THE GREAT PROCLAMATION

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

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. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

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.”

Luke 2:8-14

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

To the shepherds who were in the fields outside of Bethlehem keeping watch over their flocks by night, it must as seemed like a night just like the countless others they had spent doing what shepherds do. The sheep were together and milling about, safe under the constant scrutiny and protection of their keepers. As long as they had a shepherd, they were in good shape.

But not far from where this scene was taking place, a remarkable birth was occurring, a baby who had been foretold by prophets 700 years earlier, a baby who had been conceived within a virgin by the Holy Spirit, a baby named Jesus who came to save the people from their sins.

This predicted Messiah - the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace – did not come with any fanfare. He wasn’t given royal chambers to be born in under the care of the finest Old Testament medical specialists. There wasn’t a thong of people gathered outside of where the virgin gave birth awaiting the news of His arrival. No, this baby Jesus who the prophets said would lead Israel and have the authority of the governments on His shoulders, was born in the most improbable town, the little town of Bethlehem, and was laid to rest in the most improbable place, a manger which was nothing more than a feeding trough for the animals. Indeed, this newborn Jesus, the coming King of kings and Lord of lords, had no crib for a bed. His mattress became the cloths He was wrapped and nestled in before He was placed in the manger.

But this great fulfillment of the prophecies of old could not go unnoticed, right? God certainly could not let His Son be born without a Great Proclamation of His coming, could He?

Well, as we see in our scripture passage today, a Great Proclamation did come and it couldn’t have been more spectacular or glorious in nature. Look again at our scripture passage for today:

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

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. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

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.”  Luke 2:8-14

Note that Jesus’ coming was not announced to any prophet or priest. His coming wasn’t first broadcast to the kings and rulers of the world. No, this baby Jesus, who was born in humble circumstances to be the Savior of the world, was first declared to a group of lowly shepherds who were hanging out in the fields with their sheep. And as we saw in the scriptures, God spared no expense to make the Great Proclamation the spectacle it should have been in making the Messiah’s birth public.

For the darkness of the night sky was suddenly disrupted by the brilliance of the glory of the Lord as an angel appeared before the shepherds who obviously had never seen such a thing before. Their initial reaction was immediate fear but the angel quickly moved to comfort them saying, “Do not be afraid”, for the heavenly being had not come to pronounce God’s judgment but rather bring words that punctuated His deep mercy, grace, and love for all mankind. The angel was bringing good news, tidings of great joy, not just for the shepherds but for all people.

For “in the town of David (the town of Bethlehem) a Savior was born, a baby who was the Messiah that had been foretold by the prophets. And just so the shepherds could find this baby, the angel told them where He was located, lying in a manger and wrapped in cloths within the town’s borders.

Now, that would have been an amazing enough on its own but as we see God wasn’t finished yet with His Great Proclamation.

For just as the angel had finished telling the shepherds where they could find the Savior Messiah baby, a

“great company of the heavenly host” burst onto the scene, appearing with the angel and praising God while exclaiming:

“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests.”

You see, Christ’s birth was all part of God’s plan to save His people, a plan that had been orchestrated from the dawn of mankind. And so all glory and honor was to be given to Him first, the Maker and Master over all creation who dwells in the highest heaven, the Lord God Almighty who sent His Son to save His people and bring peace, light, and hope on earth to a people who were living in the darkness of despair, sin, and judgment. Through this baby Jesus, God’s people would have a chance to be justified, their sins reconciled through the sacrifice His Son would make on Calvary’s cross some 33 years after He was born.

In the end translation, Jesus’ birth was God’s greatest event to hit the world since He created it and everything in it at the very beginning.

And the first to know about it were the shepherds.

What a blessing God had given them through His Great Proclamation!

Tomorrow, we see how they responded to that blessing.   

Amen.

Let us pray.

In Christ,

Mark

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