A SAVIOR WHO IS CHRIST THE LORD Luke 2:10-14 Dan Brooks, Pastor Sunday Morning, December 21, 2014 Introduction: This is a tough week in many respects, isn t it? These next five days are going to be challenging to our souls. The challenge of patience and endurance. The challenge of contentment and gratitude. Guard your heart Christmas morning, because the gap between your expectation and your experience is the potential and maybe the reality of your disappointment and discontentment. Ill.: Several years ago one of our children was excitedly holding a gift and giving it a little rattle just before opening the box. The rattle seemed to indicate a gift that this child wanted very much, but upon opening the gift, it was something totally different. And Kristen and I watched in horror as this child tossed the box to the ground and said, Well that s stupid! I took the child into the backroom and said, Pastors kids don t act like this. Have you been hanging out with those deacon s kids again?... Actually we talked about gratitude and the sin of ingratitude. Adults do the same thing. We are just a little more sophisticated in our tantrums. We have so much to be grateful for, but it is sometimes difficult to see. I ve been looking at the Christmas story from the angels perspective this week. God has used it to increase my joy and gratitude. The angels must view the nativity very differently than we, as humans, view the nativity. But before we talk about the angels perspective on the Christmas story, let s run through a few brief facts about angels, because they play a significant role all through the Bible. I. THE HEAVENLY HOST A. The Presence of Angels 1. They are created beings, not in the image of God as humankind is, but powerful, moral, spiritual beings. 2. They are described with words like mighty ones, authorities, dominions, rulers, cosmic powers, and spiritual forces (Eph 1:21; 6:12; Col 1:16). 3. In passages like 2 Kings 6:15 and Revelation 12:7-8 they are described as a heavenly army equipped with flaming chariots and ready to do battle with earthly armies and demonic forces alike. 4. Angels are apparently organized into ranks, led by the chief princes (Daniel 10:13), one of whom is the archangel Michael. 5. They are given names like Michael, which means Who is like God, and Gabriel, which means Warrior of God. 6. Some have such a blazing appearance of glory and speak with such authority that human beings fall on their faces desiring to worship them (Rev 19:10). 7. The Bible uses words like innumerable, and myriads of myriads, ten thousand times ten thousand to describe their number (Heb 12:22; Rev 5:11; Deut 33:2). 8. Hebrews describes the heavenly host as innumerable angels in festal gathering (12:22). B. The Ministry of Angels 1. Service to God a. They witnessed God s power in creation and sang out His praises (Job 38:4-7). b. Ps 103:20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word! c. The cherubim occupy a special place as throne attendants of the Most High.
P a g e 2 d. Ps s 80:1 & 99:1 God is enthroned upon the cherubim. e. They are depicted in the Tabernacle and Temple as standing guard over the mercy seat of heaven, wings outstretched, always ready to do God s will. f. Gen 3:24 the cherubim stood guard on the eastern side of Eden lest humankind should return to the tree of life and seek a way of remedy without a Savior (Gen 3:24). 2. Service to Christ a. They are present with our Lord after He vanquished the tempter in the wilderness (Matt 4:11). b. An angel strengthens Christ in Gethsemane (Luke 22:43). c. An angel rolls back the stone of Christ s tomb (Matt 28:2). d. At Christ s ascension (Acts 1:10). 3. Service to Believers a. Heb 1:14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation? b. Ps 91:11 12 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. 12 On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone. c. An angel shut the mouths of the lions so they would not hurt Daniel (Dan. 6:22), delivered the apostles from prison (Acts 5:19 20), later delivered Peter from prison (Acts 12:7 11). 1 C. The fall of some Angels 1. 2 Pe 2:4 God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment. 2. Jud 6 And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day 3. Some, not all, of the angel host sinned against God. 4. What a hopeless state for the glorious ones who fell. a. We are not intended to imagine a literal dungeon in which fallen angels are fettered. Rather, Jude was vividly depicting the misery of their conditions. Free spirits and celestial powers, as once they were, are now shackled and impotent. Shining ones, once enjoying the marvelous light of God s glorious presence, are now plunged in profound darkness. 2 b. For them there is no redemptive plan. c. For them there will never be a reconciliation or an offering for their sins. d. Eternal chains and gloomy darkness define their existence until the great day of judgment when they will be separated from their Maker forever and cast into the Lake of Fire. e. For them there is no promised Savior. For them there is no personal cause for praise. f. God did not spare them when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment. D. Trans.: Such knowledge informs the praise of angels. II. THE HEAVENLY HOST TESTIFIES TO THE GLORY OF GOD. A. The angel host praises God for His work. 1. Praising: (αἰνούντων) to speak of the excellence of a person, object, or event 3 a. There are eight occurrences in the NT, six in Luke and Acts, one in R. 15:11 == ψ 116:1, and one in Rev. 19:5 dat. It denotes the joyful praise of God expressed in doxology, hymn or 1 Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; Zondervan Pub. House, 2004), 406. 2 Thomas R. Schreiner, 1, 2 Peter, Jude, vol. 37, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2003), 448 449. 3 Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 428.
