Jump Start # 1503

Luke 2:10-11 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

NOTE: Tomorrow is a holiday. There will be no Jump Start tomorrow. We will catch up with you on Monday. Enjoy time with your family. Worship the Lord this Sunday. Be thankful.

  Tomorrow is Christmas. It is a time of gift giving, family, food and fun. Was Jesus born on December 25th? Probably not. Luke 2 opens with, “Now it came about in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all  the inhabited earth.” The Roman emperor would not call for an empire wide census to be taken, which required people to travel to their place of birth, during a season in which it is very rainy and travel is difficult. That would defeat what he was hoping to accomplish. Jesus was probably born sometime in the Spring. We also notice the silence in the Bible regarding the celebration of Jesus’ birthday. The apostles are not recorded doing anything to remember Jesus’ birth. The early church left no record of anything being done. Interesting, every holy day that God wanted His people to celebrate and remember, the specific day, and activities are spelled out. This is true of Passover, Pentecost and even the Lord’s Supper in the N.T. God never left it up to our guesses. When it comes to the birth of Jesus, God never left any instructions. Are we to sing “Happy Birthday?” Are we to make a cake? Are we to buy presents? What are we to do? There is no example of the early church celebrating the birth of Jesus.

Churches interested in following that primitive pattern left in the Scriptures understand that it wasn’t a baby in a manger, but a Savior upon the cross that changed eternity. A baby in a manger is cute. A dying Savior on the cross is bloody. The emphasis in the N.T. is the death, burial and resurrection of Christ.

Having said all of that, Christians today ought to be able to talk about any aspect of Jesus’ life no matter what the calendar says. Since so many are stuck on the baby Jesus, I thought I would share a few thoughts about the angels declaration to the shepherds on the day Jesus was born. Our verse is what was said to the shepherds in the field. Good news came. This was a message from Heaven, delivered by the angel. The news that they brought was immediate. They said, Today, in the city of David, there is born a Savior for you. Those shepherds may not have realized that they needed a Savior, but they did. The angels acknowledge that this birth is the Messiah. The Messiah has come.

God came to earth. He didn’t come for a quick walk through. He didn’t come disguised as an under cover boss. He wasn’t here for a weekend. He didn’t come as an adult. He was born as we are. He grew up, as we did. He had to comb His hair, brush His teeth, put on His clothes, go to the bathroom, eat and even sleep. He went through what you’ve gone through. He did all of this without sin.

His coming meant three things.

1. God wants you to know Him. If you want to know someone you have to spend some time with them. If you want to know me, then we have to get together. God wanted man to know Him, so He came to earth. He came so we could trust Him. He came so we would see Him. He came so we would understand Him. To see Jesus, is to see the Father. They saw His compassion. They saw what was important to Him. They saw how open He was. The expression, “God moves in mysterious ways,” is not found in the Bible. It implies that we do not know God. It implies that God does things that are mysterious, unknown and baffling to us. That’s not what happened. God showed Himself to the world. This is how God is. We can know God.

2. God wants to be with you. The word, ‘Immanuel,’ means, “God with us.” That’s what happened when Jesus came to earth. God was with us. He was not far away. He wasn’t unavailable. He was with man. He saw. He understood. Can you imagine what it would be like if God was with you today? What would it be like for God to sit at your desk where you worked? Would He get more done? What would it be like for God to send the text, instead of you? What would it be like for God to talk to your teenager, instead of you? God with us. That means we are never alone. God is with us. There are times when it seems we are alone. We may feel that no one really understands. Worse, you may think, no one really cares. God does. God is with you. Even through those long dark valleys, God is with us. There is great hope and encouragement in knowing this. God came to be where man was.

3. God wants to save you. This is why Jesus came. He came to save us from our sins. He came to do what we cannot do. There are some things that are beyond us. There are some problems that are greater than we are. Sin tops the list. We can’t be good enough to erase the damage that sin has caused. We can’t save ourselves. We need Jesus. We need His sacrifice. It is His blood that washes away our sins. God came to do what we couldn’t. This act demonstrates what God thinks of you.

