When an Angel Spoke to Shepherds, Part 2

Over the last several days, we've set aside all other subjects to prepare for tomorrow's celebration of Christmas. On Monday's program, Chuck Swindoll described the earth-shattering moment when an angel addressed Mary. Then our attention turned to the reassurance the angel gave to her fiancée, Joseph.

Today on Insight for Living, Chuck presents the final message in the special mini-series by describing the epic moment when an angel spoke to shepherds. As we begin, we have the privilege of hearing this Christmas classic performed by the Stonebriar Community Church Choir and Orchestra and world-renowned soloist, David Gaschen. Lord Most Holy, Lord Most Holy, We worship and adore you, O holy child of heaven, O God incarnate, one with the Holy Spirit and with the Father. We lift our songs of praise to thee. Redeeming love has set us free, for Christ has been victorious o'er the sea, and he will reign eternally. The Son of God, our hope, our great Redeemer, the Prince of Glory, we lift our songs of praise to thee.

Redeeming love has set us free, for heaven and for his return, and he will praise thee eternally. Christ is one. He is one. Christ is one.

We lift our songs of praise to thee. Redeeming love has set us free, for heaven and for his return, and he will praise thee eternally. Christ is one. He is one. Christ is one. Redeeming love has set us free, for Christ is one.

Christ is one. We're so grateful, Lord, for the gift of music, along with that the gift of musicians, who give hours and hours of time when no one else is around, for the discipline of rehearsal going over and over and over until they've got that down. To the last detail, thank you, Father, for such commitment, for those who play beautiful instruments with their lips and fingers, and thank you for those who sing like a lark.

It's like we're caught up in the third heaven when we hear great music. Well, that's where it all started, and so it's only right that we pause to give you thanks, the giver of every good and perfect gift. Today we look forward to the time we'll spend as we anticipate this great holiday before us. Thank you for sending Jesus. To each one of us, we're so grateful. Now may we be lost in wonder and love and praise as we enter into this concert personally, and may this time honor you, our God and Master. In the name of your Son, we pray. Everybody said, amen. Ding dong, merrily on high, when the bells are ringing, Ding dong, merrily in the skies, when with angels singing, Dong dong, dong dong, dong dong dong, dong dong dong dong, dong dong dong, dong dong, dong dong on sana in excelsis. Nothing, nothing, nothing, Hosanna he excelsies. May you beautifully prime your last and shiny fingers.

May you beautifully prime your returns on these fingers. Hosanna in excelsies, Hosanna in excelsies, Hosanna in excelsies, in excelsies, in excelsies. You're listening to the Christmas Eve edition of Insight for Living.

The music is provided by the Stonebriar Community Church Choir and Orchestra in Frisco, Texas, where Chuck serves as senior pastor. And now we conclude the message Chuck started yesterday titled, When an Angel Spoke to Shepherds. Step into the imaginary time tunnel with me. Let's leave the familiar 21st century and go back to the dawning of the first. We're walking along the rolling, sloping hills of southern Judea.

You can drive there today on highways. And when you do, you see little brown tents every once in a while. Those who live in the tents are not called shepherds. They're known as Bedouins. There's a cluster of them squatting together around a fire out in the field.

We don't know what field. We don't know how far it was from the little town of Bethlehem. But there they were. And all of a sudden, the sky is lit with a million laser-like lights. And there stands a creature they've never seen before. Let's say he was 12, 15 feet tall.

Let's say his wingspan went out 25 feet if he had wings. And his voice was like a dozen Niagara's as he said, greetings. But first he said, I love this. Don't be afraid. Can you imagine? You're out in the field and a 12-foot giant shows up in the sky and says, don't worry.

All is well. Well, they were scared. They didn't know what to think until he began, until you was born this day.

Wait a minute before we rush ahead. When you read it as Luke wrote it, who mean for you is plural, until y'all is born this day in the city of David, a savior Christ the Lord. You'll find the baby just behind the kadaluma. We know it as an inn, but it was a little more like a bed and breakfast. Stable behind there where the animals were kept. When you go there, you'll notice in a feeding trough, Emmanuel.

