JOURNEY TO THE MANGER AND BEYOND

“Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about”(Luke 2:15.)

Our journey of faith must take us beyond the manger to the cross.

As seen in the shepherds, our journey to the manger and beyond is a journey of faith all the way. From the moment we trust Jesus to save us until we reach our final destination, we are on a journey. The journey for the shepherds began with their trip to the manger. Their journey reveals to us that...

I. FAITH TAKES THE INITIATIVE.

The shepherds said, “Let’s go to Bethlehem” (v. 15). This was after the angels had appeared to them on a hillside in Jerusalem (Shepherds Field), and announced the Savior’s birth. It is interesting to note that the witnesses to the first Christmas were common working people. The shepherds were the first to receive the good news. It was after their frightening experience, and after the angels had returned to heaven, that they said, “Let us go to Bethlehem.”

Heavenly announcements of good news warrant positive action. Immediately following Carrie’s conversion at the age of six years old, she asked us if she could call our best friends in our hometown of Church Hill, Tennessee, and share with them her good news. The shepherds responded positively to the good news that they had received and took the initiative to go to Bethlehem. Their initiative in going to Bethlehem reminds us that...

1. God, the Father, has taken the initiative in our salvation. He did this in the first place by giving to each of us the gift of faith. Faith to believe in His only begotten Son. We then, like the shepherds, take the initiative to find the Christ. It was the gift of faith that motivated the shepherds to say, “Let’s go to Bethlehem.” In doing so, they were taking the initiative to find the Christ child.

Wherever you are in your faith journey, it was your first step of faith that has brought you to where you are now.

2. God, the Father, has taken the initiative in our salvation by sending us His Son. He sent His Son, Jesus, on a mission of mercy to seek and to save the lost, using the language of Scripture. Once Andrew began his journey of faith, he did not waste any time in finding Simon Peter, his brother, and said, “We have found the Messiah (which translated means Christ, lit. Anointed One)”(John 1:41). Once he had found him, “He brought him to Jesus”(v.42). What the shepherds found as a result of their journey to the manger was by no means an ordinary baby, they had found the Messiah. Has your journey taken you to the Messiah?

Not only does faith take the initiative, as seen in the shepherds journey to the manger, secondly...

II. THE INCARNATION VALIDATED THEIR FAITH. Note the phrase . . .

“...and see this thing that has happened”(v. 15). It was faith that led the shepherds to the manger, but it was the incarnation that validated their faith. The Bible says...

“So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger” (Luke 2:16).

The baby they found in the manger was God incarnate, i.e., God in human flesh. The gospel writer, John, gave a wonderful commentary on this verse when he wrote...

“And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

This is the One about whom Isaiah the prophet had spoken...

“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14).

And was confirmed by Matthew...

“BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL," which translated means, “GOD WITH US” (Matthew 1:23).

The incarnation validates our faith, but like the shepherds, our faith must take us beyond the manger. There was, and is, a cross in Christmas. The angels gave us a hint at this truth when they said to the shepherds, “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord (lit. or Messiah–the anointed One of God). “Savior” means salvation, and without the cross there could have been no salvation.

“Savior” (Greek soter), in the words of one biblical commentator, “ ...applied to Jesus is an extension of the Old Testament idea of God saving and delivering His people.” He goes on to say, “Salvation applies to all areas of life–physical, psychic, and spiritual.” When God saves us, He saves the whole person.

It is the cross that gives meaning to the birth. Has your journey of faith taken you beyond the manger to the cross–the cross of Christ. Finally, then . . .

III. FAITH RESPONDS TO THE INFORMATION RECEIVED. See the phrase . . .

“...which the Lord has told us about”(v. 15)

1. Good news must be shared.

“When they had seen Him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child”(v. 18).

Like the four leprous men of 2 Kings 7:9, who “ . . . said to one another,” during a crisis situation, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news, but we are keeping silent; if we wait until morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come, let us go and tell the king's household” (2 Kings 7:9), the shepherds saw the birth of Jesus as a day of good news and they could not contain it.

One writer said, “When the shepherds saw the Christ child, they went away sharing the grand event. He went on to say, “It should be no different with Christians today.”

2. Good news means praise is appropriate.

“The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them” (Luke 2:20).

Appropriate praise surrounded the incarnation...

In Luke 1:46-55, we have in Scripture what is know as Mary’s Song, in which she sang...

“And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; for behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed. For the Mighty One has done great things for me; and holy is His name” (Luke 1:46-49).

Then, out of the mouth of Zechariah, immediately after the naming of his son, John, came words of praise...

“And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he began to speak in praise of God” (Luke 1:64).

“And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying: “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people” (Luke 1:67-69).

The heavenly hosts that appeared with the angel who was speaking to the shepherds lifted their voices to God in praise...

“And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased” (Luke 2:13-14).

“The glory of the Lord,” as seen in Luke 2:9, & 14, “ ...is a visible, concentrated manifestation of the nature or person of God.” “Glory” is often associated with “shining.” In the words of a Bible commentator on this passage, he writes, “The emphasis is not upon the ‘shining’ or how the manifestation occurs, but on the sense of awe that it produces in those who perceive it,” as seen in the scriptural example that have been given.

One final one... is that of Anna in the temple at Jesus’ dedication...

“At that very moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem” (Luke 2:38).

Praise should still surround the Incarnation...

The information received was good news and the persons who received it responded with voices of praise.

Praise of God is the centerpiece of worship. The angels themselves appeared on the scene praising God, bearing the good news they had been given. Passing along the information they had received to the shepherds, they said...

“I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people...”(Luke 2:10).

CONCLUSION: The good news of the gospel is for everyone. The death and resurrection of Jesus gave meaning to the birth. Therefore, everyone must go beyond the manger in their journey to find the risen, resurrected Lord.