Sermon Tone Analysis

INTRODUCTION:

Interest:

This morning I want to turn to the same verses that we will be reading Tuesday night in our Candlelight service, the verses that announce the birth of Jesus and tell us that a child is born.

These are very familiar verses.

I am sure there are many of you who read these verses every year in your homes before opening presents.

These verses provide the framework and memorized lines for many of our children Christmas programs.

These verses are the source for many of our favorite phrases in various well-loved Christmas hymns and showed up throughout the choir songs this morning.

Involvement:

Yet, I wonder how much time we have actually spent contemplating the actual content of these verses carefully.

It is likely that for many of us these verses are just part of our Christmas traditions that we enjoy each year rather than part of God’s revelation that we spend time pondering and studying.

Preview:

This morning I want us to pause and allow the wonderful announcement of our Savior’s birth to serve as the text for our sermon.

As we do so, we will be confronted with the powerful truth that Jesus’ birth is the starting point of saving faith.

Transition from introduction to body:

Jesus’ birth is the starting point of saving faith.

This is a lesson that is essential for each of us.

Jesus’ birth is the starting point of saving faith.

Let’s begin by reading this passage together; even though it is well-known, I want to make sure that it is fresh in our minds this morning…<read Luke 2:1–20>.

I want us to first notice this morning….

BODY:

I.

The Record of Jesus’ birth

Really, the entire record of Jesus’ birth is found in Luke 2:7 “And she [being Mary] gave birth to her first-born son.”

If you think about it, this is a rather incomplete birth announcement.

Where are all the vital statistics?

How long was the baby?

How much did he weigh?

For that matter, how long was her labor?

Where are the details we are interested in for births today?

We’re told the background that led to a child of a couple living in Nazareth being born in Bethlehem.

Of course, from the text that Pastor Aaron looked at last week, we also know that this baby was not really Joseph’s biological child; rather He had been miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit in the virgin, Mary.

Really, though, the record of Jesus’ birth is given in a very minimalistic fashion.

Transition:

The record of Jesus’ birth.

The record of Jesus’ birth is brief.

But that seems to be because Luke is rushing on to tell us about…

II.

The Announcement of Jesus’ birth

When we come to verse 8, the scene suddenly shifts to the announcement of Jesus’ birth by the angel.

There was no FaceBook post.

There were no tweets going out that the child was born.

Nothing on Instagram.

Rather, there was an announcement like no other birth in the history of the world.

Transition:

I want us quickly notice two things about this announcement.

First of all,…

A. Jesus’ birth announcement was unexpected

The first thing that strikes in Luke 2:8 is the introduction of the recipients of the birth announcements—the shepherds, “some shepherds staying out in the fields.”

Think about it…these were men who didn’t even know who Mary was.

They certainly wouldn’t naturally care that some young girl from Nazareth had just given birth.

What was that to them?

Yet, we are carefully told that the announcement was made to shepherds who were out in the fields keeping watch over their sheep by night.

The announcement came to men to were hired to stay up all night watching over the sheep to make sure that they weren’t attacked by a wild animal.

Since they were rather close to Jerusalem, it is likely that these particular sheep that the shepherds were watching were destined to be temple sacrifices.

So it is possible that the sheep were somewhat special…but the men were not and the sheep are clearly is not the point of the passage here.

To be a shepherd was low-end, humble work, frequently filled by outcasts.

In addition, who do you think pulled the night-shift within the ranks of shepherds?

I doubt it was the foreman or the guys with the most seniority.

Even within the ranks of these humble shepherds there would have been a hierarchy.

The more senior guys would probably have been in the nearby town sleeping.

Yet these humble, lowly shepherds are the very men who suddenly experienced this stupendous announcement.

Without any warning, suddenly an angel was standing before them and the night lit up with the brilliant glory of the Lord—the bright, shining manifestation of God’s presence.

As you might expect, the men responded with terror.

The literal translation of the final phrase in verse 9 would be “they feared great fear.”

Their surprise encounter with the divine was extremely startling and frightening.

Transition:

Jesus’ birth was unexpected.

It went to an unexpected group in a most unexpected manner.

I also want us to also notice that…

B. Jesus birth announcement was momentous

Momentous is a bit of an understatement.

The announcement was made by an angel.

That’s pretty momentous, right?

Look at Luke 2:10.

Notice to that immediately after the angel tells the men to not be afraid in he says, “I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people.”

His news is both “good” and “joyful” and this is true for “all people.”

Now, I imagine that at this point that when Luke writes “all people” the original readers would likely have understood “all Israel.”

To this point in Luke’s Gospel, the nation of Israel has been who has been meant whenever Luke has said “people” because up to this point he has been focusing on the national expectations of Israel…the people of Israel were waiting for the promised Messiah to come.

It is later in Luke and then especially in Acts, Luke’s 2nd volume of the 2-volume set Luke-Acts that he wrote, that Luke expands the idea of Jesus’ coming to include the Gentiles as well as the Jews.

As the angel spoke this message to these shepherds, they would have understood that everyone within the nation was included in this good and joyful news.

It wasn’t just for priests.

It wasn’t just for Pharisees or Sadducees.

It was for “all people”…including people as humble as themselves.

So what was the message that was such “good news”…literally, the word that becomes the word for “gospel”?

The “good news” is that a Savior was born.

In fact, Luke immediately qualifies this Savior with two specific words written in a very unique manner.

A Savior “who is Christ Lord.”

There actually isn’t the word “the” in the original language such as we have translated in our English versions.

That means that we should understand that these words are further describing “Savior” through the use of two titles, “Christ” and “Lord.”

This baby who was born was destined to be both the Christ—the Promised Messiah who would deliver Israel from all her enemies—and the Lord—the God of Israel, their sovereign King.

Of course, the full meaning of these titles would have to wait for the resurrection years later, but they are given here in the birth announcement.

The angel finished his announcement with one final point.

He gave the shepherds a sign which would verify that his announcement was true—they could find this baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.

Now…it is possible that there might have been more than one baby wrapped in cloths that night in Bethlehem, but surely there was only one “lying in a manger.”

That was not the place one would normally look for a newborn baby…only extraordinary circumstances could lead to such an occurrence.

Transition:

Jesus’ birth announcement was momentous.

It was made to the lowest, most humble of society.

But the angel said Jesus’ coming was for “all people”; that includes you and I. On the night that a Savior, who is Christ and Lord was born, a momentous announcement was made that affects us.

The announcement of Jesus’ birth was both unexpected and momentous.