Why the Shepherds - Part 2

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Please make your donation to Visionathon today at vision.org.au. Some Christians are so sombre at Christmas, you'd think they only know Silent Night and never heard of Joy to the World. Today on Turning Point, Dr. David Jeremiah returns to the shepherds near Bethlehem, whose natural response to the news of Christ's birth was to rejoice enthusiastically and contagiously. Listen now as David introduces the conclusion of his message, Why the Shepherds.

And thank you for joining us. You know there's something about the image of a shepherd out amongst his flock with only his dog and the sheep for his companions. That seems, well it seems picturesque and inviting. And you can sense the quiet of the hillside as the sheep quietly gaze and the shepherd's eyes carefully watch over each one in his care. This is not a picture of someone who craves attention or notoriety, but it is someone whom God chose to participate in the birth of Christ.

We call them shepherds. It's the most amazing story. And if you know the background of that particular time and the culture, it is twice amazing that God would do what he did in the way he did it. This could only have been a script written by our Father in Heaven. Well, let's get back to our lesson, Why the Shepherds. When Jesus came and was presented first to the shepherds, he came as a helpless savior, lying in a manger. But he was also a humble savior. Verse 12 says, lying in a manger, the humblest of cribs.

Actually the word manger means feed trough. His first visitors were shepherds, the humblest of people. And you know, that defies every one of us. If we were to write the story, we wouldn't have written it this way. And yet it is so important that we come to grips with why this is the way Jesus came to this earth. 2 Corinthians 8, 9 says of our Lord, For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that you through his poverty might become rich. If Jesus had come as the Jews expected him, as culture predicted he would, if he had come as a king, if he had come in majesty, then as the savior of the world, all of those who felt themselves beneath that status would have felt disqualified and never would have come to receive him. But my friends, Jesus came in the lowest possible way. He came humbly and helplessly so that there would be no one who would ever say, I am too sinful for him, I am too insignificant for him, I am too inconsequential for him. He's opened the door for us all no matter who we may be. The poet put it this way, They were all looking for a king to slay their foes and lift them high.

Thou camest a little baby thing that made a woman cry. How different is the coming of the savior from what we would have expected. And yet how wonderful is this truth that the savior about whom the shepherds were told by the angels was the very savior we read about here in the scripture, helpless and humble. As if to set the tone for his entire life, as if to set the tone for his entire message, God brought a delegation of shepherds to be the first to worship and to celebrate. Someone said Jesus was only a few minutes old, but he would have liked the fact that the shepherds were there.

This was the one who would enter the homes later on of the despised tax collectors and known sinners. This was the teacher with so little time allotted to him to minister on this earth, no more than just three years, yet he always had time for pressing crowds. He touched lepers. He healed the sick. He took away the blindness from the eyes of those who had not yet seen light. There was nothing too insignificant for him to deal with, and he tells us that story in the very nature of his birth. He spoke of the greatness of servanthood. He said that for anyone who served the least of these, it would be counted as if they had served Jesus himself.

Look at him. Look at him in the manger. Watch him in his life and you will see this incredible dichotomy between the power of God and the humanity and humbleness of the Savior. He began his ministry by being hungry, yet he is the bread of life. He ended his earthly ministry by being thirsty, yet he is the living water. He was weary, yet he is our rest. He paid tribute, yet he is our king. He was accused of having a demon, yet he cast demons out of others.

He wept, yet he wipes away our tears. He was sold for 30 pieces of silver, yet he redeemed the world. He was brought as a lamb to the slaughter, yet he himself is the good shepherd. Jesus died, but by his death, he destroyed death for everyone.

Do you see it? From the meekness of a child to the greatness of a king, wrapped up together in the person of our Savior, the Lord Jesus. And it was the shepherds who first got that revelation. This was the humble Savior the shepherds came to worship. He was a helpless Savior and a humble Savior, and thirdly, he was a heavenly Savior. Verses 13 and 14 says that the message about this one who came was presented by those who themselves had come from heaven. The Lord Jesus came down from heaven to be one of us, and the book of Philippians said that he thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, and he came down to this earth from heaven, and he took upon himself the form of a man, and he became obedient even unto death, coming from heaven all the way here. Because, you see, it was impossible for any of us to go up there.

