The Thrill of Hope - 1 - Hope Announces

The Thrill of Hope – 1 - Hope Announces

Luke 2:8-20

Introduction

What is it about Christmas that people love so much? Why is it that people start decorating as soon as the temperature drops below 60 degrees? Why do we look so forward to the Christmas season? It is fitting that Christmas occurs during the Winter season, when it is far more dark. Life can be dark at times. Life can be difficult. The Christmas season is so special to so many people because it is a season of hope. That is why for this Christmas season we are borrowing the phrase from that great Christmas song, O Holy Night…a thrill of hope. At Christmas, hope comes crashing into the darkness. That is what our text is all about today. In the opening verses of Luke 2, Jesus has just been born. The event that happens immediately following Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem is this, in the fields just outside the city.

Luke 2:8-20 - 8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 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. 10 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. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was 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 those with whom he is pleased!”

15 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.” 16 And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. 17 And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. 18 And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.19 But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. 20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Have you ever been blindsided by something? That is what happened to these shepherds sitting in the field that night. Imagine the scene…they are immersed in total darkness. No city lights. No street lights. No iPhone screens lighting up their faces. All they have is the light of the stars, moon, and a likely fire to warm them on the chilly night. And in the midst of the darkness, light breaks through.

TS – this first Christmas night is defined by two characteristics:

1. UNEXPECTED REVELATION (2:8-15)

When these men clocked in for their overnight shift in the fields, this was the last thing they expected to happen. These men were shepherds. They had no business whatsoever expecting any message like this.

Shepherds in the ancient world were considered the lowest class. In fact, the only people group in their society that was viewed as being lower was the leper. Shepherds were considered religiously unclean…their job responsibilities kept them out of the temple and away from the ritual cleansing activities of good, religious people. Shepherding was an unwanted job, a dirty job. Therefore, shepherds were considered dirty, unwanted people.

Yet, when God opened the heavens to burst forth into the world, he didn’t do so to the emperor, the kings, the high society. He came to the low…dirty…despised…outcast. Which is quite fitting considering that is who Jesus came to save anyway.

In verse 15, once the angel choir has gone back to Heaven and the sky has darkened back up, they make their plan to head to Bethlehem to see this great thing. Notice how they phrase it: Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us. This incredible announcement of who Jesus is and what he has come to do, was not imagined…not fabricated…not dreamt. It was revealed. God himself revealed this to them. God stoops low, to the lowest, to reveal to them the identity of His Son. This revelation is:

a. PERSONAL (2:10-12)

v. 10 – I bring ‘you’ good news of great joy…

v. 11 – for unto ‘you’ is born this day…

v. 12 – this will be a sign for ‘you’…

This ‘good news of great joy’ was for them. It is ‘good news.’ It is the same word for ‘gospel’ in the NT. This good news of who Jesus is and what Jesus has come to do…is for YOU. You, the outcast…lowly…unimportant…seemingly invisible…filled with regret…overwhelmed by sorrow…overcome by pain…the sinner. The thrill of hope is not for the deserving, the worthy, the powerful…it’s for you. Jesus wasn’t born in the Imperial Palace in Rome. Jesus wasn’t born in the Temple in Jerusalem. He was born to a humble couple who lived in abject poverty, placed in a food trough in a small town in the backwoods of nowhere. And the first to be told about it from God Himself are the low, dirty, despised shepherds. God is trying to tell you something. Jesus came for them. Jesus came for you.

b. HOPEFUL (2:10-14)

This revelation from God provides for us the identity of Jesus. The dependability of a message depends on the dependability of the messenger. This revelation comes directly from God Himself. Again, not fabricated. Not imagined. Revealed by Heaven itself. Jesus is, verse 10, “a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Three titles are given for Him here, and it is the only place in the entire NT that all three are given in one place.

Jesus is Savior – you know what this implies? That you need saving! Because of your sin you stand before God condemned. God could write you off. God could dismiss you. God could judge you. God could pour out His wrath on you. Instead, He sent a Savior for you.

John 3:16-17 - 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

Jesus is Christ – remember, Christ is not Jesus’ last name. It is His title. Christ is the Greek version of the Hebrew word Messiah. Jesus is the Promised One from the OT.

- Jesus is the heel that will crush the serpent’s head from Genesis 3:15.

- Jesus is the greater prophet promised by Moses in Deuteronomy 18.

- Jesus is the greater Son of David that will rule eternally from 2 Samuel 7.

- Jesus is the Suffering Servant who will take the punishment for our sins from Is. 53.

- Jesus is the eternal King over the eternal kingdom from Daniel 7.

- Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God…the one in whom we find salvation.

