Shepherds and Angels

The Shepherds and the Angels

People often ask "what is the true meaning of Christmas?" In a classic Christmas special called "Charlie Brown Christmas", Linus answered the question by reading the following Scripture from 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.

The true meaning of Christmas is that God sent His son to Earth, to be born of the virgin Mary so that he could save us from our sins. Matthew 1:18-25:

• 18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

• 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). 

• 24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

Here is an overview of the passage we read in Luke.

The Shock of the Shepherds The passage starts with shepherds out in the fields watching their flocks. Shepherds were the outcasts of society during the time when Jesus was born. The irony was that because they took care of the sheep that were sacrificed in the temple, they themselves could not go worship in the temple because they were considered unclean. Yet these were the people that God chose to hear the message of Jesus' birth from the mouths of angels.

When the angels came and announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds they were filled with fear. Wouldn't you be? But the angels comforted them in their fear and gave them a message of great hope not only for themselves but to "all people". The angels went to some outcasts in a tiny, insignificant country in the Roman Empire to give a message that a king was born, not just any king, but the king of kings and Lord of lords who would one day rule of all nations.

The Savior of the World The message of the angels to the shepherds was that a savior was born who is Christ the Lord. The word Christ means he is the Messiah. Many years ago God promised king David that a son would come from his descendants who rule over Israel. The prophets who followed told us that this king would rule the whole world. Now the angels are announcing to the shepherds that a baby has been born in Bethlehem, the city of David. He is called a savior, not because he will save the people from their Roman overlords, at least not yet, but that he would save them from their sins.

This was the same message which the angel told Joseph in the passage we read earlier. (re-read Matthew 1:21). This message that a savior was born is to all people: from the most wicked murderer to the most moral religious person who is blinded by pride, from the most powerful king to the lowliest of shepherds, from the most wealthy billionaire to the poorest homeless person. We all need to be saved from our sins.

I have recently been very judgmental of politicians. I don't pick sides. I have been judgmental of them all. I have also been judgmental of people who don't have the same political views as me. This judgmental attitude has given me great distress. I have been depressed by what is happening in our country, almost to the point of despair. But that judgment and lack of forgiveness is a sin! So is the lack of faith that I have that God is in control. Matthew 7:1-2 says:

“Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure, you use it will be measured to you.

So as the old song goes:

It's me, yes it's me, yes it's me, O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.
Not my mother not my father but it's me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.
Not my sister, nor my brother but it's me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.
Not the pastor, not the deacon but it's me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.

The good news that Jesus saves people from their sin is for everyone. Even for me and for you. But we must believe the message and apply it to our own lives.

How does Jesus save people from sin? First, by taking the punishment for our sins upon Himself when he died on the cross. Jesus went to the cross willingly and laid down his life for us. God placed the sins of the world on his son, then put his son to death. Our sins went down into the grave with him, and when he rose victoriously on the third day, those sins were gone! Can I get an amen?

2 Corinthians 5:17-21

• 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him be sin who knew no sin so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

This is the greatest "new deal" in the history of the world. Jesus took all our sins and gave us his righteousness. Which leads to the second way that Jesus saves us from our sin. He has given us the Holy Spirit to convict us of our sin, to guide in the way of holiness, then to give us the power to live above sin. He has made new creations who have new desires to serve God and live free from sin. Does this mean we stop sinning altogether? I don't know about you, but I still struggle with sin every day. But I have the Holy Spirit living inside me to help me. We are still living in sinful human bodies that drag us back into our old ways.

But someday we will be free from sin forever. This is the third way Jesus saves us from our sins. Not just temporarily in the this life, but forever.

• Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. I John 3:2-3

This is the hope of Christmas. We can be saved from our sins. No matter what we may have done. No matter what laws we have broken. No matter what people we have hurt, either intentionally or not. No matter what weaknesses or addictions we may struggle with. No matter what feelings of depression or hopelessness we may struggle with. Jesus has come to save us from all that. To give us new life in the here and now, and eternal life of pure holiness forever and ever.

Sending of the Message When the shepherds heard the message from the angels, the first thing they did was to see for themselves. They went to the manger where Jesus was laying and saw that the message of the angels was true. Have you gone to see for yourself that Jesus is real? The shepherds saw with their own eyes. We must see with the eyes of faith. We must "taste and see that the Lord is good". We do that by reading the Bible and praying. I'm going to pray right now and ask that you pray with me:

Lord I know I am a sinner. I sin all the time. I believe that you died on the cross to save me from my sins. I accept your offer of forgiveness as a free gift. I receive the Holy Spirit into my life to give me the power to overcome sin. I thank you for what you are going to do in my life.

The shepherd saw the truth for themselves, then went out and spread the news everywhere they went. Why don't you do the same?