P a g e 3 prayer, whether by individuals (Lk. 2:20; Ac. 3:8 f.), the group of disciples (Lk. 19:37), the community (Ac. 2:47; Rev. 19:5) or the angels (Lk. 2:13). 4 b. Saying: (λεγόντων) c. Q: What excellence of God is this angel host praising? 2. Glory to God: (δόξα) honor 3. Highest: (ὑψίστοις) the highest places 4. Point: God has done something that is worthy of heaven s praise in the highest places! B. The angel host announces peace because of God s grace. 1. Peace: (εἰρήνη) a. Peace among those with whom He is pleased (ESV) b. Peace, good will toward men (KJV) c. *Peace to those on whom His favor rests (NIV) 2. Those with whom He is pleased: (εὐδοκίας) speaks of God s good will or a gracious purpose. a. People like you and me are objects of His good will or good pleasure. b. To be more specific, we are objects of His gracious saving intention. c. The angels who fell are objects of His just and righteous intention. 1) His choice not to spare them is just and right. 2) His act of casting them into hell and committing them to chains of gloomy darkness is just and right. d. But He has acted graciously toward humankind. e. Peace refers here to the fullness of blessing which the Savior/Christ/Lord brings and is essentially a synonym for salvation. 5 3. Though it is praiseworthy in the highest heavens, this news is best received and understood by people who need a Savior. III. GREAT JOY FOR PEOPLE. A. Good news for the people (2:10) 1. Good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people B. A Savior is born for the people (2:10b-11). 1. People: (λαῷ) the largest unit into which the people of the world are divided on the basis of their constituting a socio-political community nation 6 a. The nation of Israel is certainly in view. b. The nations of the earth will come into view! 2. Unto you, that is, unto the all (2:11) a. Here is a remarkable difference between the human race and the angelic host: whereas some of the angel host sinned against God, all humankind sinned against God and fell. 1) Romans 3:9 all are under sin 2) Ro 3:10 12 10... None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God. 12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one. 3) Ro 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. b. But of the angels who fell, how many of them have hope of reconciliation and redemption? 1) None! 2) Heb 2:16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 4 Gerhard Kittel, Geoffrey W. Bromiley, and Gerhard Friedrich, eds., Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1964 ), 177. 5 Robert H. Stein, Luke, vol. 24, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992), 109. 6 Louw and Nida, 129.
P a g e 4 c. But listen to this announcement! d. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 3. A Savior: (σωτήρ) a. This is the only time in Luke s Gospel where the term Savior is used with reference to Christ, but the theme of salvation is pervasive. b. A savior [is a] deliverer, preserver, one who saves from danger or destruction and brings into a state of prosperity and happiness. 7 c. This is the Savior of all people, especially those who believe (1 Tim 4:10). d. The Savior of the world (John 4:42). 4. He saves His people from the guilt and power of sin and from eternal death, from punishment and misery as the consequence of sin, and gives them eternal life and blessedness in His kingdom. 8 C. Christ the Lord: a title signifying Divine Royalty 1. Heb 1:6 And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, Let all God s angels worship him. 2. Think of what the angel announces and what his fellow glorious host proclaim: The Lord of heaven and earth has come down to make His dwelling with mankind. The Lord who created angel host and humankind has assumed the very nature of His imagebearers. The Lord who speaks and these ministers rush to do His will cries and coos as a newborn baby. The Lord whose heavenly robes are flames of fire is swaddled this night in strips of cloth. 3. Heb 2:9 But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. 4. Heb 2:16 17 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 5. This peace that comes through Christ is something rebel angels will never know. It is the reconciliation of God and man. It is the restoration of humankind to the former state. In the birth of the Christ-child the long-awaited hope of salvation has arrived! IV. CONCLUSION A. There is an aspect of heaven s praise that we share with the angels. 1. Both angels and humans praise God for His works of creation and redemption. 2. Re 5:12 saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing! 3. Both praise Him for His glorious character, His infinite power, His perfect wisdom, His universal dominion. B. How does your praise differ from the praise of angels? 1. The fact that we have been saved from a life of rebellion against God means that we are able to sing songs that angels will never be able to sing for all eternity.... All the great songs proclaiming our redemption in Christ, are ours alone to sing. Unfallen angels see us sing these songs and they rejoice (Luke 15:10), but they will never be able to make them their own. 9 2. The Gospel Song is ours alone. C. We are not the first generation to live in a world that is utterly broken. 7 Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2000). 8 Zodhiates. 9 Grudem, 403.
P a g e 5 1. We often act and speak as if we are the first generation to groan under the weight of such hard things. 2. This week each of us will be tempted to focus on what is broken in our world, what we don t find under the Christmas tree, what we lack and what hurts and frustrates us, to say, That s stupid! 3. 2000 years ago God sent His Son to be our Savior. 4. And for the people who know they deserve chains and gloomy darkness for their sins, Jesus is the greatest gift ever. D. How does having Jesus as Savior generate gratitude and contentment where we might be tempted to complain?