Christmas Reminds us This is The Gospel of Great Joy (Part 1)
Fear not, for behold I bring you good news of great joy which shall be to all people. (Luke 2:10)
I do love this story, everything about it.
I love to think of the shepherds in the fields outside Bethlehem that dark, dark night, standing around passing the time with idle chatter. Farm boys can tell you it gets mighty dark away from the city lights. Was there a chill in the air too?
Suddenly, the sky is ablaze with light, as though Heaven’s floodlights had been switched on. Furthermore, someone was standing in the thin air perhaps 50 feet away. The radiance emanating from him indicated he was an angel.
No wonder the angel began his soliloquy as they always seemed to: Fear not! Who wouldn’t fear?
The shepherds heard those words, but it’s one thing to be told not to be afraid and another one altogether to stop your knees from knocking and your teeth from chattering. Restarting your heart is another matter altogether.
Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: you will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. (Luke 2:10-12)
There it is–the best news that has ever been delivered at one place in one short paragraph.
The angel called it “good news.” And so, it is. The best ever.
What exactly is ‘News’?
Our culture is news-fixated these days. We get it 24/7 over the television cables and in a hundred other ways. What do we mean by “news”?
–It’s Recent. Either it just happened or we just found out about it. The anchor may tell of an Egyptian tomb being excavated. The tomb is thousands of years old, but we just uncovered it.
–It’s Important. The news must be relevant to us in some way, otherwise it will not make the Evening News or the front page. That’s why we read about the economy, traffic, crime, and scientific breakthroughs. They all have to do with how we live.
–It’s True. News-gathering organizations work hard to confirm that a thing is true before publishing it or putting it on the air. On the inside of our local newspaper, every morning we find a few “Corrections.” In yesterday’s newspaper, some reporter got a street name wrong or mis-identified a perpetrator.
And in this case, one more thing:
–It’s Good. Good news is the kind we like best and get the least. But this is the News from Heaven.
G.R.I.T.
Put it all together and it should say “RITG” but where’s the fun in that? How about TRIG? Ditto. GRIT, now, that’s another matter. TRUE GRIT. Now, you’re talking!
I am fascinated by the announcement of the angel: ‘Ladies and gentlemen: We have a Savior!’
Contrary to what some people thought then and still believe today, the news from Heaven is good: There is a Savior, His name is Jesus, and He is in the saving business.
Keeping in mind that “good news” is the same word translated throughout the New Testament as “Gospel,” we see the angel said he had come to bring a Gospel of Great Joy.
It is that. But it’s far more.
THE GOSPEL OF GREAT LOVE. This the motivation behind what God did in Christ.
You cannot take in the incredible story of God coming to Earth in human form to redeem us without asking the obvious question: “Why in the world would He do that? What drives such a God?”
The short answer is: Love.
The long answer is the same: He loves us.
The Lord did not set His love on you or choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the Lord loves you….(He) redeemed you….” (Deuteronomy 7:7-8)
Get that? Why did God redeem us? Because He loved us. And why did He love us? Because He loved us.
It’s love, all the way through to the bottom.
Behold, what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us that we should be called the children of God! (I John 3:1)
John 3:16 you are well-acquainted with: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
And then, there is Romans 5:8: God demonstrates His own love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
No other reason than love is found in the Word of God. He did all He did with the purest of motives: Love.
Joe McKeever has been preaching the Gospel since 1961. He pastored for 42 years in various Southern Baptist Churches. He has also served as director of missions for the SBC churches of metro New Orleans. Joe has a BA from Birmingham-Southern College, and a masters & doctorate from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. For over 20 years, Joe has drawn a daily cartoon for the Baptist Press (www.bpnews.net/comics). He writes columns for a variety of publications. He and his wife, Bertha, have published numerous books including, “Help! I’m a Deacon” (2015) and “Sixty and Better: Making the Most of Our Golden Years” (2017). As a blended family, Joe and Bertha share fourteen grandchildren. They live in Ridgeland, MS and enjoy telling friends they are “living happily ever after.” Joe’s life verse is Job 4:4, “Your words have stood men on their feet.” To discover more about Joe, visit his website.
Image by Jeff Jacobs from Pixabay
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