The Birth Of Christ | Brian Osburn

Good morning. It is great to be able to

worship with you this morning. There are I look and I I see

faces that I have not met. And I'm glad that you're here.

I don't know if you come here regularly, if you're visiting.

Whatever it is. We are so glad to be able to be

together for worship. We sung a song just now of going

to heaven, and that's encouraging.

That's. And it's because of the promise

that has been given us by God and also the sacrifice that

Jesus made for all of us, that we're even.

We even have that kind of hope. And we're going to talk about

Jesus this morning, specifically about his birth, as we dive into

Luke Chapter 2 around this time. But there are many who reflect

Luke 2 · chapter mention

upon the birth of Jesus. And for those who believed Jesus

was real but really don't believe in him being the Son of

God or him being the Messiah, well, it gives us an opportunity

to share the good news about Jesus and try to enlighten

others about who he, who he was and who he still is.

And when we look back to what the scriptures say about the

birth of Jesus, we're reminded of the humble beginnings of the

King of Kings and the Lord of Lords on this earth.

We see the Son of God become flesh, and we also see

prophecies fulfilled that are surrounding his birth.

I am not here this morning to dispute when Jesus was born.

In fact, I don't believe the Bible doesn't tell us what day

He was born. I do not believe he was born on

December 25th, and there are various reasons for that.

But we're not going to get into that.

We're just going to talk about when he was born.

According to Luke's account in Luke chapter 2 this morning, his

Luke 2 · chapter mention

birth, though, it's important enough for us to talk about

because it is extremely significant and it has an impact

upon you and it has an impact upon me, it has an impact upon

the entire world. And I want to focus on what Luke

portrays in chapter two of his gospel of the birth of Jesus and

look at a couple of events that surround it.

And so basically this is going to be an expository study of the

1st 21 verses of Luke chapter 2. That's going to be our direction

Luke 2 · chapter mention

this morning and kind of divide into two different sections this

morning. So let's begin with the

narrative of this as Luke portrays this beginning in verse

#1. And it came to pass in those

days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the

world should be registered. This census first took place

while Kuradius was governing Syria, so all went to be

registered everyone to his own city.

Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth into

Judea to the city of David which is called Bethlehem because he

was of the house and lineage of David to be registered with

Mary, his betrothed wife who was with child.

This is a it's this is quite an interesting scenario and an

occurrence surrounding the birth of Jesus and where he would be

born. And so Luke says that it was

during Mary's pregnancy that there was a decree about paying

taxes. And part of that criteria is

that you had to go back to the place of your family in order to

register with the census that was ordered.

Well, specifically we're looking at Joseph right here because

Joseph was from the lineage of David.

So because of that, he had to go back to Bethlehem during the

census because that's where David was from.

And so they make this journey from their home in Nazareth all

the way down there to Bethlehem. And this journey was about 70

miles. It was about a three day

journey. And now, Mary, if you ask me, I

don't think Mary had to go, and that's my humble opinion.

Remember, she was pregnant. I don't think she was too close

to a full term because of the wording from Luke several verses

down within the context here. But I'm sure she felt the

effects of her pregnancy, such as maybe sickness or maybe

fatigue. And honestly, I'll be.

I mean, I'm at a disadvantage to understand all the difficulties

of some of the inconveniences of what you mothers have gone

through while being pregnant. But I think that's a factor

about Mary making this journey with Joseph all the way down

there to Bethlehem while she was pregnant.

So why do you think she made the trip?

Why did she go with Joseph? I could kind of brainstorm some

ideas of why she went. One thing is that maybe she

didn't want to be away from Joseph during the pregnancy.

Maybe she wanted her. Maybe Joseph wanted her to come

along just to be with her with that kind of companionship.

I think there's another plausible reason why Mary made

the trip knowing she was bearing God's son.

Perhaps she knew of the importance of one of the

prophecies about the Messiah and that was written back in Micah.

