Luke 2:8-14
(NIV) 8 And there were shepherds
living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.
9 An angel of the Lord
appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were
terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I
bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.
11 Today in the town of
David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
12 This will be a sign to
you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great company
of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to
God in the highest heaven, and
on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
Three times an angel
appears before the birth of Jesus – to elderly Zechariah as he was burning
incense in the Temple, to Mary in her home at Nazareth, and to Joseph, in a
vision as he slept. Each time, the angel has brought good news. And then again,
almost three months later, an angel appears proclaiming good news a fourth and
final time. An almost blinding light enwraps the shepherds and the angel gives
the message, Do not be afraid. I bring you good
news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born
to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. Thus far the good news has
trickled out, but the next announcement is with a host of angels, as if someone
pulls the cork and the world is flooded with the good news of Jesus.
During this Advent season
God has some Good News to speak to each of us, and that Good News may be contained
in the final message of the great company of angels, “Glory to
God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
Could it be that one of the deepest yearning of our life is the desire to know
that our life is pleasing to God, that His favor rests on us?
In
His earthly ministry Jesus encountered only one group of people who did not
receive Him as “good news.” These were the people who already thought their
lives were pleasing to God. Those who thought themselves “good enough already”
saw no need of Jesus. To them He was a nuisance, a fake, an imposter. They
insulted Him, plotted against Him, and finally put Him to death on a Cross. But
to the sinners, those who sensed that their life was not “good enough,” the
angels brought good news of great joy.
Because
of Jesus, and only because of Him, God is pleased with us. That good news does
not leave us as we are or where we are, but moves to pick up our life and move
us on to becoming the kind of person we have dreamed we could be. That good
news not only brings praise to our mouth, that good news also transforms our
life. Being in the presence of someone who is pleased with us has a way of
drawing the good out of us. This is
the blessing I believe God wants to pronounce on your life and mine this
Christmas season. It is a blessing made real through our simple act of faith of
believing it is true and receiving the One who is that truth into our life.
From
a sermon preached by Henry Dobbs Pope December 22, 1974
©
Rhonda Hinkle Mitchell Broyles
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