Last week
we looked at Luke 1 and looked at how the birth of John the Baptist and Jesus
came about. Today we will look at Luke 2: 1-21
“1 In
those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be
registered.
Those days
is talking about, the days, when after 400 years of silence was broken when an
angel of God spoke to Zechariah. 6 months later, the angel spoke to Mary,
prophesying to both a child- one being the forerunner and one where she is
conceived by the Holy Spirit. Caesar and Augustus are not names, but titles-
his real name was Gaius Octavios. Our faith in Jesus is not rooted in mythology
but in history. Caesar Augustus ruled the Roman empire for 45 years. Pax
romana- peace of Rome- was in his reign. There was prosperity and peace in Rome
during this time.
Q. Why
is Luke telling us this?
2 This
was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 And all went
to be registered, each to his own town. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from
the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called
Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be registered
with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child
In Micah
he prophesied that the Messiah will come out of Bethlehem. The other prophetic
word is that he would be of the lineage of David. But they were living in Nazareth. So God moved
the ruler’s heart to conduct a census. According to the census, they had to go
to their hometown, which was Bethlehem.
Q. What
can we learn from this?
All the
international political events can confound us, but above and beyond all these
decisions, is our God who is sovereign and he will always have his way. The
kings’ hearts are in his hands.
6 And
while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. 7 And she gave
birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in
a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
Firstborn
– in Jewish
culture, the rights and inheritance went to the Firstborn. The Bible tells us
that Jesus had other half- brothers and sisters. The Catholics believe
otherwise. Jesus had other brothers and sister- Joseph and Mary had normal
relations after the birth of Jesus.
Manger- It is a feeding trough for animals.
It is not something people usually have in homes. Babies do not belong in a
manger. Parents choose a nice room and good place to put our babies. Mary and
Joseph were poor. There was no place even in an Inn. The king of the Universe
chose to be born in humble surroundings.
Q. Are
we willing for the sake of the gospel to sacrifice?
Jesus
voluntarily took up the place of a poor person, a humiliating way to be born.
8 And in
the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their
flock by night.
Shepherds
were looked down upon in that society. In their law, shepherds’ testimony was
not taken into account. God chose to reveal the wonder of his birth to the
nobodies in society.
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.
This
statement has so much truth in it. The long awaited Messiah for whom they were
pining, a Saviour was born. Christ means the anointed one. Lord is used to
refer to God. He is the answer to the Jewish nation. But it is for all
people. The extent of Jesus’ influence is all people.
It is good
news of great joy. That great joy is when someone receives salvation. Christmas
is Merry for us because our sins are forgiven.
12 And this
will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and
lying in a manger.”
Q. How
did they know that that was the baby? The angels gave them this indication.
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!”
What a
choir that must have been!! Amazing heavenly worship taking place there. God chose the foolish things on
earth to shame the wise. We are amongst those nobodies to whom God has revealed
the birth of His son.
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.”
What an
amazing thing that the angels finished singing, and went back to heaven! The Shepherds couldn’t figure out
this thing that has happened.
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.
Now Mary
and Joseph had God speak to both of them regarding this baby. But for months,
they did not have any other sign or confirmation. Sometimes, we too can wonder
if God has really said something. But now, after the baby is born, for the
first time they have a confirmation from the shepherds. Then they tell
Mary and Joseph that angels told them about this baby.
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.
We have
heard the good news of the Saviour. Like the shepherds, we need to make it
known. This needs to become a lifestyle. Evangelism is a lifestyle. We need
to fill our hearts with worship at the miracle of the birth and salvation of
God.
Can we
be a people who treasure this news and respond with a lifestyle of Worship and Evangelism?
Let’s pray.
Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again), Spirit filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that have people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service. To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.
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