In fact Micah chapter 5 and verse two says this about this

Micah 5 · chapter mention

prophecy of Jesus. But you, Bethlehem, Ephrathah,

though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of

you shall come forth to me, the one to be ruler in Israel.

Who's goings forth are from old, from everlasting.

This prophecy about how the Messiah will come, he says it's

going to keep the Messiah is going to come from Bethlehem.

And if Mary knew this, she would know that she needed to be in

Bethlehem for this to happen. And so they make their way down

to Bethlehem because of the census.

Now this census, it affected many people at that particular

time. It meant that there was a lot of

people who had to travel to the city of their family during this

time. And that meant that Bethlehem

was being filled with visitors from all over.

And that would have posed a challenge to try to find a place

to stay for some of those people who were traveling.

And perhaps most of the visitors, maybe they stayed with

their relatives who were still living there.

And so that and so Mary and Joseph, what are they to do?

Where are they going to stay? Well, this brings us to the next

part here in Luke chapter 2 in verses 6 and seven, where it

Luke 2 · chapter mention

says so. It was that while they were

there, the days were completed for her to be delivered and so

and she brought forth her first born son and wrapped him in

swaddling clothes and laid him in a Manger because there was no

room for them in the end. I do want to say something here

about what we generally see around this time of year and the

scenes that we that we see about where Jesus was born.

That's not quite what I see from what Luke shows here in our

narrative. And let me break it down this

way. I don't think Jesus was born off

somewhere in a barn because of what Luke says.

The word here for in is it's the Greek word cataluma.

And Luke uses this word the same word later on in the Gospel when

Jesus referred to a guest room and the context of that passage

there in Luke 22 and verse 11. When Luke uses it there, the

context is when Jesus and the disciples, they're trying to

find a room in order to observe the Passover, and so this was

the upper room. Consider this too though.

The Greek word for like a motel or hotel or in can be seen again

in Luke's Gospel, and specifically Luke chapter 10,

Luke 10 · chapter mention

verse #34. In that particular context, you

have Jesus giving the parable of the Good Samaritan.

And what did the Good Samaritan do to that man who needed help

who had been beaten on the roadside?

Well, he took him to an inn, and the inn is a different Greek

word. I'm not going to pando Chian.

That's my best guess of how to pronounce that Greek word.

And then he paid the innkeeper Pando Chiai to care for that

man. And since Luke was familiar with

the proper term for inn, why didn't he use it in the account

of the birth of Jesus here in Luke chapter 2 then?

Luke 2 · chapter mention

Well, the probable answer is that Joseph and Mary did not

attempt to stay at an inn or a hotel, but the Bible states that

there was no room for them in the cataluma, which would have

been better translated as a guest room.

And so Joseph and Mary probably stayed with Joseph's relatives

in Bethlehem. But because of the large amount

of people coming into town, the house would have been crowded

and the cataluma or the guest room was full.

And so Joseph and Mary would have had to stay in the lower

part of the house. And historically, the upper

level served as a guest chamber, while the lower level served

kind of like the living quarters or or the dining area as well.

It kind of had multiple purposes there on that lower, lower

level. In fact, there are often times

that the more vulnerable animals, they would be brought

in at night and placed in that room in order to do 2 things.

Number one, protect them from the cold and #2 protect them

from theft as well. And so when morning came, the

animals would be let out and then the lower level would be

cleaned. And this is where the major

comes into play. Mary likely gave birth to Jesus

in the lower level of a crowded house in which some of the

animals had been brought in for the night, and she then wrapped

Jesus in swaddling clothes and laid him in a major or feeding

through at that time in that place.

So Luke says Jesus was born the Son of God has come from heaven

and is now on earth in the form of flesh.

And Joseph and Mary both knew of his importance and how happy

they must have been seeing that newborn baby and seeing the

promise being fulfilled in this very important child.

Perhaps relatives from upstairs came down to share the wonderful

and precious moment of the newborn king.

