A Great Joy For All - Pastor Jonathan Haley

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.

This scene is one of the most famous moments in Christian history.

There are countless paintings and Hallmark Christmas cards that portray this moment.

Many of you are probably thinking of the painting that is behind these wooden panel that is a copy of this famous painting in which it appears Princess Diana has come with her little baby angles to announce the birth of Jesus.

Because it is a story that is so commonly read and depicted....... it is easy to miss the spiritual depth of what is really going on here.

Stories do not require too much imagination to envision because things seem obvious.

It all seems very self-explanatory.

But when it comes to God’s word, there is always something spiritual going on, pointing us to deeper truths.

I believe that this first announcement to the shepherds is so significant that it begs our attention.

God’s plan of redemption for man had built up to this moment.

God had spoken through the prophets of the Old Testament and given symbols about Jesus’ coming for hundreds and even thousands of years before Jesus was born.

Because this moment is the beginning of this fulfilment of so many prophecies, we cannot take this story at face value.

What is so significant about this scene? What is going on here that we might miss?

There is so much we could explore and so many sermons in this passage but since you may not want to be here for 5 hours I am going to give you 6 succinct and abridged observations to think about.

The first observation that we can take note of is this.

OBSERVATIONS

1. This announcement happens at night. What is the significance of this?

To me, this represents the light of Jesus and his kingdom cutting through the darkness of this world.

We read this in Isaiah 9:2

Isaiah 9:2 ESV

2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.

John 1:4–5 ESV

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

God does everything for a reason and there is certainly symbolism here.

This light of God’s glory is piercing the darkness. God is revealing himself in Jesus.

Before the light of the Gospel we were surrounded in darkness going about our daily routine and business, ignorant of the truth.

2. Second, along these lines we see that God’s glory has come to earth to dwell with us.

Verse 9 says that when the angel of the Lord appeared “the glory of the Lord shone around them.”

There is a connection between light, the glory of the Lord, and his presence.

Isaiah 60:1 ESV

1 Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

The reference to the glory of the Lord shining around them is no mistake.

This is no accident.

This glory that shines represents God’s presence coming to the earth. Angels who are with God in heaven shine with the glory of God’s presence.

The Bible could have said that “light” shone round about them but it is more than light. It is light caused by the presence of God.

We see this in Moses when he comes down from meeting God on Mt. Sinai. If you recall, his face shone so brightly from being in God’s presence that he put a veil over his face.

The pillar of fire by night that lead Israel through the wilderness is another moment when the presence of God was manifested through light.

God’s glory had come to earth through Jesus.

The Bible says the glory of the Lord shone round them. It was encompassing.

God’s presence was everywhere. It enveloped them. IIt was not distant.

God’s glory has come to dwell with us.

3. Thirdly, This Gospel message is for everyone.

Let me unpack this a bit.

First the angel said “For unto you is born.”

The word “for” in the Greek is sometimes translated as “Because”.

In other words, a Savior was born for you, or because of you.

Other translations get closer to this. I like the way the NASB translates this

Luke 2:11 NASB95

11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

In the context of this scripture, this message was for the shepherds and the people of Israel.

But we know, that Jesus’ birth was for the entire world because right before this the angel said this is good news for all the people.

But the phrase “for you” is important because the shepherds would have been surprised that a Savior would come “for” them.

Shepherds were not regarded very highly in this culture.

This shows us that Jesus came for those in the most humble of positions, and those who are low and disconnected in society.

Pastor David spoke about this in his sermon last week.

One commentary I read said this of the shepherds.

Luke Comments

One should not romanticize the occupation of shepherds. In general shepherds were dishonest (Sanh. 25b) and unclean according to the standards of the law. They represent the outcasts and sinners for whom Jesus came. Such outcasts were the first recipients of the good news.

Jesus came to this world to save even the shepherds.

This means that Jesus came to save you, your crazy aunt, criminals, adulterers, and murderers. We are all in need of a Savior.

The Gospel message is for everyone.

4. Fourth, Along these same lines - there is another reason that this announcement was made to shepherds. There is symbolism at work because Jesus is the great shepherd of his people.

The angels could have made this announcement to other lower class people in that society but God chose shepherds.

King David wrote the famous Psalm 23:1

Psalm 23:1 ESV

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

It was no mistake that David wrote this, just as it was no mistake that David himself was a shepherd of sheep and a shepherd of people as a king.

If you do a search on the word “shepherd” in your Bible you will find so many references of a shepherd in connection with the Lord.

Jesus tells us in John 10:11

John 10:11 ESV

11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

Jesus is quoting a prophecy in the old testament here and he knew it.

God says of himself in Isaiah 40:11

Isaiah 40:11 ESV

11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.

So it is important that God revealed this message to shepherds not just because they represented the universal recipients of the Gospel ,but also because Jesus is our great shepherd who came to lay down his life for his sheep.

5. Fifth, we see the Shepherds leave their sheep to go find Jesus. What does this mean?

The Bible says they left in haste to go find Jesus.

