The Characters of Christmas Week 4 • Faith Lessons from the Lives of the Shepherds

Welcome to the Willow Ridge Sermons Podcast.

We're so glad you chose to listen today.

This week, we look at the shepherds' role in the Christmas story

and the powerful faith lessons they teach us.

From the angels' announcement of good news

to their immediate response in seeking Jesus,

the shepherds exemplify obedience, joy,

and a willingness to share the gospel.

Join us as we explore the hope, peace, and salvation

brought to all people through the birth of Christ

and the shepherds' response to God's extraordinary gift.

Thanks for listening.

Hey, good morning.

It is a joy to be here.

If you have your Bible, and I hope you do,

I want to invite you to join us in Luke chapter 2

Luke 2 · chapter mention

is where we will be this morning.

One of the skills you develop as a pastor

is finding the tendencies of people.

One of those tendencies is where people sit.

I don't know if you know this or not, but most of you,

for the most part, you sit somewhat in the same general vicinity.

And then moments like this happen.

Let me kind of explain what I mean.

So typically, Mike C sits right there.

But this morning, Mike C is back there.

Every Sunday that we have our kids sing.

Don will say something like this to me.

Is it okay if we reserve a few rows?

And every Sunday I say,

we'll just have to apologize to Chris McPherson,

who always sits right here in the middle.

The kids cleared out.

The kids went to their classrooms.

Wonderful job, by the way,

for those kids and for Dawn and for Stephanie

and their leadership team.

And man, as soon as they were gone,

Chris got his seat.

And if you know Chris,

Chris really enjoys the spotlight being put on him.

Not at all.

And I told him, I was like,

you know I gotta say something about this, right?

So fair warning if you sit on the front row, right?

This is where we will be.

But it is such a joy.

And I just want to encourage you guys,

maybe you had a little one up here singing,

maybe you didn't.

As you leave today,

and as you see those kids out on the sidewalk

and moving from building two to their car

with their parents,

just tell them wonderful, wonderful job.

It's just so good and refreshing to see

of what the church is called to be and to do

is to make disciples of all nations,

to make disciples of all ages.

And I just really love the vision

behind our children's ministry program

as they are sharing the gospel

from as little as we can share the gospel with, right?

And continually doing that

and pouring in and investing in our kids.

And so well done, Dawn.

Thank you for your leadership.

And thank you for all of you

who serve in our kids' ministry.

Yeah, yeah.

Give them a round of applause.

Yeah.

Thank you all so much for doing that.

With that said,

there are these cards that are around

and we mentioned those,

but I know there was a lot of movement,

a lot of things happening

during the video announcement.

But we do have our December and January schedule.

There's some different things going on each Sunday.

And so you want to make sure

that you pay attention to that.

Next Sunday it's kind of become

a little bit of a tradition around here for us

and we really enjoy it.

We will have at 950 next week

a fellowship with some homemade goodies

that will be brought and will be put out there.

And so you'll want to make sure

that you get here early

and participate in that.

Next Sunday on Tuesday, December the 24th,

we will have our Christmas Eve service.

And that's always a wonderful time

for families to come together.

Everyone will be in here together

all worshiping Jesus.

We will take the Lord's Supper that evening

as the reminder of the very important day

that we have and of what's coming up.

But then also,

this is something we've done

that's been relatively new for us

the last several years.

It's on Sunday, December the 29th.

We will have everyone back in here again.

And at 950,

we'll be doing a full breakfast.

Grits, bacon, eggs, sausage, pancakes

will be brought in.

And it'll be a wonderful time

of just church fellowship together.

And then also,

the important part of what we do,

we will have a time of worship.

But instead of having a message,

we'll have a time together

where we come together as a church

to pray together for the upcoming year,

for all that God desires to do.

We'll pray for our missionaries.

We'll pray for our ministry partners.

We'll pray for our church.

We'll pray for our community.

Many, many different ways that we will pray.

And it's also,

I just want to encourage you,

it's a wonderful family event

and time to do that,

to place the importance

in the hearts of our kids,

the importance of what we're doing with prayer.

So you want to make sure

that you're a part of that.

