The Story Part 2

CHRISTMAS

 

As an adult, I still love getting gifts on Christmas!  I love giving them more now, but I still love opening up the presents with my name on it.  My anticipation builds as gifts show up days before Christmas marked for me.  I want to shake it and guess.  I want Christmas morning to hurry up and get here!!!!

 

We know that the wise men brought gifts to Jesus when he was a baby or toddler.  They probably were not there that very first night, like the shepherds.  Have you considered that the shepherds were the first to receive a Christmas present?

 

Pray:  “God, You are the gift.  It would have been awesome to be a shepherd on the very first Christmas night..”

 

Grab Your Bible:  Luke 2:8-20.

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.”

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

 

Shepherds were poor, stinky guys.  They lived with the sheep on the outskirts of town.  They were not highly thought of.  Picture yourself sitting with them perhaps around a fire.  And an angel shows up.  Angels are fierce looking creatures.  You and the others are scared!  But the angel delivers the news of Jesus’ arrival.  WOW!  To hear that news and then… hundreds of angels join that one in the sky.  And they start saying (perhaps singing).  That choir had to sound better than anything you would hear on Spotify.

 

So the shepherds run off and find that everything that they were told is TRUE!  The story is TRUE!  They find baby Jesus just as had been described to them.  And when they leave the go tell everyone while praising God.

 

How life-changing to be there!  The gift they received was hearing from the angels and seeing Jesus that night.

 

That would be a cool story, “Yeah, well, I got to hear angels singing, for real, and I got to go see Jesus when he was a baby.  I was there!”

 

The story is TRUE.  Jesus is real.  That  is why 2000+ years later the world still celebrates.  But most in the world do not surrender their lives to Jesus.  And so they miss the point.  PLEASE DO NOT MISS THE POINT.  I do not care right now if you are a church person or not.  Don’t miss what Jesus did for you because he loves you like crazy!

 

Prayer:  Jesus, I do not want to celebrate Christmas, but miss the point.  The point of the story is You.  You came down from heaven and lived a perfect life dying in my place.  But now You live.  I love You.