That's fabulous. The angel didn't appear to some royalty in Rome, some godly dressed priest in Jerusalem, not even some rabbi in prayer in a synagogue appeared to the Bedouins, folks like us, just like us. To us is born city of David, a savior who is Christ the Lord. At that moment, that angel was surrounded by, get this, the original says, an army of heaven. How many millions?

We can't count them. Someone has said every star represents an angel, and that even is too limited. A host of these magnificent creatures who said, glory to God in the highest. On earth, peace among those with whom he is pleased. Born to you is Christos Kurios.

Isn't that great? Angelos Kurios. Christos Kurios. Surrounded by Dachshund Kurios.

And then remember, remember the routine? Angels show up, step up, speak up, then they scoot. And this one's gone. They're all gone. Leaving the Bedouins to say, let's go into Bethlehem and see this thing that they told us about.

Isn't this amazing? The first ones with the announcement of the Son of God is a group of no names. And we read, after they saw the Christ child, they told others. And all were amazed at what they were saying. They were the first evangelists. I love that.

You don't even know one of their names, nor do I. God has them all over. You're never alone.

You have one around you or with you at all times. I'd been invited to speak back in the late 90s at a church in Fort Worth. So Cynthia and I decided we would go fairly early. We would take the seminary vehicle.

I was a part of the leadership team at the school. And we left to drive there. And I was told it's full of gas. And it's in good shape. The car was a little, shall we say, vintage. And I drove this station wagon. It's tires pretty slick. And so I had to be careful.

Wouldn't you know it? Halfway there, late into that cold evening, boom! Blew out. Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. So I pull over. And I look up my rear view mirror. And there are two bright headlights.

I'm thinking, oh, good. I like it when cops follow me and I'm behaving myself. So I pull over. And I walk back. And a lady stuck her head out and said, Chuck! You OK? I go, yeah, yeah, is that Cynthia? I said, yeah, it is. She said, I saw you had the blowout.

Tell you what, I know right where we can get this fixed. Follow me. So she pulled her car around. And I followed her around and got to this little service station, the nicest guy. He had the tires I needed. He said, I'll put them on. I said, well, I've got to go to a meeting. He said, just pay for it now. And we'll hide the key.

And we'll call it even. So we did that, made those arrangements. I hopped in the car. And I said, we're going to. She said, I know.

I'll get you there right now. So she drove us and pulled right up. And we stopped. And I said, want to come in?

She said, no, I'll wait out here. So we had a great evening. I spoke. We had a little Q&A afterwards with some potential students.

About 4 to 10, we finished. And walked out. And there she was, waiting for us. Got in the car. And she was driving us back to our little place where we had left our vehicle.

And I said, would you just please take a little bit of money for your time? She said, absolutely not. I didn't realize it, but my money was no good where she lives.

And of course, I'm talking to one who was sent to us. She knew all about us. She knew all about the ministry we were having. Even wanted to know about Insight for Living.

Know all about our children. And when I turned around to find the key, she was gone. And I never have heard from her again and never will.

Most likely. I felt kind of special. I had a woman angel who drove a neat little car who knew exactly where that church was. We're never alone. You aren't.

I'm not. Oh, you don't see them. You don't necessarily hear them. But just when you need them, they're there, sent by God to watch over you wherever you are. I was never more alone than the 16 months I was away in the Marine Corps stationed on Okinawa. I felt alone, but I was never alone. Again and again, I sensed God's presence. I didn't think about angels back then, but I realize now, even on that Christmas Eve when I happened to have been near Atsugi, Japan, our outfit was stationed there. And all the other guys had gone into the village.

I went into a little restaurant and listened to music, drank a Coke, thought about my bride at home. And I thank the Lord for his presence in my life. Are you sure you have the Lord in your life? Or are you absolutely certain?

I mean certain. If you're not, this cross up here behind me is a symbol that we place in high profile at our church, because that's where the battle was fought and won by the Savior. Even if you didn't know about it, your sins were paid for. He came to our world. Came to his own, but his own did not receive him.