And if you could help us, please,

we are having to order food ahead of time

so that we can make sure

that we have the right amount of food

for you guys.

Please scan this QR code

and that will get you registered

to get everything taken care of

for you for that morning.

And if you've got friends

and family that are in town,

please invite them.

We'd love to have them with us.

A lot of fun,

a lot of exciting things.

And this card,

take it,

put it on your refrigerator

will kind of help keep you

with where we're headed.

If you have any questions at all,

make sure you stop us

and we would love to answer

those questions for you.

Well,

as we get into our passage this morning

in Luke 2,

I'd like to read to you this morning

Luke 2,

Luke 2:14

verse 14.

It says glory to God

and the highest

and on earth peace

among those

with whom

he is pleased.

Would you pray with me?

God,

we come to you

this morning,

Lord,

thanking you.

Lord,

the example

and the display

of joy

that we saw

in the life

of these kids,

the sincerity

of their worship

and the truth

of the words

that they sang.

Lord,

may we continue

to worship you

in the study

of your word.

Lord,

may you decrease

anything in this

that is me.

Lord,

and may you increase

in all that is you.

All for your name

and for your glory.

And it's in Jesus' name

we pray.

Amen.

We are working

through the different

characters of Christmas.

We've looked at

Zechariah week one

and the promise

of his son

and the angel

who spoke to him.

We've looked at Mary.

We've looked at Joseph.

And this week

we come

and we're going to be

looking at

the shepherds

and their interaction

and their response

with the angels.

And then within this,

though,

we're going to

read through

kind of our

traditional Christmas

story of what

we would think of

when we look

at God's word

in Luke chapter 2.

Luke 2 · chapter mention

So if you would

join me,

we'll read

starting in verse 1

and read all the way

through verse 20.

God's word says,

in those days

a decree went out

from Caesar Augustus

that all the world

should be registered.

This was the first

registration

when Quinerius

was governor

of Syria.

and all went

to be registered

each to his own.

And Joseph

also went up

from Galilee

from the town

of Nazareth

to Judea

to the city

of David

which is called

Bethlehem

because he

was of the house

and the lineage

of David

to be registered

with Mary

his betrothed

who was with child

and while

they were there

the time came

for her

to give birth

and she gave birth

to her firstborn son

and wrapped him

in swaddling cloths

and laid him

and laid him

in a manger

because there

was no place

for them

in the inn.

And in the same region

there were shepherds

out in the field

keeping watch

over their flock

by night.

And an angel

of the Lord

appeared to them

and the glory

of the Lord

shone around them

and they were filled

with great fear.

And the angel

said to them

fear not

for behold

I bring you

good news

of great joy

that will be

for all the people.

For unto you

is born this day

in the city of David

a Savior

who is Christ

the Lord

and this will be

a sign for you.

You will find

a baby

wrapped in swaddling

cloths

and lying

in a manger.

And suddenly

there was a great

and suddenly

there was

with the angel

a multitude

of heavenly hosts

praising God

and saying

glory to God

in the highest

and on earth

peace

among those

with whom

he is pleased.

And the angels

went away

from them

into heaven

and the shepherds

said to one another

let us go over

to Bethlehem

and see this thing

that has happened

which the Lord

has made known

to us.

And they went

with haste

and found Mary

and Joseph

and the baby

lying in a manger.

And when they saw it

they made known

the saying

that had been told

to them

concerning this child

and all who heard it

wondered

at what the shepherds

told them.

but Mary

treasured up

all these things

pondering them

in her heart

and the shepherds

returned

glorifying

and praising God

for all they

had heard

and seen

as it has been

told to them.

The beautiful

message

of the birth

of Christ

the hopeful

message

of the proclamation

of the angels

and the beautiful

response

of the shepherds.