But there was gladness. There was a joy going on with

this family. But that's not the only joy that

was happening during this time. Not only were they the family

rejoicing, Heaven was well aware of the birth of Jesus, of the

birth of the Son of God. In fact, you continue on in

Luke's narrative. We come to now the second kind

of scene within our study, and it says here, beginning of verse

#8. Now there were in the same

country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over

their flock by night. And behold, an Angel the Lord

stood before them, and the glory of the Lord, and shone around

them, and they were greatly afraid.

Then the Angel said to them, Do not be afraid.

For behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which will

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 would be the sign to you.

You'll find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a

Manger. Honestly, this is one of my

favorite scenes surrounding the birth of Jesus.

It really is because you've got Luke takes us just outside of

Bethlehem. He takes us to a field, and when

there and as we see the scene of this field, we see the sheep.

The sheep had laid down to rest for the night.

We see the shepherds. They're there resting, keeping

watch over the flock. And what was a peaceful night

suddenly turned into something that absolutely frightened these

shepherds. An Angel appeared and there was

a light shining around them. And this light was no ordinary

light. It was the glory of the Lord.

And I think if you or I were there, I I think we would have

been maybe as as afraid as these shepherds were thinking.

What is going on? We've never seen anything like

this before. Notice the Angel told them right

away. Don't be afraid.

In fact, I've got some news for you.

And not just news. I've got some great news for

you, but not only for you. This is good news for everybody.

In fact, it's good news to you, and it's good news to me as

well. What these angels were about to

tell these shepherds out there in that field.

So you see the significance of the birth of Jesus because he

was born. It's wonderful news to us just

as the angels proclaim, because the angels declared 3 things

about Jesus, the one who was just born.

They proclaimed 3 things about Jesus being Savior, Christ and

Lord, and that holds huge significance.

And I want to break that down for just a moment about those

three different characteristics surrounding Jesus.

When we speak of Jesus being our Savior, it is relating to Jesus

being our deliverer or our protector.

And so the Angel who spoke to Joseph said this about Jesus as

we rewind the clock a little bit here in Matthew chapter one.

The Angel said here in verse #21 and she will bring forth the Son

and you should call his name Jesus.

And here's the reason why, for he will save his people from

their sins. The truth is, you and I, we need

that deliverance. We need to be delivered.

But why? Why do we need that in our

lives? From what do we need to be saved

or delivered from? Well, the answer is that all of

us need to be saved and delivered from the punishment

that our own sin deserves. That's what we need salvation

from. And that's why Jesus died on the

cross. He bore the punishment of all of

our sins and thereby saving us from punishment and delivering

us from having to bear God's justice upon us.

And you could be forgiven, but justice will still be satisfied

in what you need. And what all of us need is to be

saved from justice. And we need someone to deliver

us from the punishment that we deserve.

And Jesus does that for every single one of us.

And isn't that good news? That's wonderful news.

That's news we need to hear. That's news the shepherds needed

to hear, and that's news the shepherds needed to spread

abroad after they had heard that.

And in addition to that, the Angel declared Jesus not just

being the Savior, but also being the Christ.

Christ is not Jesus's last name. It is a title.

It's a title for what he stands for.

It's a quality of him, and it's impactful for all of us.

You see the Greek word for Christ as Christos, which

literally means anointed. 1 And Christos is the Greek word for

Messiah in Hebrew. And so when the angels announced

Jesus birth and that he is the Christ, what they're literally

saying is that God's anointed one, he's just been born.

And So what does that mean? What does it mean that a person

has been anointed? Well, in the Old Testament,

there were people who were anointed.

There were people who were set apart for various roles, and

they were important roles. That's why they were set apart

for various things. You got, for example, you had

prophets, you had priests, you had kings.

They were all anointed to do some special purpose.

Under the Old Law, they were set aside for a particular role.