But to those who do, he gives them the authority to become the children of God, even those who believe in his name. Believe in him right now. Make this Christmas complete in Christ. Bow your head, will you? If you know the Lord, pray for those sitting near you. Pray for others.

Now I speak to the others, all of you Bedouins out there, those whose name I don't know, we've never met and probably never will. I invite you to the Savior. He cares very much about you, enough to watch over you day and night, and even to bring you to this moment where you and I would connect, and you would have a chance to hear how to move from darkness to light and from death to life by trusting in Christ, just accepting the gift.

Just like you'll do on Christmas morning, just take the gift. And Christ will come in, will live there forever. Forgive your sins, bring you to his home when you die. In fact, angels will escort you. Thank you, Father, for the privilege of knowing you while on this earth.

Thank you for those unusual moments when we suddenly become aware that we're not ever alone. For Jesus who loved us and gave himself for us, we will thank you forever. Bring those who search today to him so that they, like us, might come and adore him. Christ the Lord, in his name we pray. And all of us say, amen.

Amen. Concluding a brand new five-day teaching series, you're listening to the Bible teaching of Chuck Swindoll. He titled this final message, When an Angel Spoke to Shepherds. You're listening to Insight for Living. Through devotional messages from Chuck and sacred music from the Stonebriar Community Church Choir and Orchestra, it's kept our focus on the baby Jesus and the celebration of Christmas.

And to learn more about this ministry, please visit us online at insightworld.org. Now, just before we hear a closing comment from Chuck, I'll remind you he recently sat down for a special interview. In this 30-minute conversation, you'll hear Chuck describe his passion for reaching the lost, which was inspired by the Great Commission of Jesus. More importantly, he'll help you understand how to integrate this command from Jesus into your daily life as well.

You'll find easy instructions on how to view Chuck's conversation when you go to insight.org slash conversation. Well, even though the pandemic and its threat upon our lives has begun to subside, it's very clear that our biggest challenges may lie in the new year. Chuck, along those lines, in recent days you've shown us that our view of God's power will determine the course of our lives in the new year.

That's right, Dave. I believe with all my heart that God is not only big, but He's the God of limitless possibilities. Think about that. My convictions are founded on biblical truth. I'm thinking, for example, of Luke 18.27, where we read, the things that are impossible with people are possible with God. And the same thought is in Jeremiah. The weeping prophet wrote this, nothing is too difficult for you, Jeremiah 32, 17. In addition to these biblical affirmations, I can also bear witness to the God of limitless possibilities.

I've seen His greatness at work in my own life again and again. For these reasons and so many more, I'm compelled to pursue what many people deem impossible. That is, to obey the great command of our Savior Jesus and make disciples of all the nations.

That's right, all the nations. Would you be willing to join us in this journey? In recent days and months, you've heard me talk about what we call Vision 195.

So this is not new to you. It's the passion of our hearts to bring insight for living to all 195 countries of our world. I confess it's an audacious dream. In my own strength, admittedly, it's impossible. But I base my confidence on the God of limitless impossibilities. In the last two years, God has accomplished the impossible. He's guided Insight for Living ministries through a global pandemic as well as a combative national election and a season of isolation we've never experienced until now.

During this time period, we've kept every single radio station and we have not missed a broadcast. And my friend, I believe our best days still lie before us. So let's trust this God of impossibility, shall we? Let's pull together and let's offer our personal resources to tell of God's amazing grace in all the countries of the world.

That's 195 of them. Please follow God's prompting and give generously. Whatever God has placed on your heart, give that and do that today.

Thanks so much for standing alongside us. Well, getting in touch and responding to Chuck Swindoll is easy. Pick the method that's best for you. First, to speak to one of our ministry representatives, call us. If you're listening in the United States, dial 1-800-772-8888. That's 1-800-772-8888.

Or it might be quickest and most efficient to give at our secure website. That's insight.org slash donate. Join us when Chuck Swindoll kicks off a mini series designed to prepare us for the new year.

That's Monday on Insight for Living. The preceding message, when an angel spoke to shepherds, was copyrighted in 2020 and 2021. And the sound recording was copyrighted in 2021 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.