Every December there comes an overwhelming shift in perspective. The time from the last day of October to the last day of the year has been coined the Holiday Season. At the heart of the season, there is a certain joyous optimism. This season, brimming with hope and gladness comes as a continuous reminder of the promise fulfilled in Christ’s first advent, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; a light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness. You have enlarged the nation and increased its joy. The people have rejoiced before you as they rejoice at harvest time and as they rejoice when dividing spoils” (Isaiah 9:2-3). The light breaking into the world is the light which remains gleaming as an eternal hope to the nations. The darkness of the nations was interrupted by a Great Light. As the season’s festivities dwindle, as the new year comes upon us, the decorations and colorful lights are unplugged, the dinner parties and gift exchanges come and go, let it serve as a reminder of the greatest interruption in history. The season may change, but the hope brought by the focal point of this holiday remains as eternal, immutable, and victorious as ever. As you read this, I pray may it be but a brief interruption to bring your thoughts back to the object of your ultimate hope and victory.
Joy To The World
It was a night unprecedented in first-century Israel, yet in the early hours, the night seemed a night like any other. Shepherds led their sheep away from the crowded town, bursting to the seams with the influx of census pilgrims. The upheaval in the city from weary travelers served only as a reminder of the oppression of the occupying empire. The census was yet another twist of the heavy hand of Rome wringing hope out of the people like water from a rag. The noise, hustle, and bustle were left behind in exchange for the quiet pastures outside of Bethlehem. The sheep needed pasture, the Shepherds obligation was to lead them there, but also the tranquil hillside served as a much-needed retreat from the brutal reminder of their oppression.
It was here in the quiet pastures where the great celebration began. Abruptly, the night was interrupted with a descent of the heavenly army to these solitary herdsmen. The angelic song proclaimed a long-awaited hope. It was a victory chorus proclaiming freedom from captivity, “I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people” (Lk 2:10). After four hundred years of silence, comes this radical announcement of earth-shaking proportions. This declaration was simple, a child has been born in the city of David. Now babies are wonderful things, among the greater blessings we can receive in life, but a baby, really? This is the good news? He will be found in swaddling cloths. Again, really? Not only is it a baby, but in simple baby attire. Nothing fancy, just cloths. Are these swaddling cloths really supposed to signify great joy? And a manger, really? As shepherds, they would have understood the practicality of it, a simple conversion from trough to cradle, but how could this be for all people? Most people would find the stables and mangers to be repugnant. Is this all really as good and joyous as it sounds?
Yes. Overwhelmingly, yes!
The Lord Has Come
The reason for the joy in the message of the angels was driven home by the identity of this child. He was born in the City of David, a Savior who is Christ the Lord. After four hundred years of silence from God, these tidings are indeed no reason to fear. This is not just any child, He is born in the city of David, to a virgin and adopted father of the house and line of the great king David. The least of the tribes of Israel gave way to the great king of Israel, and generations later, that king’s lineage brings forth another King; a greater King, an eternal King, the King of kings.
This is not a mere birth announcement. It is a battle cry, a notice of eviction to the oppressor, an invasion of the Lord of Hosts. The chorus filled the skies, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men” (Lk 2:14). The long-awaited Messiah was here, the silence of God was broken. His glory was shining through the heavens, His peace now dwelling on earth. Mankind was, in this spectacular evening, receiving the favor of God. Revealed to his earthly father as the Savior from sin (Mt 1:21), promised to his mother as Son of the Highest, Heir-apparent to the throne of David (Lk 1:32), the King had arrived and it was good news of great joy.
Then, silence. The heavenly multitude retreated, leaving these shepherds in the field as abruptly as they appeared. After a revelation like that, there was only one natural response, go and see this marvelous child. Then another response, after seeing, they spread the news to the marvel of all who heard it. The words of the angels were being lived out in the immediate hours after being proclaimed. The good news was emanating from that stable and penetrating the night. The small town of Bethlehem was being drenched with a dose of hope.
Let Earth Receive Her King
Glorious as it was, the Shepherds still had flocks to tend. Their evening had been radically interrupted but their return to the fields was not like their first trek. At first, they sought respite from the oppressor, solitude from the crowds. Now, they returned to the pasture glorifying and praising God for all they had seen, the Savior and King, and all they had heard, the proclamation of victory and peace for mankind. This was just one town. In a few short years, this good news would spread through all of Israel, and in the centuries following, this King would be known to the ends of the world.
This King, Son of God, Savior of the world grew to be a man. This man came humbly into his kingdom, riding a donkey, beaten at the hands of those He came to redeem. He was given over to the hands of the oppressors. He was crushed, He bled, and He died. The hand of the oppressors nailed Him to a cross and drove a spear through His side, draining the life from his body making a mockery of Him before his people. His birth, brimming with hope, seemed to be let down by an anti-climactic death. The promised King dead as a common criminal. Make no mistake, this King knows no defeat. His coming was to save His people from their sins, in His death He accomplished exactly that. In his resurrection, He proclaimed His victory over the oppressor. The peace of this King’s kingdom demands you come, in humble repentance, and go out and make known this thing God has done. So go, glorify and praise God for all you have heard and seen, and may your life never be the same.
