Luke 2:8-11,15-20 NASB95
In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. [9] And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. [10] But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I BRING YOU GOOD NEWS OF GREAT JOY WHICH WILL BE FOR ALL THE PEOPLE; [11] FOR TODAY IN THE CITY OF DAVID THERE HAS BEEN BORN FOR YOU A SAVIOR, WHO IS CHRIST THE LORD. [[15] When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.” [16] So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. [17] When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. [18] And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. [19] But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. [20] THE SHEPHERDS WENT BACK, GLORIFYING AND PRAISING GOD for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.
The good news (gospel) that was so good that it would bring great joy to all the people was that a Savior, who is Christ the Lord, was born for us. These words were spoken for the whole world but in that instance they were spoken directly first to the shepherds who were working at night on the lonely hillsides of Bethlehem. Being a shepherd was a noble profession but certainly not a lucrative one, and it wasn’t one that put you in high social standing. It was hard blue-collar lonely work. The message was very simple; “Today there is born for you a Savior.” If you asked most Christians what does it mean to them that Jesus is their Savior, they would answer something like, “My sins are forgiven, Jesus lives in my heart, and I’m going to heaven one day.” All that is gloriously true but there is so much more. Romans 5:10 says it this way, “For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be (continually) saved in His life.” Jesus did not just come to save us from what we’ve done. He came to save us from who we were and from how we live. He came to save us not just from sins penalty, but from sins power and our fallen false self. Christ is our life and every day from within us He saves us from fallen attitudes, reactions, thoughts, feelings, and behavior. We are saved every day in Him as He now lives His life through us moment by moment. This is what it means for God to send a Savior. It is much more than just forgiveness and a guarantee of a place in heaven one day. It is transformation and the invasion of the life of heaven in us now. When the Holy Spirit penned the Scriptures through the different writers, he never led them just to write down arbitrary information. Everything written in holy Scripture, even the grammar, has eternal significance. Verse 20 of Luke 2 has become one of my favorite verses because it is so practical. Having heard that a Savior had been sent for them and then having encountered God clothed in human flesh in the manger, “They went back glorifying and praising God.” When you’ve really understood the gospel, it does bring great joy, not just joy but great joy into your life. If you understand that the gospel means that you’re not just saved from hell and sins penalty (which of course is wonderful), but because you have been placed into Christ, you are going to be saved every day from who you have been in all of your fallenness, then you can go back to practical living in the nitty-gritty details and blood and guts stuff that make up your daily life as a whole new person that’s praising and glorifying God in the routine that makes up your life. You go back to being a husband or wife, but now a different kind of husband and different kind of wife. You go back to the job that you had, but you will now be a different kind of employer or employee. You go back to your friends in the neighborhood that you live in, but you’ll be a different kind friend and neighbor. You’ll go back different with great joy in your heart because every day, you will experience the love of Christ controlling and you instead self-centeredness, and you will experience the glorious freedom of His divine adequacy being expressed in and through your life for every moment and situation, every single day, one day at a time. This is life, and life more abundant in Christ. Living from Christ, not for Christ.