Shepherds, Angels, and Wise Men
Notes
Transcript
Intro
Intro
Is greatness a title that is earned or given?
Mohammad Ali claimed the title, and for a time proved it. But that couldn’t last.
Our economy can be great if all the indicators are pointing in the right direction. But it’s impact is felt on each one of us individually.
What is the worlds greatest military? Histories greatest composer? Philosophies greats insight? What is the worlds best joke?? Monty Python has a video about that but unfortunately were unbend to film anyone who survived hearing it.
There are a few things common to all these. They are all subjective and temporal. And, they are all only as great as they’ve been proven.
Why is Jesus great? What makes worthy of worship? With all respect ‘Jesus died for my sins’ is not the correct answer. If that was the case, the pharisees would have been right to reject Jesus. At that time He had not died for anyone's sins.
The right answer is Jesus is great because of who He is. And who He is was all the reason for people to come worship Him.
Pray
Jesus was born in humble fashion. There was nothing glorious about His birth, yet His birth brought glory to God. An infant can prove nothing of it’s own. If there was greatness in Jesus, even at His birth, it must be because of His identity.
There were three groups that were drawn to Jesus after His birth. They all couldn’t have been more different. Different cultures, natures. They came from different places with different visions of Jesus and they all responded differently.
But in these differences, we can see that we must respond to Jesus. How we respond might look different in different times and for different people. But there is something common that His very existence calls us to. We will find that in the stories of the shepherds, Angels, and Wise Men.
8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. 10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” 15 When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. 17 And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. 18 And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. 20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
Shepherds: Saw Wonder That Lead To Worship.
Shepherds: Saw Wonder That Lead To Worship.
Shepherds sere an essential part of the Jewish culture. They kept the flocks that were a large part of the economy. They were also very well represented in Jewish history.
Abel, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Job, David, and Amos were all shepherds. These represent the covenant between God and His chosen people; they represent the Law too. Among this list are prophets, priests, and kings.
Shepherds task was honorable and noble. Many ancient cultures would use the shepherd as an analogy for their Kings. From Israel, to the Mesopotamian nations, to Greece, to Rome; Kings were ‘shepherds’ of their people. As noble as they were for an analogy, the profession itself seemed to be anything but looked up to.
At Jesus’ birth, these isolated and marginalized people were the first to get the invite for the birth announcement of the Messiah. We shouldn’t be surprised. It seems God had found all those who were in the right profession, with the right lineage and the right connections to be wanting.
8 Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’
In this passage, the master had invited many others, but they refused to recognise the Kings authority. So others how would be grateful to the king were invited instead.
This is the case with the shepherds. They weren’t on any ‘A’ list. But thy were on God’s honor roll!
They were used to quiet, dark nights. And this one turned into something utterly awe inspiring. They recieved an invitation to a baby shower that all the wealth and power in the world couldn’t reproduce. They have tranquility shattered by the glory of host of angels.
In the movie Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Charlie has to scrounge his meager resources just to by a chocolate bar that has a tiny chance at containing a golden ticket that allowed him to tour a wondrous chocolate factory. For Him, the chocolate bar was extravagant. But when against all odds, he finds the golden ticket in the one bar he can afford, he is elated. Even the prospect of glimpsing a world outside the grind and grit of the marginal existence of his family is overwhelming.
The angels aren’t the chocolate factory, they are the golden ticket! And the ticket is just what allowed Charlie to begin to dream about what might lie inside. So the shepherds saw these heavenly messengers and were overwhelmed. But they had to remind them, were just the invitation! The real wonder is down the road.
They were invited to see the King. He was to be a kings not just of Israel, but for all people. If the greeting comity was as glorious and fearful as the angels, imagine the Glory of the King!
What’s wonderful about the announcement is that the angels clearly point to this baby born as the king - City of David, a savior, Christ the Lord.
But they immediately set the conditions they will find Him. Not in palace or surrounded by entourage. But in a manger, wrapped in swaddling cloths. They were saying that, just like the overlooked shepherds, The Lord of Glory would be overlooked too. That being in a low position isn’t contemptible, but puts them on par with the King of Glory!
And so they went where the angels sent them, and they saw what the angels told them they would see. How did they respond when they saw the wonder of the Lord of Host wrapped up as a new born baby? God who came to visit earth?
20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
We will have many opportunities to see God moving and working and revealing Himself around us. Maybe in others lives. Maybe in our own. But like the shepherds who saw God’s glory and worshiped Him, we do well to respond in the same way.
Has God forgiven and saved someone you know and began transforming their lives? Glorify God!
Has God given you peace is trouble? Glorify God!
Do you see an opportunity to serve grow out of what used to be a weakness in your life? Glorify God!
We all to often see God revealed and displayed around us only to respond more like the spoiled kids in the chocolate factory rather that the grateful Charlie. Let’s be grateful for God’s movements around us, see His glory, and worship Him.
