to the arrival of the shepherds to worship the baby.

It’s a familiar story for most of us, probably one we’ve heard many times.

But have you ever stopped to think about just how strange this story really is?

First, let’s look at some of the proclamations in Scriptures in Isaiah that announce the coming of Jesus, the Messiah?

Let’s go back to the passage from Isaiah that was read earlier this evening.

Do these prophetic accounts seem like they are a Messiah, a King that would be born in a manger with no fanfare?

Do these accounts sound like a Messiah and King that was born to a no-name teenage virgin from no-where?

Let’s look again at the first two verses of Luke 2.

What about that this Messiah and King was born during the reign of Caesar Augustus who was the most powerful ruler ever known in the Mediterranean world?

Think about that.

He was ruler over the ENTIRE ROMAN WORLD!

The census was about paying taxes - not the way we think of a census today in counting people.

Second, let’s look at verses 5-7:

He went there with Mary.

Who was Mary?

For starters, she was betrothed to Joseph.

It is often told that betrothal is similar to our engagement period, however, it was much more than that.

To leave a betrothal meant that you had to get a divorce.

It brought shame.

But to end up pregnant while betrothed?

That was a big no no.

It was a major violation of societal standards at that time.

Typically, that would have likely meant that Mary would have been unfaithful.

We know that this was the work of God himself and Joseph believed and followed the Lord’s instructions.

However, I can only imagine the scorn, ridicule, talking behind their backs, and probably being shunned by family that Joseph and Mary faced.

He could have divorced her and walked away pretty much unscathed, but he didn’t.

But who was this Mary who was now the mother of God’s Son?

Well, she must have known the Scriptures as we talked about last Sunday as there are many Scriptural references in her song in Luke 1. Outside of that, we do not know much.

It seems like she comes from no where, wasn’t in any important family, anything.

But this peasant girl was enough for God to entrust her with his only Son.

Wow.

Talk about faithfulness!

As if all of this wasn’t enough to minimize the coming of a King, we see in verse 7 that there wasn’t a room for them and he was born in a stable.

A smelly, animal filled barn.

Wow.

Not a kingly way to enter the world.

Then we finally see some fanfare.

An angel!

But they are announcing the birth to some poor shepherds.

Shepherds weren’t important people, they weren’t the top of the societal or religious leadership, they literally herded sheep.

Not very glamorous.

Why didn’t the angel announce it to the important people, the royalty, the religious leaders?

You see, the shepherds went to worship the child, the Messiah, the King of Israel, Emmanuel.

They glorified God that they were able to witness something so miraculous and had been foretold.

The religious leaders and many others were looking for the Messiah to come in other ways such as a powerful leader who would overthrow Rome.

Some gave up because it had been 400 years since the word of the last prophet.

Caesar and those in power were too busy worrying about their own power, influence, and wealth.

As we celebrate the coming of Christ over 2000 years ago, which group do we fall into?

Are we like the shepherds who were praising God and glorifying him for bringing the promised Messiah?

Are we celebrating the fact that Christ came for us today just as much as he came for the people then?

Or are we like the religious leaders who want the Messiah to be part of our narrative and in the little box into which we put him - regardless of what we see in Scripture.

Or maybe we are like Caesar and are focused on our power, influence, and wealth and we don’t take the time or divert our attention away from those things in order to see the miracle of Christ coming as a babe so long ago for each and every one of us.

Are we paying enough attention to see his glory this Christmas season?

I challenge each of us throughout the remainder of this season to slow down and take time to reflect on the miraculous event that brought God’s only Son to earth as fully human and also fully God to be the sacrifice for us.

Without the birth, there would have been no cross, no sacrifice for each of us to be reconciled to God.

PRAY