In October of 2019, a few of us were in Germany ministering with one of our missionaries to refugees from Afghanistan and Iran. As I preached, God moved in the hearts of nine people from an Islamic background, and they gave their hearts to Christ. Later, three more also surrender to Jesus. After the meeting, a man came up to me in a wheelchair and asked for prayer but asked to share his story before he wanted prayer. What followed was one of the most powerful testimonies of God’s transforming grace that I have ever personally heard. He grew up in Iran, and later moved to Lebanon, where he was trained as a terrorist under Hezbollah. He then took a picture from his wallet of a younger man, himself with a machine gun strapped around him. He proceeded to explain to me that he had being trained to assassinate the Israeli Defense Minister, but just prior fulfilling his mission he told me, “God struck me down,” and he ended up in hell. As I looked at him, I could see that he had suffered some sort of stroke. He said that he was shocked to see all these Mullahs and Ayatollahs there. He asked one of them, “Why are you here?” To which one of them responded that they had served the wrong religion and God. “Who is the right one?” he asked. They pointed above and then he found himself in heaven and was standing before Jesus. “When I asked him who he was, He said, ‘I’m Jesus and I have waited a long time for you, Jon’. It was then that I could then hear my son crying as he was laying by my chest saying, ‘Daddy, please don’t leave me.’ Jesus then said to me, ‘What do you want, Jon?’ I said, ‘I want to go back.’ Jesus said, ‘I will send you back, if you will serve me the rest of your life.’ I said that I would.”
Can you imagine finding yourself in hell, then meeting Jesus in heaven? What a shocking experience to have entered a coma as a terrorist and revived as a child of the living God, a follower of Jesus. Then Jon told me what he wanted me to pray for him about. Now, living as an immigrant in Germany, he wanted to be used by God to bring the message of Jesus to the Jewish people living in that nation. On his suit jacket, he had a lapel pin with two adjoining flags, one was the German flag, the other was the flag of Israel. A man who once hated the Jewish people was now living to love and serve them by sharing the message of Jesus. Looking at this man, you would have no idea of that incredible story of transformation and desire in his life.
How often is it in life that things aren’t always what they appear to be! Events have no meaning apart from revelation. The word revelation means ‘an unveiling.’ It was only as Jon shared his story that this amazing expression of God’s grace unfolded.
So, what was it about Mary and Joseph that would bring attention to them in the little town of Bethlehem during that first Christmas season? Absolutely nothing. They were just a poor couple looking for a place to stay, struggling with a baby about to be born. It is amazing and sometimes hard to believe that Jesus was born in such poverty, struggle, and obscurity. Would we question God’s grace, love, and wisdom if we found ourselves seemingly forsaken and forgotten? How do you view your present circumstance? Do you wonder where God is in the equation? Had God forsaken this young couple? Of course not! How often do we read the wrong message in our outward circumstances of life. When things are not going the way, we would like them to, we are tempted to question God’s love, goodness, and possibly His faithfulness to us.
We see from the Scripture that there was no family support for this couple as they were alone in Bethlehem. Even the people from town did not do anything to really assist them in this most important event in their lives. The birth of Jesus, the Messiah, would have gone totally unnoticed by humanity if it had not been for Divine intervention. For the most part, the community would never have known that the most important person to have ever lived was being born in their town. They would not have hazarded a guess that one of the prophecies of Scripture was at this very moment of time being fulfilled.
But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.[i]
God, however, intervened and revealed to a group of people who this child was. In our text we learn that God is always at work revealing Himself to people. Here we see the nature and the purpose of this child, but it can only be understood when God reveals it to people. God is showing us the way of salvation, the way of true and lasting peace in our lives.
Norval Geldenhuys quotes Epictetus, the pagan thinker of the first century, who wrote at the time concerning the Pax Romana, the Roman Empire’s imposed will on subjugated people:
While the emperor may give peace from war on land and sea, he is unable to give peace from passion, grief, and envy. He cannot give peace of heart, for which man yearns more than even for outward peace.[ii]
Here in the early years of Jesus we discover three means or ways that God reveals the Messiah, or Christ, to people. Usually, all three are at work arresting the attention of a distracted human race.