We don't have what it takes to do that. He came down because we couldn't go up, but ultimately he came down so that we could go up. The heavenly Savior. Well, the shepherds received the message, and then notice, here's a good example for all of us. They responded to the message. Verses 15 and 16, So it was when the angels had gone away from them into heaven that the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing which has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us, and they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the babe lying in a manger. The shepherds responded to the message.

These unassuming men followed the simple instructions that the angels gave them. They made their way to Bethlehem, and they took part in an experience that countless generations of Christians have envied. These were, without question, the first converts to Christianity and the Gospel recorded in the Bible.

Who were the first people to receive Christ as their Savior? Surely they were the shepherds. They received the message of Christ, and though Christ had not yet gone to the cross, the content of their faith was what they obeyed and what they followed. It was not enough, you see, for the shepherds just to hear the message. I mean, I don't know about you, but if I had been with them out on the hillside for an amazing revelation, and then I was told to do something, I might be so stunned and so taken back by the whole thing, I would sit there and not do anything. But the shepherds believed.

And you know, men and women, that's an important thing for us to remember. Believing is not hearing. Believing is responding to what you hear. Believing and obedience are kind of twin words. So if the shepherds had only heard and they had not responded, they would not have believed. They would have not exercised their faith. You come to church every week and you hear the message and maybe you even are blessed by the message. Sometimes we can get a vicarious blessing about hearing how others have been changed by the gospel. But if you have never responded to the message yourself, then you have not believed.

You may say, I understand, I comprehend, I know, but you have not believed until you have responded. Had the shepherds stayed on the hill outside of Bethlehem, they would have missed Christ. They would have missed the whole blessing.

We wouldn't be reading about them in the Scripture. But they responded. They obeyed. When the angels told them what to do, they did it. And in their obedience and response, they expressed their faith. And then thirdly, the shepherds not only received the message and responded to it, but they retold it. They repeated it. They rehearsed it. Verse 17 says, When they had seen him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning the Christ.

Think about it now. The shepherds have had quite a night, a visitation from heaven by the angels, and then the discovery that what the angels have told them was true. Jesus was probably born in a humble cave, a stable. And as they left that stable on that first Christmas, as they left the manger, they couldn't keep quiet about what they had seen. They told everybody. Their lives would never again be the same.

The sky would never again seem so dark. They would know that just as they had kept watch over their flocks, there was now somebody keeping watch over them. And the shepherds didn't just talk about what they saw, but about the changing of their own lives because of what they saw.

Everywhere they went, they told people about what had happened. Could I pause for just a moment for a practical admonition? We have an awful lot of information floating around out there about how we should witness to others and share our faith. For many Christians I know, that is one of the most terrifying thoughts that ever entered their head, to tell somebody else how they feel about Christ. And part of it is because we have misunderstood what it means to be a witness. A witness doesn't necessarily mean you have to know the four spiritual laws or the evangelism explosion presentation of the gospel or the Roman road or any of the other methods that have been created to put the gospel in some sort of format. Witnessing simply means you tell somebody else what's happened to you, that's all.

That's what it means. You tell somebody else what Jesus has done for you. And there's not a person, I don't care who you are, that is incapable of doing that.

In fact, if you really knew how much fun it was, you'd be doing it all the time. What is it about you that makes you different, they ask. Well, let me just tell you, it's Jesus. Jesus has changed my life. He's transformed me. He's made me new. And every time you get a chance, you ought to do what the shepherds did.

You ought to tell people what's happened to you. If you did that, if we did that as a church, there wouldn't be buildings big enough to contain all that God would do in bringing people to himself. It's not our persuasive ability or our ability to argue.

