Tuesday, November 30, 2020 Some material taken from Jesus Is _____ Part 1 by Sam Nobles
And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping
watch over their flock by night. 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.
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.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is
Christ the Lord. Luke 2:8-11
Jesus Is Hope – For Shepherds
We celebrate Christmas because Jesus Christ was born – the King of
Kings and Lord of Lords. On that night that the King was born there was a
fanfare – not the kind you might expect. There was a whole host of angels in
the sky that night heralding His birth, but for a small audience of some lowly shepherds
and their flock of sheep.
It is definitely a point to take note of that these lowly shepherds
were the ones who received this great heavenly announcement. Shepherds were not
considered the best of society. They were considered unclean, and because of
this view from society, they were generally treated as outsiders. This group of
scruffy outcasts were perhaps most in need of the hope this announcement
brought.
What a symbol of God’s grace and love. He chose the outcasts of society
to be the first to have the privilege of the joy of the Savior’s birth. Maybe they thought
that this announcement was not for them. Since they were considered religiously “unclean”
because of the work they did, they were never considered "clean enough" to
worship in God’s presence. As I mentioned, shepherds in the first century were
almost perpetually, ceremonially, unclean and were excluded from temple
worship. Always unclean – never worshipping in the temple – cut off from the
presence of God – shepherds were always on the outside looking in. This God and
His religion were not for them so this good news must not be either.
This good news was for them! The angel of the Lord said to them Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that
will be for all the people. For unto
you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the
Lord. The angel said two important things
to these shepherds:
- Good News – that will be for
all people
- A Savior – that will be for all the people
Jesus Is Hope – For You and Me
There is a lot of us walking around every day feeling like we are not worthy enough for God. We tell ourselves what people told the shepherds - I am unclean. I am a sinner and God wants nothing to do with me. We can talk ourselves right into believing There is no hope for me.
Like Sam said Sunday - Where sin abounds, grace much more abounds. You have not gone too far;
you have not done too much; it is not too late – there is hope when you repent
of your sin and place your faith in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation. What
makes us acceptable to God is not our behavior but the free gift of salvation
that comes through Jesus. - Sam Nobles
God chose the shepherds to receive that very special message that night and today He chooses you and me to hear that same message - there is a Savior, Christ the Lord, who is hope for all of us. The lowly shepherds were not too far or too unclean for God and neither are you and me. No one has traveled too far, sinned too much, or is beyond the
reach of God’s great grace. This message is for all people.
I too often believe that the hope Jesus offers could not be for me. Do
you ever feel that way? Stop telling yourself you are not worthy or that you are too far from God for this hope to be yours. Jesus is for us - all of us. He gives hope. He is hope. Looking to ourselves will never offer the hope He gives. We will never be "worthy enough." But that is the good news - He gives hope to all right where we are. He disregards where we have been and makes us new, a clean slate, full of potential and hope. Don't talk yourself out of this gift He gives. Don't believe the lies. Cling to the hope He gives, because Jesus is hope.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 1 Peter 1:3