THE FIRST WAY THAT GOD REVEALS CHRIST IS THROUGH DIVINE INTERVENTION
Angels appeared to shepherds with a message pointing to the One who would bring salvation to them and their people. For some, God appears to them supernaturally, just as I shared that amazing testimony earlier. Most of the people who responded to the gospel presentation there in Germany told me afterwards that Jesus had appeared to them in their dreams, then I had the privilege of explaining how they could become followers of Jesus. We find some examples of that very thing in the New Testament. These are dramatic moments, but generally God reaches people in very simple and normal ways. People grow up in a Christian home and learn about Jesus, many of whom can’t remember a time when they did not trust Jesus. For others, their conversion story is very dramatic. One biblical example that immediately comes to mind is the apostle Paul, who was engaged in persecuting the church, when he had an encounter with the resurrected Jesus on the road to Damascus.
As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’ ‘Who are you Lord?’ Saul asked. ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ he replied.’[iii]
That was a supernatural encounter that transformed his life and brought him, not only personal salvation, but also a sense of purpose and mission to his life. There have been some incredible testimonies of people today in various groups around our world who have had a supernatural encounter that brought them to faith. People from Jewish, Islamic and Indigenous backgrounds who have had a supernatural encounter with Christ and have come to a saving faith. What is usually interesting about these encounters is that they were totally unexpected.
A. It is as we are engaged in our activities that God comes to us.
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.[iv]
To them, it was an ordinary night of tending their flocks when God broke into their lives.
An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.[v]
This was not something they were seeking or anticipating. It just happened to them. Who were these shepherds? Most biblical scholars believe because of Bethlehem’s proximity to Jerusalem, they were tending the sheep that would be sacrificed at the temple. These were probably temple shepherds.
As a class, shepherds had a bad reputation. The nature of their calling kept them from observing the ceremonial law which meant so much to religious people. …There is no reason for thinking that Luke’s shepherds were other than devout men, else why would God have given them such a privilege? But they did come from a despised class.[vi]
B. The nature of the revelation.
The angel came with a Divine message for these men, which they communicated to others. These men would now be witnesses of what God was doing.
But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.[vii]
We notice that this message is for all people, and it is the cause of great joy. The town of David is Bethlehem, which is where King David originated from. What they were told is that a Savior was born there, and he is the Messiah, the Lord. The angel was announcing to them that the long-awaited hope of Israel, the Messiah, had now arrived. This was the deliverer that the Old Testament had promised, and many were living with that expectation and anticipation in their hearts. The message of the angel was very significant.
Lord is used in the Septuagint of God (it is used in other ways as well, but it is the translation of the name Yahweh). Christ the Lord thus describes the child in the highest possible terms.[viii]
The Septuagint is the Greek translation of the Old Testament. What is being stated is that Jesus, the Messiah, is God. John supports this concept in his prologue to his gospel.
In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.[ix]
The apostle Paul explains it so beautifully in his letter to the Philippians regarding the Divine nature of Jesus.
In your relationship with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage, rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross![x]
The message is the message of salvation from our sins through God’s provision. A savior had been born.
C. God creates signs for us to find Christ.
This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.[xi]
The sign is that this baby is in a manger. This is a startling thing, that God Himself would come in such humble manner to our world. Obviously that sign was given to these shepherds at that moment, but God keeps giving signs to humanity of who He is. To the wise men, God gave them a star pointing the way to the child. John’s gospel reveals seven signs pointing to the nature of who Jesus is. John states this in his letter.
Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.[xii]
Having delivered the message, the angel is joined by a host of angels worshiping God.
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.’[xiii]
Peace can only be experienced when we are reconciled to God. God is gloried in the lives of the people whom He has shown favor toward. Who are those people that have favor with God? It is those people who have faith in Him. It is those people who are trusting in God’s provision of a Savior. When we discover that Jesus saves, cleanses, and keeps us from our sins, our hope and dependency grows in Him.
THE SECOND WAY THAT GOD REVEALS CHRIST IS THROUGH THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
It was the Holy Spirit that revealed to Simeon that he would not die until he saw the salvation of God, the Messiah.
Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah.[xiv]
The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead. He had revealed to Simeon that he would see the Messiah before his death. Simeon expressed that he would see the salvation from God that would be for all people.
‘…For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: a light for revelation to the Gentiles and the glory to your people Israel.’[xv]
A. The work of the Holy Spirit is to reveal to our hearts and minds the things of God.
Here we see the work of the Holy Spirit revealing truth to Simeon. That is exactly what He does today in our lives. The apostle Paul explains that so clearly to the church at Corinth.
However, as it is written: ‘What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, what no mind has conceived—the things God has prepared for those who love him’—these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.[xvi]
Without the work of the Holy Spirit revealing things to us, we just won’t get it.