But when you look at Jesus, Jesus was anointed as well.

He was set apart to be the savior of all but with him the

title of Christ or or the anointed one is more than just a

title or a role. In fact, Jesus was devoted to

the service of God by performing the will of his father.

He has been separated from all other humans for this very

purpose. In fact, Paul writes about it

here in Philippians chapter 2. The first part of this begins

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

with verse #5. It says let this mind be in you,

which was also in Christ, who being in the form of God, did

not consider robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no

reputation. Taking the form of a bondservant

and coming in the likeness of men, and being found in

appearance as a man, he humbled himself.

And became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the

cross. Therefore God has highly exalted

him and given him the name which is above every name, that at the

name of Jesus every knee should bow of those in heaven and of

those on earth and of those under the earth, and that every

tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of

God the Father. As Paul points out here, Jesus

was faithful to his purpose, being obedient to the Father,

And Paul points out here specifically obeying to the

Father, obeying the Father to the point that he willingly was

sacrificed on the cross and he was sacrificed because of you

and for me. He was anointed for that purpose

and that's why he's the Christ and that's why they announced

He's anointed for a purpose there to those shepherds in that

field. He used the answer for sins of

all people. And the third thing we see the

angels announce about Jesus, they announce that he is the

Lord. And the Greek word for Lord is

curious, which can mean Sir, It can mean master, or it's a title

or respect. But in reference to God, it's a

title that refers to one who who is in supreme authority.

And so the Angel said that Jesus, this tiny baby that was

born in Bethlehem, was the Lord. He was the one in supreme

authority. Now that could have been

shocking to some people. How how in the world can can a

baby have this type of authority?

Well, Jesus is just not someone who comes along and just is with

us or or offers us suggestions. No, He's He's not just someone

who gives advice. He's not someone who just comes

along and encourages his Father, his followers, and he He does

these things. We know when we read about his

examples and we read about his teachings in the scriptures of

how He is with us, how He is our perfect example.

But really that is only the beginning of His power and His

authority. In fact the Bible tells us of

Jesus as being the supreme authority or or supreme

sovereign of the universe, whom as we just read every knee will

bow because He is Lord and that His name is above every other

name as we just read. That's the one who was born in

Bethlehem so long ago. That's why this good news is

being proclaimed to the shepherds in the field.

You look here in Colossians chapter one and verses 15

through 18 says he is the image of the invisible God, the first

born over all creation. For by him all things were

created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and

invisible with the Thrones or dominions or principalities or

powers. Paul says All things were

created through him, and for him he is before all things, and in

him all things consist. And he is the head of the body,

the church, who is the beginning, the first born from

the dead, That in all things he may have the preeminence.

And so we see these great things about Jesus.

We see His supreme authority and what wonderful truths they are.

And that's who was born. That's who was born.

Yes, the angels had great news for the shepherds and for all

the world that Jesus, the Son of God, is here.

He said, This is whom you've read about regarding the

prophets of the prophecies of Messiah.

And they say now he's come and he was going to bring salvation

to all. Jesus is our answer and Jesus is

our hope. And don't don't ever take away

the significance of his life and his birth and his death and his

resurrection. And right on the heels of this

announcement, other angels joined in to shout these

praises. I love, I love this scene.

And suddenly there was with the Angel a multitude of the

heavenly host praising God and saying, glory to God in the

highest and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men.

This Angel that that, I mean just just seeing.

First of all, being afraid of just seeing this one Angel.

But now all these other angels just join right in and this

great song of praise because of Jesus coming into the world.

Oh what a scene they break out in this wonderfully heavenly

choir. They express several things

here, They said First of all, God is to be glorified for the

gift of his Son. That's one thing they said, and

this was an act of love from God to us.

Don't forget that God's love for you and I, that this happened.

In fact, John wrote about God's love here in John chapter 3.