Jesus is Lord – this title is reserved throughout the OT for God Himself. In fact, we have already seen the shepherds use it to refer to God the Father in 2:15, “which the Lord has made known to us.” Yet, who is Jesus? He is Lord, same word. So not only is Jesus the Savior, not only is Jesus the promised ruler, Jesus is God in the flesh. Matthew 1:23 quoting from Isaiah 7:14 – Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel, which means ‘God with us.’ John 1:1, 14 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory…

God has shown up. And the shepherds are rightly “filled with great fear” (v. 9). Great is the Gk. word mega. Fear is phobia. They are filled with mega phobia! How could they not be? How could you not be? You are a sinner who has rebelled against the Ruler of the universe. You are a sinner who has offended the holy God. You are a sinner who has violated the laws of the Judge of all Creation. And when sitting in the darkness and Heaven’s glory-filled light shines the spotlight on you, you would be filled with mega fear too. But notice the angel’s message to them in v. 10 – “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy…” Instead of being filled with mega fear, you can be filled with mega joy. How is that possible? Because of this good news. Because of the Gospel. Because of who Jesus is and what Jesus does. He is your Savior. He forgives the sin. He cleanses the dirty. He declares lawbreakers to be righteous in God’s eyes.

Once the multitude of angels join in the celebration, look at what they say in v. 14 – “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased.” The work of Jesus brings peace with God to those with whom God is pleased. Scholars debate on how best to translate that last phrase (on whom his favor rests, with whom he is pleased). It comes down to how to translate one word…eudokeo. Eu is the prefix for ‘good.’ When you give a eulogy, you say good words (eu logos) about the person who has passed away. Dokeo is a verb that means ‘to think’. So those who accept the saving work of Jesus have peace with God, and God thinks good thoughts about them. Isn’t that great?

The famous Christian author, A.W. Tozer in one of his well-known books called The Knowledge of the Holywrote, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” How you view God is what is most important about you. But according to Luke 2:14, maybe what is most important about you is not what you think when you think about God, but what God thinks when He thinks about you. For those who have placed their trust in this Savior, when God thinks about you, He thinks only good thoughts.

TS – that is all certainly an Unexpected Revelation. When those shepherds woke up that day, they could not have imagined all that was true. Maybe when you woke up this morning, there was no way you could have imagined that such great things are true. And how did they respond? You see, you can’t hear this thrill of hope and then just sit there.

2. UNRIVALED RESPONSE (2:16-20)

These shepherds didn’t just sit there. They got moving. And between their response, and Mary’s response, we find out how we must respond:

a. PONDER (2:19; 2:16)

They don’t dismiss this incredible message. They don’t ignore the fact that the Creator of the Universe, God in the flesh, is laying in a manger only a few miles away. They don’t look at the Christmas message with detached sentiment about how good the music and lights make them feel. They absorb that message into their soul. They believe it is true because God is the one who revealed it. And they go on the hunt to find this Jesus. V. 16 – “And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.” The truth and trustworthiness of the message was confirmed. It says they ‘found’ Mary and Joseph. The word for ‘found’ means ‘searched for, investigated.’ They didn’t let the message sit. They searched. They knew they needed saving and searched for the Savior.

Mary ponders too. After the shepherds tell them what has happened in the field, v. 19 – “Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.” The word for ‘ponder’ implies intimate conversation, deep thought, deep reflection. Like the shepherds, she didn’t ignore the message. She didn’t respond by saying, “oh how sweet, isn’t that nice.” She pulled it into her heart and wrestled with it. Is this true? If so, what difference does that make? The arrival of Jesus on the earth cannot be ignored or sentimentalized. It must be absorbed into the heart and produce action.

b. PRAISE (2:20)

v. 20 – And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”

Once it was all finished, they didn’t get on a boat and travel around the world as missionaries. They didn’t go to the Temple in Jerusalem and ask for some religious job. They went right back into the fields, to the same job, to the same lives. Nothing had changed. But everything had changed. They had changed. So when they go back to that field that night, they are no longer mere shepherds. They are worshipers. They have believed God’s revelation about Jesus and embraced Him as their Savior.

When you see who Jesus is and what Jesus has done, the only right response is praise. For the love we have received. For the forgiveness He has given. For the mercy He offers. For the grace that now defines us. We deserve none of it. So we praise Him.

c. PROCLAIM (2:17)

v. 17 – And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.

Just as the Lord had ‘made known’ the message of Jesus to them, they now ‘make known’ that same message to all who will hear. Once you experience such a wonderful, grace-filled, glorious encounter with the Savior, who is Christ the Lord, the best response you can have is to tell others about this Jesus. How in the world could these men have kept such things to themselves? How could we? Because of their low status in society, shepherds weren’t allowed to testify in a court of law. So isn’t it just like God to so redeem such men, that they become the first witnesses who testify to the glory of Jesus, the one who has come to save. When you experience the thrill of hope…hope proclaims.

O holy night, the stars are brightly shining It is the night of our dear Savior's birth Long lay the world in sin and error pining 'Til he appeared and the soul felt its worth

A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn' Fall on your knees, o hear the angels' voices O night divine, o night when Christ was born

Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother And in His name all oppression shall cease Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we With all within, let us praise His holy name