The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them, because they are discerned only through the Spirit.[xvii]
B. The work of the Holy Spirit reveals the true condition of our hearts.
Joseph and Mary were once again amazed at what was happening. Here they had come to the temple at the time of Mary’s purification, and they have this incredible encounter with a man full of the Holy Spirit speaking prophetically about Jesus and Mary.
The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, ‘This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.’[xviii]
The Holy Spirit inspired message of Jesus would reveal the true condition of the hearts of people. Some embraced Him and His message with sheer delight and joy, others, not only rejected Jesus and His message but ultimately, they crucified Him. Nothing has really changed when it comes to people and their response to Jesus, who He is and what He has done. The invitation through the wooing of the Holy Spirit to embrace Christ as Savior and Lord is still revealing the condition of our hearts today.
C. The work of the Holy Spirit guides us into all truth.
Here we see in Luke’s introduction the guiding, providential work of the Holy Spirit in bringing Anna on the scene. It just so happened that Anna, a very devout elderly women who is described as a prophet, happens to come upon Simeon and the little family where she hears the message.
There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.[xix]
What is interesting is how these servants of God, having seen God’s provision of salvation, began to share that hope with others.
THE FINAL WAY THAT GOD REVEALS CHRIST IS THROUGH THE WORD OF THE SON
The word of the Son is the word of God. In this second chapter of Luke, we find him piecing together specific incidents to make his point that salvation has come through this child. Luke moves from the baby to a twelve-year-old child, becoming a son of the law.
A. We need to understand the message of Jesus.
Here in this incident in the life of Jesus, Mary and Joseph do not grasp the significance of what is happening. They do not understand what Jesus is trying to tell them. How often we are we like them. We just don’t get what God is trying to communicate to us.
Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom. After the festival was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it.[xx]
How could that be? People who traveled, often traveled in the company of others, like relatives and friends from their village.
Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers.[xxi]
This is not your usual situation. Jesus has remained in Jerusalem engaging with the religious teachers of the law at the temple. Mary and Joseph had become quite frantic trying to find him.
When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, ‘Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.[xxii]
Jesus’ response isn’t understood at that time.
Why were you searching for me? he asked. Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house? But they did not understand what he was saying to them.[xxiii]
Though God uses many means to arrest people’s attention and to speak into lives, we find that the primary means that God uses is speaking today is through His son.
In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.[xxiv]
What we need to realize is that salvation from sin, death and judgment can only come through the Son. We must hear His voice. We must respond to His provision for our sins. There is no other way to God apart from Him. Peter reminded the religious leaders of his day of thisThank y.
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.[xxv]
Jesus Himself said it in his high priestly prayer.
After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: ‘Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given to him. Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.[xxvi]
Just as at the first Christmas season, God revealed His purposes, His message, His savior to our world; He is still doing that today. God can reveal Himself through supernatural intervention like He did to those shepherds when an angel came and gave them the message that a Savior was born in Bethlehem, Christ the Lord. The Holy Spirit is still revealing spiritual truths within the human heart. Apart from Him, we just don’t get it. God is still speaking through the words and work of the Son. The only means to true joy and peace is found in that Savior who came to earth as a baby two thousand years ago! God became man and lived among us. So how do we receive this gift of life, joy and peace? The apostle John tells us very simply “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. (John 1:12).”
The apostle Paul explains the underlying premise of receiving Jesus and entering into a genuine relationship with God.
If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.[xxvii]
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[i] Micah 5:2, The New International Version of the Bible, Zondervan, 2011.
[ii] Norval Geldenhuys, The Gospel of Luke, (Grand Rapids, Mi: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1993), 112.
[iii] Acts 9:3-5.
[iv] Luke 2:8.
[v] Luke 2:9.
[vi] Leon Morris, Luke, Revised Edition, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, (Grand Rapids, Mi: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1989), 93.
[vii] Luke 2:10-11.
[viii] Leon Morris, Luke, Revised Edition, 94.
[ix] John 1:1, 14.
[x] Philippians 2:5-8.
[xi] Luke 2:12.
[xii] John 20:30-31.
[xiii] Luke 2:13-14.
[xiv] Luke 2:25-26.
[xv] Luke 2:30-32.
[xvi] 1 Corinthians 2:9-10.
[xvii] 1 Corinthians 2:14.
[xviii] Luke 2:33-35.
[xix] Luke 2:36-38.
[xx] Luke 2:41-43.
[xxi] Luke 2:44-47.
[xxii] Luke 2:48.
[xxiii] Luke 2:49-50.
[xxiv] Hebrews 1:1-3.
[xxv] Acts 4:12.
[xxvi] John 17:1-3.
[xxvii] Romans 10:9-10.