John 3 · chapter mention

For God so loved the world. Well, how did he show that to

you and I? Well, he gave his only begotten

Son. But whoever believes in him

should not perish but have everlasting life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the

world, but that the world through him might be saved.

And so we see God's desire for us all.

He doesn't want us to perish. He wants us to live, He wants us

to be saved. And that's why the announcement

of Jesus from the angels of sort of so important.

But the second thing we see is that peace as they proclaimed

will now come as a result of the purpose and mission of Jesus.

Because where sin creates separation, horrible things.

We who believe in Jesus and obey the gospel of Christ, oh we

could be reunited with God and have peace with God and all.

We desperately seek that with him, because without Jesus to

intercede for us, that would not be possible to have this type of

peace with God. And so, after hearing the

praises from the multitude of angels, the shepherds, they're

no longer afraid. They know this was big.

They knew this was important. They knew of the significance of

this baby that had been born in Bethlehem.

And so they take action. And they say it says here and

verse #15, as we continue on with Luke's narrative here in

chapter 2, so it was when the angels had gone away from them

into heaven that the shepherd said to one another, Let us now

go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass,

which the Lord had made known to us.

And then continuing on, and they came with haste, found Mary and

Joseph and the Babe lying in a Manger.

Now when they had seen him, they made widely known the saying,

which was told them concerning this child.

Good news spreads fast, doesn't it?

That's exactly what happens. This is the best news that they

ever heard or will ever hear in their lives.

And they had been eyewitnesses to God this, or actually the Son

of God being born and how he would be the answer to their

sins. No wonder they spread this news

as far as why they as they could.

People needed to hear the Messiah is here, This is whom we

were looking for. He's here.

And then continuing on in the narrative here in verse #18.

And all those who heard it marveled at those things which

were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things

and pondered them in her heart. And then moving on in verse #20,

then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for

all the things that they had heard and seen as it was told

them. And when 8 days were completed

for the circumcision of the child, his name was called

Jesus, the name given by the Angel before he was conceived in

the womb. Thinking about the reaction that

they all had and the joy that came from seeing this child,

understanding the significance, I think we would all do the same

thing of how they reacted. Spreading this news, glorifying,

praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen.

We would do that. We do that this morning,

understanding God loves us and God sent His Son.

We follow that same pattern, glorifying and praising God.

Because God sent His Son to die for you and me.

Aren't you thankful? And isn't that wonderful?

That's why we gathered gather to worship Him and praise Him and

magnify His name. Because of such a loving Father,

a wonderful Father, and a wonderful Savior that we have in

Jesus Christ that ends our study.

But I want to offer what the Lord's invitation is to you,

understanding what He's done for you and the significance of

Jesus Christ. Have you accepted Jesus into

your life? Is he your Savior today?

If he's not, he needs to be, because he is the only answer

for your sin, the only answer. And you could come, as the Lord

invites you to come, to believe in his Son as the Son of God,

believe that he did die upon the cross for your sins he was

buried, and believe that he was resurrected on the third day.

And then repent of your life, that is, make a change in your

life, that you're going to live a life devoted to God, and also

confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and then also be

baptized for the forgiveness of your sins.

Those people did that in Acts chapter 2.

Acts 2 · chapter mention

You know what happened to those people who followed those things

and obeyed? There in Acts chapter 2, the

Acts 2 · chapter mention

Scripture said that the Lord added them to his church, and

the Lord will add you to the church when you obey the gospel

of Jesus Christ. What a wonderful thing God did

for you and a wonderful thing Jesus did for you.

If you haven't taken advantage of that, do it and do it today.

Be saved. Maybe.

If you have taken advantage of that, but maybe, maybe you made

mistakes, maybe you feel like you need to rededicate your life

to Christ. And if that's the case,

understand God is so loving. He is.

He always gives second chances. He's always going to forgive.

And consider that so we offer you this chance to make things

right, or to become a Christian. Consider your life as we stand

and as we sing the song of imitation.

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