Angels: Saw Glory And Brought Praise.
Angels: Saw Glory And Brought Praise.
We’ve already talked a little bit about the angels, but I want to consider their perspective. If that’s even remotely possible.
We know how much of a drastic shock it was for the shepherds in that night. What they knew was the smell of sheep and field; the annual cycle of birth, finding grazing areas, sheering. But then a message from glorious messengers.
Why do angels so often cause fear to those the are sent? It’s because they have been in the presence of God.
Consider Moses. He would experience the presence of God, but veiled and indirect. And even that short and indirect attendance with God have an effect.
29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. 30 Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him.
They knew Moses. They knew who he was, where he had come from, what he was doing. Yet that prolonged reflection of God’s glory was enough to cause fear.
How much more then, would angels - entities of a different substance all together - who have been in the express presence of God (not the indirect presence like Moses) cause fear. It’s not the angels themselves that is so overwhelming, but their presence with God that cast a image of glory in the world of men.
The angles dwelt with God. God’s glory was (and is) before them. They didn’t CHOOSE to tell about God’s glory. It was a part of their existence. They couldn’t have avoided their glorious appearance because they had come from the presence of God.
The angels saw God’s glory. And being obedient to God’s direction to tell the shepherds, they had another response that was as matter-of-fact as their reflected glory. They praised God.
14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
God’s glory exists in His own abode - it radiates from Him all around. But, oh earth… oh Israel… oh Bethlehem… oh shepherds… If you only knew the glory that is born in your midst tonight! If you only knew the wonder that is right before you. You would praise Him like we praise Him! And how do the angels in heaven praise the Lord?
8 And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”
When we truly see the Lord, we can’t help but praise Him! And when we come from His presence, we can’t help but bring His glory to others.
It is my prayer that we each take the time and intention to stop and put aside the many things that buzz around us. That we take time to calm down our minds and hearts and ask God to reveal Himself to us. That He show us a fleeting glimpse of His glory. How great a distinction between knowing we should share God’s glory and bringing God’s glory because we have been in His presence.
I pray for His presence.
Wise Men: Understood Authority And Gave Honor.
Wise Men: Understood Authority And Gave Honor.
And now we get to the third group we’re looking at today - the Wise Men.
1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: 6 “ ‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’ ” 7 Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” 9 After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 11 And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. 12 And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.
There is much we don’t know about this. When did they get there, where did they come from? But these uncertainties don’t detract at all from the purpose of Matthew’s writing about them.
These Wise Men, or Magi were accustom to advising kings. They were the ones kings looked to for direction and wisdom. We know they were from the east. And we know they knew something of a Jewish savior who was to be born. We can infer they were following teaching from Daniel the prophet from over 400 years earlier. We can’t prov it, but it seems the most reasonable explanation.
We don’t know how much they understood about the ways of God, or the meaning of the Christ child they came to see, but we can see that they recognized His authority. They knew He was born King of the Jews. But they were not Jewish. They came to one in authority - King Herod was the authority in the semi-autonomous region of the home of the Jewish people at the time. But they knew there was something greater about the authority of this child that either the kings in their own land or the king over Israel.
So they understood enough of this authority to seek it out in spite of the lesser authorities around them.
But they did more that just acknowledge His authority. It prompted them to do three things.
Leave their own homes to see Him
caused them to take action
Worshiped.
Action of the mind and of the body was fine. But humility of spirit was needed/appropriate.
Offer gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
These had real and tangible value
They knew that action, and worship needed to be teamed with giving.
They chose their primary authority.
Defying Herod, they went home another way.
They chose the value of Jesus’ authority over that of Herod.
Application:
Application:
Because of Jesus identity - because of who He was - Magi, Angels, and shepherds surrendered who they were to who Jesus was. They responded in honor, praise, and worship.
When the magi came to inquire where the king of the Jews had been born, there was a group there who SHOULD have responded in all these ways. The Chief priests and scribes would have known what they were talking about, and SHOULD HAVE come to worship too. Why didn’t they? They were more concerned with the authority of this world and their own power rather than the wonder and glory of God. So they stayed.
God will call each of us to Himself. He will reveal Himself in various ways. We all are confronted then with the same choice: how will I respond when God reveals Himself? Will you give Him the worship, praise, and honor He is due? There is no better place than to be under the authority of a King who commands the armies of heaven.
He might do mighty things in your life. And He might ask you to follow quietly and faithfully. But neither of these are reasons to worship Him. That reason is the same for you as it was the Magi, shepherds, and angels. It’s because Jesus it God. Walking on water, healing the blind, raising the dead… or an infant in the crib. No matter where you are in your walk, or how Jesus is made known to you, He is worthy of worship.
Will you join me today as we close with a song of worship of the King?
Pray