It's not our apologetic finesse. It's simply our telling others what the Savior has done for us. Has he done anything for you today, friends? Has he?

Yes, he has. Well, how can you keep it to yourself? How do you dare keep it to yourself when there are so many who need to hear? And I dare say that as the shepherds left that scene that night walking out of there, they were on a holy high. Like the angels, they probably floated through the air because of what they had seen. And people knew there was something different about them, and everywhere they went, they told folks what had happened.

They responded to the message, and then they retold the message. And then finally, I want you to notice that they rejoiced at the message, and this is a really significant point for us to make at this season of the year and one that I love to make because it falls right in line with what I believe about Christmas. You know, I love Christmas. It's the best time of the year.

I don't know who wrote those lines, but it's true. And isn't it interesting that even people who don't believe in Jesus celebrate Christmas? Would you celebrate somebody's birthday if you didn't even know who they were?

I doubt it. But you know what? That's the nature of the impact of Jesus. He's made such an impact in this world that even people who deny him, people who don't know him, people who don't ever understand a word about him gather together every year during this season to celebrate the birthday of Christ. And it is a joyous occasion.

It fills you with a kind of mystery and romance that you can hardly describe to anyone, and I'm caught up in it right up to the top of my head. The bottom line is we serve a God and we're serious about our faith. Someone told me a long time ago the best way to get through life is take God seriously, but don't take yourself too seriously. And, you know, we take God very seriously around here, and we know that if you know God, there's a joy that cannot be contained. And once in a while, we let it all out.

And people respond to that and they say, What is this? It's the joy of God in our hearts. And Christmas is the great outlet for all of that joy.

It has been since the beginning. By the way, did you know that the Bible says the shepherds returned and they were glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen as it was told them? In the book of Luke, beginning in the first chapter and going through the second chapter, there are six different songs recorded.

Did you know that? First of all, there's the beatitude of Elizabeth when she was visited by Mary in chapter 1, verses 42 through 45. Then there's the Magnificent of Mary. That's the second song, verses 46 to 55. Then there's the Benedictus of Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist. That's the third song. And then in chapter 2, verses 29 and 32 is the Song of Simeon when he was presented with the Christ child at the temple. And in chapter 2, verses 10 through 12 is the Evangel Song of the Angel of the Lord who came first to announce his coming. And then finally, the song which we're celebrating in the verses that we've read today, the Gloria of the Angelic Host, chapter 2, verses 13 to 14. The Gloria of the Angelic Host.

You see, let me just say this to you, men and women. Christianity is a religion of music. It's a religion of song. You say, well, aren't all religions religions of song?

Oh, no. I know some religions have what they call music, but they moan and groan, and that's not music. But Christianity has a corner on the music of the world because Almighty God has put that music in our hearts, and it began fundamentally for the church at Bethlehem when the angels broke into the silence of the night with their message of joy to the shepherds. And we have been singing the choruses of Christmas ever since. How many of you have said something like this to someone already? Oh, I just love the music of Christmas.

I wish we could do it all year long. I have a car now. It's got XM radio in it. Now, if you don't know what that is, I'm telling you what, that's the most wonderful thing that ever been created, because it's every kind of thing. It's got all the NBA games on it. It's got all the major league games on it.

It's got, I mean, wherever you are, whatever you want, you can find it. But the most important thing is it's got all these music channels, and at Christmas time, about the first of November, they had the Holly channel, which is wonderful music. And then they say at the end of that now, by Thanksgiving, there'll be three more channels of music. So now, from 103 to 107, there's four channels of Christmas music. If you're listening to one and you don't like it, just turn the knob and you've got another one right here.

If you don't like that, turn another one. And they even have one with classical Christmas music. Four channels of music just for one holiday?

You've got to be kidding me. No, because Christmas promotes the joy of your heart. Even the people who don't know why get joyous at Christmas, almost as a mute salute to the Savior who was born.

