Sufficiency of Scripture and The Christmas Story: The Shepherds "Enough for Seeking and Speaking Jesus" (Luke 2:8-20)

Jeremy Heikkinen

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Intro:

Welcome!

Luke is very detail oriented. He is very thorough

Definition of the Sufficiency of Scripture:

“God has given me all that I need for life and Godliness through His great and precious promises” 2 Pet 1:3-4

“All Scripture is profitable for all aspects of life”. 2 Tim. 3:16

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” Prov

“The Bible contains all that we need to know God’s will and live a life pleasing to him” Heath Lambert.

The problem is that many people do not think that the Bible addresses these things. We think it is only a book for Sunday, Christmas, and Easter but has no relevance to life in between.

Outline:

Seeking: “An Angel of the Lord Appeared” (vs. 8-14)

Speaking: “The Shepherds Went” (vs. 15-20)

Summary: The Word of God is sufficient to lead the seeker to Jesus and speakers to share Jesus.

Prayer:

Seekers: “An Angel of the Lord Appeared” (vs. 8-14)

The Angel Appeared (vs. 8-9)- You may recognize these verses from Handel’s Messiah (8-14)

In the same region

There were shepherds- “Nomadic shepherds who were separated from human communities and culture for long periods of time were inevitably subjected to suspicion and scorn. Popular lore accused them of failing to observe the difference between “mine” and “thine.”…disqualified them from being legal witnesses”.

Edwards, J. R. (2015). The Gospel according to Luke. (D. A. Carson, Ed.) (p. 74). Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.; Nottingham, England: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos.

Out in the field- doesn’t get more low key than that.

Keeping watch over their flock by night- one of the 4 periods of the night during which someone is on duty. They are doing what they always did.

An angel of the Lord appeared to them- one, angel (messanger) of the Lord. Angels are not commonly appearing in everyday life then or now.

And the glory of the Lord shone around them- “doxa” glory, shone all around them surrounding them with light in the middle of the dark night. This is a good picture of what we mean about he sufficiency of Scripture. It is enough to completely surround you in the light of who God is for every situation you will face in life.

2 Corinthians 4:6- “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (2 Co 4:6). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

and they were filled with a great fear- “feared a great fear”

The Angel Said (vs. 10-12)

and The angel said to them

Fear not

For behold, - Look, pay attention, snap out of it!

I bring you good news

of great joy- the great fear is overcome by the great joy. Luke uses “Joy” in association with salvation.

that will be for all the people- even to us this morning

For unto you

is born this day

in the city of David

a Saviour

Who is Christ the Lord- this is so specific, the great joy is found in the saviour that was born, not the means by which they found out.

This will be a sign for you

You will find

a baby

wrapped in swaddling cloths

Lying in a manger- this is very specific

The Angels Praised (vs. 13-14)

And suddenly

there was with the angel

a multitude of the heavenly host

praising God

and saying

Glory to God in the hightest

and on earth peace amonth those with whom he is pleased!

Application/Implications:

Do you want peace this morning instead of great fear? The Word of God was sufficient to lead the shepherds to Jesus. It is sufficient to show the seeker where to find the Saviour! The Bible is enough to lead you to Jesus!

What do you think the appearance of an angel or messanger from God would do in your life? Hopefully not more than the message they bring.

What would you expect the glory of the Lord to look like? Did you know that the truth of God’s Word is sufficient to surround you in whatever you face in this life: whether you are dealing with the complexities of a blended family, the grief of losing a loved one, going to work everyday, trying to make ends meet, being caught in life dominating sinful patterns, etc.

What will you be praising on Christmas morning, will it last past the adrenaline and sugar? There is good news of great Joy that can outweigh any fear in your life! But that good news of great Joy is attached to Jesus. You will not find it anywhere else, every other souce has an experation date, every other source will grow old, every other source will lose its source of life just like those batteries you will have to replace by boxing day.

Is the driving purpose of your life to give glory to God this morning? Maybe you are seeking signifiance in your life these days. You are wondering what the point of all this is…Let me be God’s messanger to you. You are here, that means something! here is the message, We are here to celebrate the birth of our saviour because He would save us from our sins

Transitional phrase: The words from God’s messangers was enough to cause the shepherds to seek Jesus. What will this message cause you to do? You see, the message is not just ment to be heard, it is meant to compel those that hear it to move!

Speakers: “The Shepherds Went” (vs. 15-20)

The Shepherds said (v. 15)

When the angels went away from them into heaven: Pause, what would that have been like…(all the light and sound to…silence…BAAA)

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- the glory of God is meant to propel people to action. The message from God was enough to make them move. Notice, none of them said, “let’s stay here in this moment, we are the only ones with truth...

The Shepherds went with hast (vs. 16-19)

They went with hast-

and found Mary and Joseph- Jesus is not born in isolation and His birth was open for others to share

And the baby

lying in a manger- exactly what the angel had told them

When they saw it

They made known the saying

That had been told them

Concerning the child- the sufficient word from God not only caused them to seek Jesus but also to tell others of the sufficient word they received. They are bearing witness to God’s word! If God could do that with shepherds, He can do it with you!

All who heard it- not just Mary and Joseph

wondered at what the shepherds told them- this is a group thing, “Amazement is not evoked by a spectacle, but by a report directed specifically “to them,” the hearers (v. 18). Amazement is not itself faith, but hearing a testimony of God’s word directed to oneself can be a first step in faith.

Edwards, J. R. (2015). The Gospel according to Luke. (D. A. Carson, Ed.) (p. 80). Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.; Nottingham, England: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos.

But Mary

treasured up all these things

pondering them in her heart

The Shepherds Return (v. 20)

The Shepherds returned- to the Sheep!

Glorifying

Praising God

For all they had heard and seen

As it had been told them- The Word of God contained all that they needed to know God’s will and live pleasing to him. Dear Believer, it is possible to live pleasing to God by glorifying and praising God for all that you have heard and seen as it has been told to you in the Word of God. The Shepherds did not spend years studying the bible before they shared about Jesus and glorified God. You do not have to wait either.

Application/Implications:

As you return to the normal bleeting of life, will you go with the message of Jesus? We all know the great amazement of Christmas with all the lights, all the songs, and excitement, but we all know that we are going to have to return to regular life afterwards. What will it look like for you to return to work, school, or everyday life in the New Year glorifying and praising God? Who are you going to tell about the Saviour?

After even the greatest of moments, we have to decide what we will do with what just happened. Like the Shepherds, will you choose to go and speak of the sufficency of God’s Word? The shepherds did not have to make up what they had seen and heard, they simply needed to speak as it had been told them.

What to do with fear

What is the good news

Where do I find great joy

Who is Jesus

In a way, we have lived out this historical event today. A bunch of average “joes and jolines” who are somewhat remote from community these days, have gathered to do what we normally do, and the glory of God has appeared as we have sung together, heard the message of God together in His written Word, and prayed together. How will you leave here today?

Transitional phrase:

Discussion questions

Worship- Renew the Mind (Scripture)

1. What passage of Scripture did we look at? Summarize it in your own words.

2. ?

3. ?

4. ?

Grow- Engage the Heart (Conversation)

1. ?