When we

look at this story

largely focusing in

on verses 8

and moving forward

we hear

this message

presented by angels

the story

of Jesus Christ

the story

of his birth

is not one written

by human hands

but one set

in the course

of history

by our creator

the one

penned

and known

and determined

by God

what we read

in these verses

is not the thought

that would come

to man

but the sovereign

will of God

being told

God the father

sending his son

the king

sending the prince

the prince

of peace

you see

in times

today

in times

past

when royalty

specifically

a king

decides to announce

that a son

has been born

in his mind

there is no

greater announcement

than that announcement

when a king

announces

that his son

has been born

there's the promise

of the lineage

there's the promise

of the kingdom

there's the promise

of all of these

have been fulfilled

in the birth

of this child

and this announcement

would go out

to everyone

but specifically

to ensure

that this announcement

was received

it would be sent

to nobles

to dignitaries

to politicians

to neighboring royalty

so that they all

could come

and pay their respects

to the king

but what we find

in Luke chapter 2

Luke 2 · chapter mention

is that this would

be different

and while

this announcement

would be for all

that this announcement

on that night

would not come

to all

but instead

would come

to a different

audience

I want us to look

at this

and understand

the audience

of the shepherds

look back with me

verses 8-9

in the same region

there were shepherds

out in the field

keeping watch

over their flock

by night

and an angel

of the Lord

appeared to them

and the glory

of the Lord

shone around them

and they were filled

with great fear

so in the sovereign

plan

and the sovereign

purposes

of a sovereign God

the message

of the birth

of Christ

would not come

into a palace

but would come

into a pasture

would not come

before kings

and dignitaries

but would come

instead

to shepherds

would come

not to the elite

but to the opposite

of the elite

you and I

we see

and we know

and we live

in the value

of the perspective

of the shepherds

it's filled

in the stories

it was focused

on the Charlie Brown

Christmas special

it's the key figure

in the nativity scene

one of the key figures

in the nativity scene

we think of shepherd

and we understand

in the biblical perspective

the value

of the shepherd

King David

was a shepherd

Christ is

our shepherd

we hear this word

and we associate

with it

the positivity

but this would not

have been the case

in the time of Christ

in the time of Jesus

these were the rough

these were the dirty

these were the oftentimes

socially unacceptable

people of society

and this is who

the angels come to

why?

why?

why shepherds?

