Luke 2 records the account of an angel of the Lord appearing to shepherds who were keeping watch over their flocks at night. He told them about the good news that had happened in Bethlehem—a Savior had been born to them.
“Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.’”—Luke 2:13-14.
It is interesting to note that the word “host” can also be translated “army”. Isn’t it just like God to send an army to announce peace!
And it is only through Jesus that we can have peace with God. Jesus can take away the sin that separates us from God. Through Jesus God reconciles us to himself so that we can have true and lasting peace with him. The world can only offer partial and temporary peace. The only peace that matters in the end is the peace that God offers us through Jesus.
Luke 2 tells us that an angel of the Lord appeared to shepherds and revealed to them that the Messiah, the Lord, had been born in Bethlehem. These shepherds hurried off to see for themselves what had happened, and they found everything just as the angel had told them—baby Jesus was wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. Verses 17-18 tell us, “When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.”
It was unusual that God chose shepherds to be the messengers to spread the word to other people about the birth of the Christ child. Shepherds were not highly regarded in the first century. They had the annoying habit of confusing other people’s property for their own. And their word was generally so unreliable that shepherds were forbidden from giving their testimony in a court of law. Yet God chose people from this despised class to spread the good news about Jesus.
That’s just a reminder that God uses flawed people—just like us—to be involved in his perfect plan to save people through Jesus.
Who is coming to your house for Christmas? Is the uncle who always tells the corny jokes going to be there? Maybe the aunt who still pinches your cheeks the way she did when you were three years old! Will your brother-in-law be there? You know, the one who still owes you $50. Most families have an interesting mix of family and friends who get together to celebrate the birth of Jesus.
Let’s take a look at who was there for the first Christmas. Luke 2 records the story of the birth of Jesus. When I was in junior high, our English teacher, Mrs. Dye, required all of her students to memorize Luke 2:1-20. If a teacher in a public school gave that assignment today, I suppose that he or she would face the wrath of the ACLU, or perhaps some atheist parents. I am glad that I grew up in a time when people were more receptive to God’s word.
In Luke 2 we read that Joseph and Mary were there, of course. Joseph was an ordinary carpenter who was given an extraordinary assignment—to be the earthly father of the Son of God! Joseph struggled with this idea at first. When Mary, who was pledged to be his wife, was found to be pregnant, Joseph planned to quietly divorce her. He knew that he was not the father of the child, so he suspected that she had been unfaithful to him. However, an angel convinced him that she had not been unfaithful, and that this was God’s plan to save his people from their sins (Matt.1).
Mary was an ordinary Jewish girl whose only qualification for being chosen to be the mother of Jesus seems to be that she had found favor with God. Like Joseph, Mary questioned the idea of a virgin conception. However, she also had a visit from an angel who explained God’s plan to her. Mary’s response was to accept the assignment that she had been given (Luke 1).
As Mary neared the time for her baby to be delivered, she and Joseph made their way to Bethlehem to register for the census. It was so crowded there that they could not find a proper room to stay in. When the time came for Jesus to be born, he was wrapped in cloths and placed in a manger. What a humble entrance for the King of kings and Lord of lords! We might have written a different script, but this is God’s story—his story of how he would save the world through his Son Jesus.
Luke tells us that shepherds were there that first Christmas. They were just minding their own business, keeping watch over their flocks at night, when something marvelous happened. An angel appeared to them and told them of the birth of Jesus. Then v.13-14 says, “Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.’”
The shepherds decided that they must go right away to search for the baby Jesus. When they found him they praised God and spread the word about what had been told them about this child. They could not keep from worshiping God and spreading the good news that a Savior had been born.
Just as Joseph and Mary and the shepherds accepted their proper role that first Christmas, let’s consider what God wants us to do as we celebrate the birth of Jesus. He wants us to obey him, even if it requires a big change in our lives. He wants us to spend time worshiping and praising God for sending us a Savior in Jesus. And he wants us to spread the good news about Jesus wherever we go!
This past October 2, Brandon Brown had just won a NASCAR race at Talladega and was being interviewed by NBC Sports reporter, Kelli Stavast. The crowd was chanting a vulgar, anti-Joe Biden phrase, which Stavast mistakenly took to be a cheer for Brandon Brown. Since then, the phrase “Let’s go, Brandon!” has spread like wildfire.
Some people try to justify using the phrase by pointing out that liberal entertainers and politicians have publicly said much worse about former president Donald Trump. They assert that the humorous code phrase is not nearly as offensive as chanting the actual vulgar words.
I suppose it all depends on your goals. Are you trying to be just a little bit better than rude, foul-mouthed people? Or are you trying to follow Jesus Christ?
“Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”—1 Corinthians 11:1.
When someone is baptized into Christ, two things happen. First, that person’s sins are forgiven. Secondly, that person receives the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). The gift of the Holy Spirit enables each Christian to serve the church in a specific way. God gives us this gift, then we in turn share that gift with the church. Rom.12:6-8 says, “We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.”
This list of spiritual gifts is not comprehensive. There are other gifts listed in Scripture. But this list gives us a pretty good start in considering what kind of gift we might have to give to the church.
Prophecy is speaking the word of God. We need more Christians in their schools, workplaces, neighborhoods and churches reminding others of what the Bible says that we must do or not do. As we speak the truth in love, the church will grow to maturity (Eph.4:15). We all have the responsibility to do this, but some are especially gifted in the area of speaking forth God’s truth.
Serving is a gift that many Christians have. Again, we all have the responsibility to serve, but some are extra blessed to do the physical work of the church that blesses other people. They are the ones who shovel snow off the church sidewalks, prepare the communion trays, clean the church building and so on and so forth. They primarily toil behind the scenes, not seeking the spotlight and often going unnoticed for their important work in the church.
