Luke 2:8-20
Related Sunday School Lesson Family Bible Series, December 19

I still recall the Christmas I received the trumpet. As a serious musician in high school I had longed for a professional grade instrument. Years earlier when I started junior high school my parents had purchased a very inexpensive trumpet. Like all wise parents they wanted to make sure their son would "stick with it" before they made a major investment.

Twenty years later and with two children of my own, I think I know why that Christmas meant so much. My parents were not wealthy people and I instinctively knew what a major sacrifice it took to buy that trumpet.

My first public solo with my trumpet was the following Sunday morning in worship. I was like a kid in a candy shop as I played, Joy to the World, the Lord is Come! That's what Christmas is all about - a loving Father, a precious gift, and a resounding declaration that the Lord of Glory has come into the world.

Luke records perhaps the most beloved birth narrative and we have the privilege of studying it again in this lesson. One challenge in studying and teaching this great Bible lesson is overcoming the familiarity of the text. Focusing on verses 10-14, this Christmas story shows us at least 4 reasons to praise Jesus, our Savior.

 

A Prophesied Savior, vs. 10-11a

The groan of creation began amidst the flowers of Eden. Man had fallen into sin. Instinctively, Adam and Eve sought to cover their sinful nakedness with the work of their own hands. The fig leaves of human effort did not work then and they do not work today. God had to slay an innocent animal and cover the effects of their rebellion and as early as Genesis 3:15, the Father prophesied the birth of the Christ child.

For centuries fallen man had longed and prayed for a Deliverer. Yet it seemed that on God's prophetic calendar the Messiah was always coming "tomorrow." Since the first Messianic prophecy generations of God-fearing Jews had come and gone. Each one believed that the Redeemer would come ... some day.

Do not allow the familiarity of this passage to obscure a very important truth in verse 11. "Today!" The long-awaited day had finally come. God's promises had been performed, right down to the city of His birth (Micah 5:2). The cry of humanity could be eternally quieted.

In the stillness of the Bethlehem night, Eternity stepped into time and "tomorrow" had finally become "today!"

 

Preeminent Sovereign, vs. 11b

For the cults who believe that Jesus was a man who later became a God, this one verse is sufficient to denounce that heresy. The innocent child of Luke 2 is also the invincible conqueror of Revelation 19. Before, at, during, and after His birth, Jesus is Lord!

Paul would remind the Philippian church (Philippians 2:6-11) that Jesus had emptied Himself of His royal reputation while never ceasing to be God. Do not gloss over this simple, yet profound, truth. The heretics attack it today as they did in Paul's day. Jesus was not created in Bethlehem. He has always been and will eternally be the King of kings and Lord of lords. Franz Gruber was right when he included these words in his well-loved carol, "Jesus, Lord at Thy birth!"

 

A Promised Sign, vs. 12

What would the signs have been if we had been in charge that holy night? A parade of dignitaries bringing gifts? A royal birth in a palace? A galactic spectacle in the midnight sky? Yet that was not the Divine plan as God slipped quietly into flesh.

Jesus came in such a way that He would have been easy to miss. A baby? A blanket? A barn? Yet the signs were right there. Verses 15-20 tell the tale. Those who were invited by God found the Christ-child exactly as promised. The Lord made it known, the people responded, and the willing found Jesus. Two thousand years later that simple Sovereign plan is still leading people to Christ.

 

A Powerful Song, vs. 13-14

A popular children's Christmas musical came out a few years back. It chronicled the rehearsals of heaven's angel choirs as they prepared to sing on the night of the Savior's birth. Could you imagine being a member of the angelic choir sent on this mission? What an honor that must have been. No angel assigned to Bethlehem that night would have dared call in sick!

Yet in no small way, we have a greater privilege than they had. Though the angels never knew sin, the redeemed have the honor and joy of singing praises to our loving Savior. This Christmas, let's be sure we don't get lost in the tinsel and trimmings or the parties and parades. As we sing our carols and hymns, let's lift them up in worship and adoration.

By the way, as a busy pastor I don't get to play that trumpet much anymore. I am ashamed to say it has grown tarnished and blackened. I think this Christmas I may dust it off and give "Joy to the World" one more shot.

I suspect I'm not the only one that might need to polish up my praise so I invite you to join me. Blow the trumpets! Strike the tambourines! Lift your hands in celebration! Let the praises resound from the hearts and lips of every blood-bought saint! Declare joy to all the world for the Lord has truly come!