why not

scribes

and Pharisees

those who were

experts in the

Old Testament

experts in the law

experts in the prophets

they were the religious

leaders

and Christ

has come

why not

why not kings

and rulers

people of power

people of influence

people of wealth

why the rough

why the dirty

why the unacceptable

outcasts

and this is what I think

when we begin to see

and understand

and so important for us

in this time of season

the point of the message

the point of the gospel

the point of scripture

the point of why

Jesus came

is without Christ

whether you're a shepherd

or a scrub

or a Pharisee

or a king

or a ruler

or just simply you

and me

that scripture tells us

that in our trespasses

and sins

apart from Christ

that we're rough

we're dirty

and we're unacceptable

before God

and so the message

of the shepherd

is the message

for you

and the message

for me

that there's this news

about this savior

and he's come

to save

us all

and we all

need to be saved

we're all a little dirty

we're all a little rough

we're all a little

unacceptable

before a holy God

so Jesus

comes

and this

gift that we

see

this gift

is the gift

of good news

have you ever

gotten a gift

that you were

really excited about

and you're probably

the only person

that you know

that would be

really excited

about this

particular gift

a few years ago

my mother-in-law

I love my mother-in-law

she'll be here with us

on Christmas Eve

I love my mother-in-law

my mother-in-law

loves to give gifts

my mother-in-law

loves to give

extremely practical

gifts

right

that's her

that's how she

communicates

and I love that

so if you were here

a few weeks ago

my mother-in-law

would never have

given me an

R2D2 toaster

right

my son likes to

give completely

impractical gifts

right

and so that's

where we're at

so a few years ago

I know that

my mother-in-law

likes to give

practical gifts

I know that

around Thanksgiving

time

she's going to

look at me

and for whatever

reason when she

asks me a question

she refers to me

as Mr. Bradbury

right like that's

just kind of her

thing that she does

and she says

so Mr. Bradbury

and I said

yes

I call her

Wheezy

her first name

is Louise

that's what we do

I said yes

Wheezy

and she said

what would you

like for Christmas

I've been thinking

through this

and I said

you know

I'd like some

buckets

she was just

like that

she's like

you want buckets

it's like

yeah yeah yeah

I want some buckets

and she's like

well what else

do you want

I was like

no no no

take whatever

you would spend

on me

and invest

them

in buckets

I want buckets

you see you know

Aaron and I

we have a garden

and we have the

different things

that we're doing

I've been looking

at some different

things that I

wanted to do

that I wanted

to grow

some things

with this

and I realized

that I needed

a bunch

of buckets

I said so

10

15

20

30

however many

you can get

give me

buckets

and we got there

that Christmas

morning

not the Christmas

morning

I'm sorry

we got there

the Saturday

before

is when we

celebrate Christmas

with Aaron's

mom and dad

we got there

and then

she went out

into the garage

and presented

to me

my large

stack

of buckets

and I love

my buckets

and every

year

since then

it is

guaranteed

as a joke

and a reminder

of the relationship

between me

and my mother-in-law

I will get a bucket

right

I say all that

because

I would be

willing to bet

in here today

there is no one

else in this room

that would get

excited

if you got a

bucket for Christmas

but I do

it's what I like

it's the

it's the

it's the gift

that fits me

and whatever

weirdness

that says

about

my personality

and you'll get

a gift

this year

that fits you

that meets

what you need

that might not

meet what I need

it's a gift

that you want

it might not

be what I want

but it's the gift

in your uniqueness

that fits you

here's why

I tell this story

the gift

of the good news

of Jesus Christ

it is a gift

that fits

in the uniqueness

for all of us

it is the gift

whether you know it

or not

that you desperately

need

and it is a gift

that when you know it

and you receive it

beyond every other

emotion

is the emotion

of gratitude

in Luke 2

10 through 11

the angel

and the announcement

to them

imagine you're

you're the shepherd

you're out in the field

it is

just another

night

praying for

a boring night

no attacks

no wandering

sheep

no problems

to be had

let me get

through this

night

and may it

be a boring

night

and then

the angel

appears to them

and says

fear not

for behold

I bring you

good news

of great joy

that will be

for all people

for unto you

is born

this day

in the city

of David

a savior

who is Christ

the Lord

this morning

I got here early

and was going back

through my notes

and finishing up

a few things

and I noticed

something this morning

that I don't know

that I've ever

noticed before

I noticed

as I looked

through these

these two verses

and studied them

over and over again

and then I tried

to put myself

in the shoes

in the sandals

of the shepherds

in that moment

and what they would

have heard

in this moment

the personal

nature

of the announcement

the angel says

hey Johnny

I bring to you

right

hey Robin

I bring to you

there

there's the moment

in the announcement

in the announcement

where this gift

of good news

of great joy

that is for all people

is for you

because