Today, the angel declared, a Savior is born for you. God has sent rain. God has sent food. God has sent prophets, judges and later, apostles. But this was the first time that God sent a savior. Our greatest need is salvation. If we needed information, God could have sent a teacher. If we needed direction, God could have sent a guide. If we needed happiness, God could have sent a comedian. He didn’t send a coach, a therapist, a scientist, a doctor or a financial planner. He sent a savior. He sent Jesus. He sent the best of Heaven for the likes of us.

He came to our world so we could live in His world. He became like us, so we would follow Him and become like Him. Jesus came. Will you come to Him?

Roger

Jump Start # 503

Luke 2:10-11 “But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

It is interesting when looking at the events surrounding the birth of Jesus, to see all the different people who were afraid when they first heard. Mary was afraid when an angel appeared to her. Joseph was afraid. Herod was fearful of the new king that was born. When the angels appeared to the shepherds in the field, they too were frightened. These were extraordinary events about a very special birth—the birth of Jesus.

The announcement of Jesus’ birth first came to shepherds in the field. The announcement was made by angels. The coming of Jesus was considered by Heaven to be “good news of great joy.” Paul told the Galatians when the fullness of time came, God sent forth His son born of a woman. Heaven had been awaiting that day for a long time. All the elements were right and it was time. Jesus came, as our verse indicates, to be a Savior.

The angel told the shepherds that there was born for you a Savior. I wonder if the shepherds knew that they needed a savior and in what context that meant for them. The Jewish mind knew the prophets told of a coming Messiah. He would be a king and sit on David’s throne. Most were thinking a military person—a ruler, with armies, that would sack Rome and restore the national independence that Israel once had. The Jewish hearts longed for independence. Under David, the nation was a large as it had ever been. It was a power to be noticed and feared. David conquered. The Jewish people longed for those days again. Those were the good ole’ days and they loved to hear legends and stories passed down from generation to generation about that.

God had a different kind of salvation in mind. This Savior, Jesus, came for all people, not just Israel. His kingdom would be spiritual and the salvation would be not from Rome, but a far greater enemy, Satan. From the very first, the mission of Jesus was defined. He came to save. He came to save from sin. His fight wasn’t with Rome, but with Satan. The greatest threat wasn’t Caesar, it was death. That was the one thing no one could do anything about. Death was the end of the road for all people. It hung over everyone’s head. Death wrecked plans, destroyed families and kept people in fear. No one could do anything about death, that is, until Jesus came. He conquered death, by dying Himself and being resurrected never to die again. Even the powerful Roman machinery could not stop death. Jesus could. And by doing that, He took away Satan’s greatest power.

The announcement of Jesus’ arrival was “good news of great joy for all the people.” Great choice of words! The word “gospel” means, “good news.” The coming of Jesus was the gospel of great joy. Christ is joy. Christ is hope. Christ is peace.

A friend shared an interesting conversation with me. He was inviting someone to come to church services. The person had the usual excuses, busy, not sure, and he turned the question around and asked, “Why do you go to church?” My friend responded, “I like it.” That stunned him. He had not met anyone that “liked church.” People went to church because they “had to go,” or “they were trying to avoid Hell,” or, they had an obligation—he didn’t think anyone liked church. How different. How refreshing. How inviting. What is there to like? Jesus, of course. Jesus’ people. Hymns about Jesus. Prayers to Heaven. Preaching of the gospel. It is good news of great joy!

That makes us think about our feelings and attitudes about going to worship. Do we have that sense of great joy because of the good it involves? That sure changes a person’s outlook and reason for going. “I like it…”

That’s the thought that the angels had when Jesus came, “I like it.” That’s the thought that God had throughout the ministry of Jesus. Twice God said, “I am pleased” – I like it. Even the death, as terrible, painful and necessary as it was, was something that Heaven liked. It had to be, if we were going to be invited in.

I like it…that ought to be our thoughts about Jesus, the Bible, His church and worship. I simply like it. Good news of great joy!

Roger