Isn't that something? And I'll tell you what, I love the music of Christmas. My friends, is it any wonder that the world wants to take this celebration away from us? They don't know what to do with it.

They don't know how to explain it. Why don't they let you celebrate Christmas anymore? My friends, that's happening all over the world today, primarily in our country where we, at one time, were the leaders in the celebration of the birthday of Christ. We are now having to fight our way through it. It doesn't belong to the world. It belongs to us.

Amen. And it's a wonderful celebration because the message of hope, the message of peace, the message of love is wrapped up in the baby who was born in Bethlehem to the worshiping eyes of the shepherds. I read a story about the commercial venture of one of the largest department stores in our nation. It proved to be a very disastrous promotion. Their idea was they had a doll in the form of the baby Jesus. It was advertised as being unbreakable, washable, and cuddly. It was packaged in straw with a satin crib and a plastic surrounding and appropriate Bible text added here and there to make the scene complete. Well, it didn't sell.

The manager of one of the stores in the department chain panicked and carried out a last-ditch promotion to get rid of those dolls. He brandished a huge sign outside his store that read, Jesus Christ, marked down 50%, get him while you can. Well, I'm telling you, friends, Jesus Christ didn't come to be packaged and offered for half price. He came as God himself, clothed in the robes of human flesh.

And while the world and its commercialism and cynicism has almost ruined that picture, he nonetheless still offers himself to those who will receive him as their own personal Savior. The same message that was declared to the shepherds that night is continuing to be declared year after year, generation after generation, and men and women who receive that message and accept the Savior into their life find that just as Jesus was born in Bethlehem so many years ago, he gets born in their hearts, and they become followers of Christ. Don and I visited Bethlehem.

It's one of the memories we have and one of the reasons we want to go back. And in Bethlehem, there is a church called the Church of the Nativity. The building is only 100 feet by 70 feet in size, and there's only one way to get into the church.

The single door is not much higher than a child, and it's only a couple of feet wide. And to get into the church, people have to come one at a time and kind of stoop down and walk through the door. And I remember thinking back then, what an interesting reminder to all of us that entering the kingdom of God is not something you do in a group. It's not something you do with others.

You have to do it yourself. It is an individual experience. Having Christ is like getting into that church. We have to humble ourselves, and one at a time, we have to walk through the door.

So all of this celebration about Christmas comes down to this one major question. Have you done that? Have you walked through the door? Have you accepted the message of Christ in your heart? Have you allowed him to come and forgive your sin and give you the gift of eternal life, which he left heaven and brought to you through the person of his son, Jesus Christ? It's not enough to know about it.

It's not enough to hear it. You have to respond to it. So the question is, what will you do with Christ? What will you do with him?

And will you accept him in your heart? Amen. Amen. Well, tomorrow we're going to talk about why the gifts of the wise men, what were the gifts they brought and why did they bring them? We're going to talk about that tomorrow on Thursday.

And then on Friday, why there is so much music at Christmas. We'll see you right here tomorrow. Today's message came to you from Shadow Mountain Community Church and Senior Pastor, Dr. David Jeremiah.

We'd love to hear your story of Turning Point's impact on your life. Please write to us at Turning Point, post office box 3838, San Diego, California, 92163. Or visit our website at DavidJeremiah.org forward slash radio. Ask for your copy of David's 365 day devotional for 2021.

It's called Strength for Today. It's filled with biblical truth for each day of the year ahead. And it's yours for a gift of any amount. And to keep your spirits bright through the holiday season, visit the Home for Christmas channel at TurningPoint.tv. It's your free source for Christmas music, videos, messages and more. The Home for Christmas channel at TurningPoint.tv.

I'm Gary Hoogfleet. Please join us tomorrow as we continue the series, Why the Nativity. It's here on Turning Point with Dr. David Jeremiah. Thanks for taking time to listen to this audio on demand from Vision Christian Media. To find out more about us, go to vision.org.au