born on this day

again

if you missed it

the first time

shepherds

as you're listening

out in the field

in your rough

in your dirty

in your unacceptable

nature

for you

is born this day

the city

in the city

of David

a savior

who is Christ

the Lord

I love

the beauty

of the intimacy

of our God

that in

this moment

this gift

that is given

is good news

for the world

is good news

for everyone

but the beauty

the hope

where this hits

where this lands

it's for the world

but it's for

you

it's for you

and I believe

that you

might be in here

today

and you

are thinking

this is not

for me

but I want to tell you

that the gift

of Jesus Christ

the news

of great joy

that it is unique

and there's nothing

like it

that this gift

of Jesus Christ

is news

for all people

for everyone

everywhere

that this news

of Jesus Christ

is God's promises

from the beginning

in the garden

of what he's been telling

and what he's been promising

all through the prophets

and all the way through

that this news

of salvation

of freedom

of hope

of life

of purpose

of meaning

of eternity

this news

of Jesus

no matter how dirty

no matter how rough

no matter how unacceptable

you are

it is for you

and that's what makes

this not just news

but this is what makes

this good news

this is the power

and the hope

of the gospel

and so in John 3

16 through 18

it says

for God so loved

the world

that he gave

his only son

that whoever believes

in him should not perish

but have eternal life

most of us know that verse

I love to keep reading

verse 17

for God

did not send

his son

into the world

to condemn

the world

but in order

that the world

might be saved

through him

the hope

they didn't come

to condemn

but he came

to save

he came

to save

shepherds

he came

to save you

and he came

to save me

and so verse 18

whoever believes

in him

is not condemned

but whoever

does not

believe

is condemned

already

because he

has not

believed

in the name

of the only

son

of God

Jesus

Christ

so what do you

do with this gift

what does it

mean to receive

what does it

mean to have

it

what does it

mean to take

believe

believe

now you and I

we often times

like I told a story

just a minute ago

about Christmas

with my mother-in-law

and I hope

that you believe me

the only person

in this room

who was there

when it happened

were Aaron and I

but hopefully

you hear

that story

and it was

true

and you believe

that on that

Christmas

I got a bunch

of bright

blue

Lowe's

buckets

we think

that belief

is simply

the acceptance

of information

and often times

we come to the

Bible with the same

thing

well I believe

in Jesus

I believe

in the story

I believe

that it's

true

I believe

that he lived

I believe

that he died

I believe

that he resurrected

from the grave

I believe

all of these

things

I believe

all of this

information

I accept

that what you

say

I accept

that what the

Bible says

is true

but belief

when we begin

to understand

the fullness

of the biblical

concept of belief

that belief

is more

than just

acceptance

of information

that belief

in biblical

terms

yes

is to believe

accurately

who the Bible

tells us

that who Jesus

is

and what Jesus

has done

you have to

understand

the biblical

narrative

of the life

of Christ

and who he is

but the belief

doesn't end there

it's a belief

that changes you

it's a belief

that brings you

to repentance

it's a belief

that brings you

to submission

it's a belief

that works

in you

so that in

this belief

in the power

of the Holy Spirit

that we receive

that what happens

in us

is change

within us

so that drives

our obedience

to him

it's like we all

believe

that if we were

to see a bear

in nature

that that bear

could kill you

hopefully

hopefully

if you're ever

in that environment

where you see

a bear

in nature

not at a zoo

but like 15 feet

from you

as you eat

cotton candy

right

that that belief

does something

that belief

creates

something

that that belief

activates

something in you

to cause

a change

and a response

in you

I think the

difficult thing

for us

with the gospel

I think the

difficult thing

for us

in Jesus Christ

is that we

want to align

yes and amen

with the factual

information

of Jesus

without

the response

that is demanded

today

would your response

to Jesus

be more

than intellectual

belief

would your response

to Jesus

be the biblical

belief

through the power

of the Holy Spirit

in repentance

and submission

before him

draws you

into a loving

relationship

with him

the next we see

in this encounter

that the shepherds

have with the angels

is this song

of praise

you see in verse 14

glory to God

in the highest

and on earth

peace

among those

with whom

he is pleased

this simple

one line

song of praise

sung over

and over

again

by a multitude

of angels

who have lit up

the night sky

glory to God

in the highest

and on earth

peace

among those

with whom

he is pleased

as the sovereign

God

sets his

sovereign plan

and his

sovereign purposes

into motion

we see the

declaration

of the angels

of the song

that he has

set into them

and we begin

to understand

that on this

first

Christmas

the song

to be declared

was the song

of God

it's a glory

to God

in the highest

you see

the message

was what

was for

you

the message

is what

was for

me

the message

is what

was for

the world

but the praise

isn't