Why is this important?

As a shepherd you are out in the fields constantly because if you are not, there is a chance your sheep could be killed by wild animals or they could wander off by themselves and get lost.

The image of the shepherds leaving their sheep to find Jesus is symbolic of our call to leave the things of this world behind and seek Jesus.

The shepherds left their livelihood behind.

We see the disciples, leave their fishing boats when Jesus calls them to follow him. It is the same lesson.

In order to find and follow Jesus, we must not be attached to the things of this world.

We cannot hold onto the things of this world that we think are our saviour.

We may not own sheep but we still have sheep in our lives.

Before Jesus became the center of our hearts, we watched over different kinds of sheep; the money, the jobs, our reputation, our house.

But in light of the revelation of the Gospel we are called to go find Jesus in haste.

We are called to follow the great shepherd and not the “sheep.”

APPLICATION

6. My 6th and final observation is this: The Gospel of Jesus is a message of great joy that calls us to worship.

The angels tell the shepherds that their message is “great news for all” and then at the end of the passage we see the shepherds “glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”

Worship and praise is central throughout this passage.

They understood the good news that Jesus had come to save even the shepherds.

They knew their status in society. I am sure they had experienced being looked down upon.

But here they had been chosen for this great moment to receive the good news for all.

They had entered a season of redemption.

This is cause for joy and for worship.

This is why we celebrate Christmas.

Christmas is a reminder of all 6 of these things.

Jesus and the Gospel have cut through the darkness as he now dwells with us. He came to save everyone as our shepherd.

His Holy Spirit and Word guide us and protect us in the night of this world.

Because of this we are not captive to the things of this world. We follow after him in great joy and worship.

I love Christmas.

I have always loved Christmas. I even love the commercialized aspect of giving gifts because it points to Jesus without people realizing it.

As I was writing and thinking about this I thought of my childhood Christmases.

While my family was certainly better off than much of the world’s population, I grew up a rather poor child by today’s American standards for the first 11 years of my life.

My father was a house church pastor that got paid $25 a week from the church. He worked random jobs as a carpenter and cabinet builder for many years to make ends meat.

My family did not go hungry but we never really had a lot.

My possessions, from my clothes to my toys, usually came by way of that great department store called “Hand-me-downs”.

My brothers and I had clothes that had gone through two or three cousins before we got to wear them.

By the time our clothes landed in our dresser they usually had become translucent.

We owned a lot of cotton shirts and pants that really “breathed.”

We did not have a lot.

But Christmas was a special time for us.

It was the only time I remember getting excited to go to a store because I knew that after 3 hours of shopping in KMart, my parents would have bought all of our gifts for Christmas morning.

Despite humble gifts, my parents would somehow manage to make it special for us. We would get other gifts from grandparents and other people in our church. So I don’t ever remember feeling real disappointment on Christmas morning. I was always excited.

What is funny about all of this, is that I don’t remember thinking we were poor.

I don’t remember being sad that we did not have new clothes, until I got old enough to realize this.

I don’t remember thinking I wished I had more toys or a better mattress.

I was happy in my ignorance. But now I am older and I have eyes that can look back and see more clearly the reality of the situation that I was in.

This is kind of a shallow illustration but the point I am making is that Christmas was a time when it did not seem like we were poor.

There were gifts and food and shopping. It was a time when it felt like we took a temporary break from being poor.

It represented a time when we felt redeemed from our poor state.

And this is what Christmas should be for us.

Those who don’t know Jesus are still shepherds sitting in the dark of the night.

They are tending their “flock” in ignorance of what they are missing out on. They are happy with things of lesser value and pursuit of things that pass away.

But we who believe in Jesus, have left our poor state.

We are in a season of Christmas that does not last for one day but for an eternity.

We get to experience the greatest gift of Jesus every day.

It is only because of what Jesus did for us that we are no longer poor.

It is only because of Jesus that our joy may be full.

This is the great joy for all.

CONLCLUSION

As you go home today, and celebrate Christmas in your own way and different traditions, enjoy the season of gifts.

But don’t let the wrapping paper, the food, and the laughter distract you from the real reason for your joy.

Focusing on the real reason for our joy can help comfort us even in our sorrow.

I personally realize that, for some, Christmas can be a time of sorrow because of loved ones lost. My 12 year old nephew died of cancer two years ago December 20th, and for our family, we relive that loss every year.

But we remain joyful because of Jesus. Because of Jesus my nephew is in heaven waiting for all of us to finally receive the gift of salvation in its fullness.

Whether you are surrounded by your family or you are alone today, take a moment and look in the mirror and say to yourself “Jesus came and died for me”.

Remind yourself that Jesus is the only reason for celebrating Christmas.

Remind yourself that Immanuel means God with us which means God is with you.

Remind yourself that Jesus was acquainted grief and became a man of sorrows that we might have joy.

Praise be to God.

Close in prayers.