Why The Shepherds

Christmas is the time of the year when many cling to those church traditions of the birth of Christ.  Luke writes of a time when God used those outside the conjecture of man, the church structure to bear witness of the birth of Jesus Christ.  Humanly thinking, Jesus being the King of kings, one would think He would be born to royalty.  Jesus being the King of the Jews, one might look for Him to be born in the holy city, Jerusalem, not Bethlehem, and surely, not born in a stable and laid in a manger.

There is much debate, speculation and misrepresentation about the birth of Christ.  Grasping the Biblical truths will help you proclaim the birth of Christ like that of the shepherds. The Bible says,  “And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ [the Messiah] the Lord.'” (Luke 2:8-11)

First: These shepherds were men who can grasp the things of God in their mind and hearts with a servants attitude.  In the written account of the public proclamation of the birth of Christ we read,  “…When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.’ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.” (Luke 2:15-16)   Life application for us – “Christians, who stir themselves up to be about their business for the Lord in their callings are able to receive divine revelations from the Lord as long as they know Him, love Him and are willing to obey His Word.”  Second: Not only did their spiritual hearts enable them to get divine revelation, they were enlisted into His service. The Bible says,  “When they had seen Him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.  (Luke 2: 17-18)   Many call the shepherds the first evangelist, they were not ashamed of the Gospel, not allowing it to be watered down with religious slogans or over shadowed by the issues of the day, but proclaimed what the angles had told them, “The Messiah has been born.”

One way of understanding Scripture is to take a look it from the time of which it was written.  We do know that flocks owned by Temple authorities raised unblemished lambs for sacrifices in the Temple.  These flocks were pastured near Bethlehem. It is not out of reason to think that the shepherds, the Angel of the Lord spoke to, over-saw the Temple flocks from were the sacrificial lambs were chosen. If that be the case, what a lovely thing for the Lord to have allowed these shepherds to be the first to see the lamb of God, Jesus in the manger, Who was born to be the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world.

When focusing on Jesus being the reason for the Christmas season, one has to ask; What was in the hearts of the preachers and teachers of Jesus’ day, that kept them out of the loop of such an heavenly announcement.  What viewpoint had such a control over governmental affairs that excluded them from hearing the public proclamation of the birth of the King of kings of Whom all will someday bow their knee too.  One has to ask, “Do I have the heart of the shepherds?”  One whom God could trust with the public proclamation, God’s Messiah, Jesus Christ was born on that first Christmas day.

Mary

William Shakespeare penned these words in his play, As You Like It, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players: They have their exits and their entrances…”

     Most of us have seen a wide variety of Christmas plays and pageants in our lifetimes and perhaps have even been in one or more of them ourselves. We enjoy seeing the tiny tots program—Mary in her blue dress and white veil; Joseph in a too-large bathrobe; both kneeling beside a manger with the “Baby Jesus” and the little angel choir with crooked tinsel halos heartily singing “Away in the Manger” behind them.  We perhaps, too, have seen or participated in elaborate Christmas pageants with huge casts and conceivably thousands of dollars spent on costumes, backdrops, live animals, with professional sound and lighting. Both of these, in its own way, characterize that first great “Casting Call of Christmas.”

     For His cast, however, God the Father signed on and coordinated the innocent and the majestic, the humble and the proud, the unlearned and the scholarly, the good and the evil in widely diverse characters for roles in that first great Christmas drama. God’s choice of players includes:

     MARY: It is Christmas! Here in America we have the freedom to learn and talk about the reason for the season, Jesus Christ. Today, we want to consider the heart of the virgin Mary – A young woman, pledged to be married to Joseph, finds herself visited by the archangel Gabriel. Gabriel announces to her that she will become pregnant. To overcome her confusion since she is a virgin, the angel explains to Mary, “…you are highly favored! The Lord is with you. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So, the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God.” Though under Jewish law Mary knows she can be stoned to death for being pregnant outside of marriage and knowing that her husband-to-be will probably not understand, she bravely responds, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” Traveling to Bethlehem while heavy with child, she ends up giving birth there in a stable. Since they could find no room in any boarding houses, Mary ends up laying her precious firstborn child in a feeding box for animals.

There is a life application here in this Christmas truth. There are no more miracle births to come of this order.  The Bible says Marry was “highly favored” (χαριτόω charitóō) means she was approved of God for the call He has laid before her. (The Complete Word Study of the New Testament) The heart beat of this approval, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” (Luke 2:38)  Do you have this heart beat?  Do you have the heart to walk in obedience to His Word for you?  Are you able to understand His call upon your life?

There is a Divine call upon your life.  Having the heart of Mary will open the door of revelation to you and enable you to be seen as approved of God for the call He has upon your life.

Jesus Christ

William Shakespeare penned these words in his play, As You Like It, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players: They have their exits and their entrances…”

     Most of us have seen a wide variety of Christmas plays and pageants in our lifetimes and perhaps have even been in one or more of them ourselves.  For His cast,  God the Father signed on and coordinated the innocent and the majestic, the humble and the proud, the unlearned and the scholarly, the good and the evil in widely diverse characters for roles in that first great Christmas drama. God’s choice of players includes.

     Jesus Christ: The Key Person of the Christmas story. He was born to die.  “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning… The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1: 1-2, 14).  Jesus willingly gave up the majesty and acclaim of heaven. He humbled Himself so far as to be born a baby in a stable. As He grew, He was tempted in all ways, just as we are, yet was without even one sin. He gave up His life on the Cross. As a Man, he got hungry, cold, and tired.

