2024 Carol Sing Devotional

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.

So here we see the curse of mankind because of Adam's sin. Sin entered the world through Adam's disobedience and we all suffer because of it. Romans 5.12 says,

therefore just as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned.

And this is where we get to this good news. Sin and death spread to all people. We are all guilty of sin and deserving death for it. We cannot save ourselves. We are in desperate need of a savior. Jesus and his birth were promised all the way back in the beginning that he would be the savior from sin. Unlike us, Jesus was perfect. He fulfilled the call and purpose that we were supposed to as human beings. He was tempted in every way we were, yet without sin. He went to the cross as a perfectly righteous man, but treated as if he were a sinner. He took the punishment that we deserve for our sins upon himself. And this proclamation by the angel to the shepherds in our verse is the answer to numerous prophecies and promises over an extensive period of time. So just to name a few, in the book of Isaiah, written 700 years before Jesus was born, chapter seven, verse 14 says,

the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin will conceive and bear a son and shall call his name Emmanuel.

Additionally, the prophet Micah, 800 years before Christ was born, gave us the location of his birth. Chapter five, verse two says,

but you, Bethlehem, Ephraphath, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.

So Jesus, God in the flesh, who is one with God the Father, is promised from the beginning. And the scriptures foretold the manner in which he would be born as well as the location. And through his obedience as the son, Jesus purchased our salvation and is now exalted at the right hand of the father. This is exceedingly joyful news. This brings us to our second question. Who is this news for? Again, in our verse, the angel says,

fear not. For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.

Now can you imagine being these shepherds? We were told they were just out in the field at night, tending to their flock. They weren't sitting there waiting and expecting this to happen. Then the angel of the Lord appears to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them. You can imagine their terror, right? It would have been dark, there were no flashlights back then, and then out of nowhere, this great light is shining. You see, light is beautiful and awesome, but left to ourselves without God, and in our sin, we are scared of the light because it exposes our sin. But as it says in 1 John,

if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his son, cleanses us from all sin.

Jesus even says of himself that he is the light of the world, and whoever follows him will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. So this awesome glory of the Lord that is shining on the shepherds foreshadows the great spiritual illumination that King Jesus brings into the world through his life, his death, and his resurrection. Now we see by observation of this text that God chooses to make this announcement first not to a royal family, Pharisees, scribes, religious elites, as might be expected, but rather to shepherds. Now we have maybe a romanticized view of shepherds, maybe because of kids' Christmas plays or shepherding being synonymous with elders. But make no mistake, in this context, they were seen as dirty and unclean in society. And where does God go? To the lowly, the outcast. You see the shepherds, they had nothing to offer. Jesus' arrival is meant as good news for all mankind. for the poor and lowly, and this is highlighted by God's choice to make common shepherds the first on earth to learn what has happened. There's also amazing symbolism here in the one who will refer to himself as the good shepherd is first announced to shepherds. The angel offers comforting words of fear not to the shepherds. And this initial fright that they have, it turns into wonder. As they are told, if you look at verse 12 and 13, Jesus wrapped in swaddling cloths is lying in a manger. And then suddenly there is a multitude of heavenly hosts. So all of a sudden there's just countless angels all at once praising God. And their song in verse 14 says,

glory to God in the highest. and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased.

This is celebrating God's glory and the peace which the Savior Jesus brings to those who believe. And the shepherd's wonder then moves to excitement. As verse 15 and 16 tell us,

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. And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger.

They could not wait to see Jesus. They could not get there fast enough. And the shepherd's emotional rollercoaster culminates with triumph. After visiting Jesus, verse 20 tells us,

the shepherds returned glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen.

This captures the profound and transformative impacts of encountering Jesus. And this should serve as a model for believers. We should be encouraged to respond with awe and humility and worship at God's redemptive work. Overwhelming joy and gratitude for this good news should accompany the recognition of God's presence and work in our lives. And with the proclamation of Jesus as Savior and Lord, we see a bridge between the heavens and humanity where God's good news was not for the elite, but for everyone, regardless of background or societal status. What a gift. Well, as we move into application, what can we take away from this joyful news? Number one, if you're not a believer, maybe you're a child of someone who comes to this church. Maybe you have lots of head knowledge and are wrestling with if you truly desire salvation and the things of God. Maybe you were invited here by a fellow college student or family. and you're thinking through the meaning of life. If this is you and you do not know Christ, I would humbly ask, what is holding you back? You see, Christianity is beautiful. It explains the meaning in life and gives the purpose of why we are here and what we are supposed to do. to love God and to make him known. What makes Christianity different from every other religion in the world is that all other religions, at least in some way, teach that if you do enough right, it's gonna outweigh your wrong. The Bible teaches that we have all fallen short of the glory of God and deserve death. But God in his great love sent Jesus to live and die as a substitute for all who will believe in him. And he rose from the dead, showing his victory over death, and is now seated at the right hand of the Father. And the Bible is not just some random book, but the very word of God, written over the course of 1,500 years in three different languages on three different continents, written by over 40 inspired authors, most of whom never met one another, all with the same consistent message of God, of who he is and how we can know him. It is reliable and perfect. The Bible has a self-attesting authority. We can know the Bible is true by the impossibility of the contrary. Because if you don't start with God's revelation and truth, you cannot really know anything at all. Those who repent and believe in Christ will have everlasting life. They will get to spend eternity with God, and unlike all other religions, it is by faith alone in the finished work of Christ that saves. This is true and everlasting joy. This isn't the joy of a political leader you like being triumphant, or the joy of your favorite football team winning it all. This is the joy of the savior of the universe who died for you. Will you believe? Number two, for believers, we should praise God for this gift. This news is of great joy. Are we living our lives like that? When was the last time you praised God for this good news? Do we just pay lip service to the joys of Christ, but on the inside are numb to it? Of course, there'll be suffering on this side of eternity, but how do we respond? With bitterness and turning away from God or counting it all joy as scripture commands? If you're a believer here tonight, be encouraged that your faith is secure in the God of the universe who sent his own son to save you. Praise the Lord, we worship a God who loves us in spite of what we have done, not because of what we have done. Third and finally, we should be eager to share this good news with others. This news is for all types of people, not just some, not just the ones who seem easy to talk to, the people we already know, people that look or talk like us, It is for all types of people. If you're a believer, you should be asking yourself, when was the last time I shared the gospel with someone? Whether it's with family members, kids, coworkers, strangers. We, of course, will never take advantage of every opportunity given, because even as redeemed people, we're still sinners. But if it has been a while, I would humbly ask, why? Are you making excuses? Like, oh, I'm too busy. I have a consuming job. I don't know them well enough yet. What if they don't like what I have to say? Well, God through Paul tells us in Romans to not be ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation. So may we too strive to grow in our desire to share this good news. As we close for our time this evening, I want to read from the song we're about to sing. Emmanuel, it says.

From the squalor of a borrowed stable, by the spirit and a virgin's faith, to the anguish and the shame of scandal, came the savior of the human race. But the skies were filled with the praise of heaven. Shepherds listen as the angels tell of the gift of God come down to man at the dawning of Emmanuel.

May we praise God for the gift of all gifts, Jesus Christ. Let's pray. Gracious Father, thank you that even though we have fallen short of your glory and standard and sinned against you, you did not leave us alone. Lord, thank you for the good news of the gospel and its power to save, that this news is of great joy and it is for all types of people. May we grow in gratitude and thankful to this Father. Be with us now as we sing our final two songs. In Jesus' name, amen.