Another gift is teaching. There are things that we all can teach to someone, but the ones with this gift are exceptionally capable of imparting knowledge from God’s word that can help other believers grow in their faith.
The next gift on the list is encouraging. One of Satan’s greatest tools is discouragement. How important it is that we encourage one another on a regular basis! Those whose spiritual gift is encouraging others have one of the most important jobs in the church. They are the ones who lift our spirits with their kind words of inspiration, whether written or spoken. They lift us up when we are down, and they remind us that our work in the church is not going unnoticed.
Some people have the gift of giving. They are able to joyfully give more than a tenth of their income to the church. They lead the way with their generosity and inspire others to give more of their finances to help the kingdom grow.
Still other people in the church are gifted with the ability to lead. God has always worked through individuals that he has called to lead the way. Leadership is in the hands of the few, and if you are called to lead, you must do that boldly, but humbly. Diligent, godly leaders are necessary if the church is to move forward today.
The final gift on this list is to show mercy. God has shown us mercy through his son, Jesus, and we are to in turn show mercy to others. Those who are especially gifted in this area spend a lot of time ministering to people who are sick or lonely or hurting. They send cards, bring food, offer prayers and generally make the worst moments of our lives a bit more tolerable. God bless all of those who have the gift of mercy!
Well, there you have it. Hopefully you have already figured out how God has gifted you to serve in your local church and are using your gift faithfully. Let’s all give our gifts to the church, not just at Christmas, but all year round.
One day three people visited the Grand Canyon—an artist, a preacher and a cowboy. As they stood at the edge of the massive canyon and marveled at its expanse, they each responded with a statement of exclamation. The artist cried, “Ah, what a beautiful scene to paint!” The preacher exclaimed, “What a wonderful example of the handiwork of God!” The cowboy mused, “What a terrible place to lose a cow!”
In the church, we all bring our own unique perspective on life. We come from various backgrounds and have different experiences. But God brings us all together in Jesus. Christ is the one thing we have in common and he is the One that we all have agreed to obey. Let’s do our best to minimize our differences of opinion and focus on the truth that we have in common; and that truth is Jesus.
“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”—John 17:20-21.
One of the most dreaded phrases in the English language is this—“some assembly required”. Those words strike fear in the hearts of people who are not at all handy at putting things together.
Have you ever worked late into the night on Christmas Eve trying to put together a gift for your child? You thought that the assembly would be simple. After all, it came with easy-to-understand instructions. But it turned out to be more of a job than you ever imagined.
Some of us would rather not think about that phrase, “some assembly required”, but those words have something to say about the way God interacts with the human race.
Some assembly was required for God to create the world. Through Jesus, God spoke the word and, out of nothing, the universe was brought into existence.
Then God made us in his image. Some assembly was required for that. God made Adam from the dust of the earth and Eve from a rib taken from Adam. As for the rest of us, Psalm 139:13 says, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.” Some assembly was required for human beings to exist.
Then Adam and Eve messed it all up. We mustn’t be too hard on them. If they hadn’t have done it, we surely would have. Mankind’s sin caused the world to be cursed and broken. It needed to be put back together again. Some assembly was required.
So God put together the nation of Israel and set them aside to be his people. He molded them and taught them that they should expect a Messiah, one sent from God who would save the people from their sins. This Messiah would fix things.
And he did. Jesus came into the world and died on a cross to pay the price for the sins of all people. All those who trust in the crucified and resurrected Jesus for their salvation are brought together to form his church. He assembles us to be his people and to do his will in this world.
Now some assembly is required on our part, as we meet to worship together every first day of the week (Acts 20:7). We are not to neglect the assembly, and God warns us that harsh punishment awaits those who forsake the assembly (Heb.10:25-31).
For those who hold onto their faith in Jesus and remain a part of his church, there is one more assembly to consider—when we all are gathered together to live with Jesus in eternity. 1 Thess.4:16-18 says, “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.”
What encouraging words these are! This world, with all of its pain and suffering, is not our final destination. Jesus will assemble all of his people to live with him in eternity. May we live faithfully for him as we await for his return.
Everyone appreciates receiving a little encouragement for their accomplishments. We are all somewhat like the little boy who said to his father, “Let’s play darts. I’ll throw and you say ‘Wonderful!’”
Okay, maybe that is an example of someone who craves a little bit too much affirmation! But we all do need encouragement. In this world where discouragement lurks just around every corner, let’s try to lift each other’s spirits when we have the chance to do so.
“For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.”—1 Thessalonians 2:11-12.
In some parts of Mexico hot springs and cold springs are found side by side. Because of the convenience of this natural phenomenon the women often bring their laundry and boil their clothes in the hot springs and then rinse them in the cold ones. A tourist who was watching this procedure commented to his Mexican friend and guide: “I imagine that they think old Mother Nature is pretty generous to supply such ample, clean hot and cold water here side by side for their free use.” The guide replied, “No, señor, there is much grumbling because she supplies no soap.”
Rather than grumble about the things we don’t have, we should be thankful to God for all the wonderful blessings he pours into our lives on a daily basis. We ought to be especially thankful for the salvation that he has given us through Jesus!
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever.”—Psalm 136:1.
Paul Harvey told the story of a woman who called the Butterball hotline with a question about a frozen turkey. The bird had been in her freezer for over 20 years. She wondered if it would be safe to eat it. The customer service representative answered that a turkey that had been frozen for over 20 years would be perfectly safe to eat, but it would be very tough and quite tasteless. The lady replied, “I guess I’ll just donate it to the church.”
I think we can all do better than that! Let’s make sure that we always strive to give the Lord our very best. After all, he gave his best for us!
“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”—Colossians 3:17.
“Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!”—2 Corinthians 9:15.
Jesustrek 