Then, in the fullness of His time, at the exact moment prophesied, He gave up His life on the Roman cross. The Jews of His day intentionally and wrongfully condemned Him to death; the Romans carried out their dreadful crucifixion; but it was our sins—theirs, yours and mine—that fashioned the nails. The final curtain fell.  Jesus was dead. But, the great “Play” doesn’t end there.

For three days all heaven held its breath.  Then the Father cried, “ARISE, MY SON!” Jesus is not dead! He rose again to life everlasting and lives today in heaven in the place of honor at the right hand of God the Father!  And you too can you live forever with Him because Jesus says in His Word, “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die…”

As the “Drama” now continues, what role will you play? At the end of it all, where will you be found?  Scripture says, “Today is the day of salvation.” Don’t delay.  I urge you to receive Christ into your heart! Live for Christ every day of the year! Anticipate spending an eternity with Christ! He desires you to be with Him.  After all, He died so that you could serve and live for Him.  He has Spiritual Gifts for you so you can sacrificially serve others as He served and loved others.

A Real Place

A Real Place

Jesus said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.  Trust in God; trust also in Me.  In My Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I am going there to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am.  You know the way to the place where I am going…  I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:1-4, 6)

Sooner or later you are going to experience physical death.  You have a specific quantity of days to inhabit this earth and God alone knows their number.  God’s Word is clear, “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment…” (Hebrews 9:27)

Physical death is part of the curse that has come upon man since Adam and Eve.  God told them after their sin, “…you [will] return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19)  Until Christ returns, all of mankind will experience physical death.  “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (Romans 3:23) and “the wages of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23)  However, Jesus shares a powerful truth that is for all who have accepted Him as Savior and Lord.

Twice in today’s text, Jesus refers to heaven as being a “place.”  Heaven is not a surreal, fairy-tale kingdom.  It is literal and more real than the house you live in.  The New American Standard Bible has the best translation when saying “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places…”  “Places” (Greek topos) means places in which one dwells, an abode or a home.  These are permanent habitations of eternal rest and peace.

Revelation Chapter Seven records the beloved John’s vision of seeing a “…great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language standing before the throne of God and in front of the Lamb [Jesus Christ].”   Matthew Henry in his exposition of heaven in Revelation 7: 15-17 says, “[Christians will be] happy in their employment, for they serve God continually, and that without weakness, drowsiness, or weariness.  Heaven is a state of service, though not of suffering; it is a state of rest, but not of sloth, it is a praising delightful rest.”

Jesus is faithful.  When He says He is preparing a place for Christians that is what He means.  He also states another compelling fact that is a blessing to those who have lost loved ones who were born again Christians and for the children of God who are facing the trial of death.  Jesus declares, “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die…” [spiritually, to be raised physically at the resurrection of believers].  After saying these words, the Lord asked a question of His listeners that is still relevant to us today,  “Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26)

The Only Way

Jesus, the Only Way to Heaven

Jesus said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.  Trust in God; trust also in Me.  In My Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I am going there to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am.  You know the way to the place where I am going…  I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:1-4, 6)

The Holy Scriptures teach clearly that heaven is a real place, a permanent place, a personal place, a holy place, a place only for the born again and a place of reunion.   Jesus proclaims that He alone is the way to heaven.

The Holy Spirit moved the apostle Peter in his discourse about salvation to the Sanhedrin (the religious leaders of his day) to boldly proclaim, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).  There was no compromise or accommodation in Peter’s preaching.  In this anointed declaration, Peter wholly commits to Christ the unique status of being the one and only Savior.  Peter and the other apostles never watered down the fact that apart from Jesus there is no salvation for anyone.

From the earliest beginnings of His earthly existence, Jesus was proclaimed to be the Savior.  An angel appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him that the child conceived in Mary was from the Holy Spirit. He also told Joseph, “She [Mary] will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).  (The name “Jesus” comes from the Greek form of “Joshua” which means “Yahweh [the Lord] saves.”)

Some may say that Jesus is a dogmatic and narrow-minded teacher when He says, “I am the way and the truth and the life.”  As Truth embodied however, the Lord alone can reveal truth to His people and unbelievers alike.  He is our guide to living an abundant and fruitful life.  His promise to the disciples who followed Him was that they should know the truth, and by the truth should be set free (John 8:32).  When the crisis of His ministry and the hour of His sacrifice arrived, he summed up the whole purpose of His mission in the declaration that He had come into the world in order to “testify to the truth” (John 18:37). Jesus’ own declaration is, “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies” (John 11:25).

Jesus is serious when He says, “…No one comes to the Father except through me.” No one is able to go to God and enjoy Him as their “Father who is in heaven” apart from having Christ as High Priest, Advocate and Mediator of their lives.  Unrepentant sinners will face God as Judge, but they will never enjoy the benefits that are available to the children of God, such as eternal salvation, regeneration, and sanctification.

Jesus gives an allegory to particularly represent His ministry that could be named “The Shepherd and His Flock.”  In this parable Jesus says, “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep…whoever enters through Me will be saved… I am the Good Shepherd; I know My sheep and My sheep know Me…” (John 10:7-8,14).  The Lord uses the word “know” (Greek ginosko) which refers to a relationship of trust and intimacy.

Do you know the Christ who is the only way into heaven?  Does He know you?