will owe

good us

the praise

is owed

to the goodness

of God

that in this

what we

what we see

is the hope

that is found

the reminder

of the sovereign

holy

powerful God

that this story

the story

of Christmas

is told

not because

of our goodness

but because

of his grace

that the story

that unfolds

this night

the story

promised from

prophets of old

the story

that we've clung

to and hold

to for years

that not once

has happened

or taken place

because you

and I deserve

this event

that would happen

on this night

but it's because

a holy

good God

of grace

puts his plan

into motion

and in this

and in the

joy

of the season

and in the

joy

of every

season

there's glory

to God

glory

to God

glory

to God

in the

highest

Bible

continues on

the angels

continue to sing

and they say

and on earth

peace

that doesn't

fit great

on a lot

of our

Christmas cards

the phrase

that we're

most familiar

with right

is peace

on earth

the declaration

in the song

that they sing

glory to God

in the highest

and on earth

peace

peace on earth

the irony

the historical

irony

of that statement

this region

of the world

where peace

on earth

is promised

where peace

on earth

is fulfilled

that since

2,000 years

before

and 2,000

years after

have been a

region

not filled

with peace

so when we

look at this

we look for the

different peace

we look for the

peace of God

we look for the

greatest peace

that could ever

come

the greatest peace

found in Christ

that in Christ

in this announcement

in this baby

born in a manger

that what we

see is peace

between God

and man

through the

blood of the

lamb

a treaty

has been made

that will never

be broken

that in the

heart

of rebels

and in the

heart

of enemies

love

has bridged

and peace

exists

we're not

at battle

with God

we're not

at war

with Him

that in

this child

literally

what laid

in the

manger

embodied

by a baby

is the

very essence

of peace

spiritual

peace

peace

for today

peace

that cannot

be taken

from us

peace

for the

future

and one

day

one day

Christ

will return

and one

day

there'll be

one more

battle

and in

that moment

all the

evil of

the world

will be

defeated

and peace

will reign

forever

the last

thing the

angels say

here in

this moment

is that on

earth peace

with those

whom He

is pleased

other

translations

will say

and goodwill

towards men

that in

this

that the

pleasure

of God

is found

in His

heart

that we

are saved

and moved

the goodwill

that we get

the goodwill

that we know

the goodwill

that we

experience

is found

when He moves

us

you see

the Bible

tells us

that before

Christ

before this

baby

before this

Savior

before this

Messiah

who would

die on a

cross

and raise

for eternal

life

that in

this

of what we

find

of what we

see

is that

before that

we were

we were

guilty

and what

do guilty

get

guilty

get

punished

you see

we serve

a just

God

we serve

a righteous

God

who cannot

ignore sin

and you and I

every single

one of us

are found dead

in our trespasses

because we are

guilty of our

sin

and the guilt

of our sin

the punishment

of our sin

is what we

deserve

but Jesus

Christ

took the

punishment

for your

sin

and for

my sin

and now

we're not

just guilty

that someone

else paid

the price

but He

moves us

from guilty

to now

innocent

and it's

not just

that He

paid the

price

but it's

that we

get freedom

we move

from guilty

to now

we're

innocent

that we're

found in

Christ

we're washed

we're made

new

we're made

clean

but the

beauty

of this

is it

continues

to go

and the

good will

towards men

that it

doesn't just

happen

that God

when He

saves us

then doesn't

just release

us

and say

alright

now

figure it

out on

your own

now

see what

you can

do

now

here

you

go

I

did

this

this

is

one

time

don't

look

for me

I'm

not

doing

it

again

no

no

the

beauty

and the

hope

of the

gospel

of what

we see

of what

is falling

and taking

place

in this

moment

is that we

move

from guilty

to innocent

and when we

become innocent

we become

family

and that in

family

in family

there's

the joy

and the

promise

and the

hope

of what's

there

and it's

an inheritance

it's an

inheritance

it's

an eternal

joining

together

of us

with God

and this

is what the

angels

declare

and then

lastly

we see

we've been

talking about

the faith

of

have been

these messages

the faith

of Zachariah

the faith

of Mary

the faith

of Joseph

and now

we see

the faith

of these

shepherds

uneducated

not schooled

in the law

maybe even

unfamiliar

with many

of the

teachings

but we

see

their faith

to their

obedience

their response

of

obedience

and put

yourself

on that

hill

of all

that you've

seen

of all

that you've

heard

and God's

word tells us

in Luke 2

15 and 16

when the

angels went

away

from them

into heaven

the shepherds

said to one

another

let us

go over

to Bethlehem

and see

I love this

because I don't

think their

minds could

wrap around

what they

just heard

and let

us see

this thing

that has

happened

which the

Lord

has made

known

to us

and they

went

with haste

and found

Mary

and Joseph

and the

baby

lying

in a

manger

I don't

think they

understood

let's

go see

this thing

that's

happened

they didn't

sit down

and go

alright

let's

let's pull

this together

Frank

what did

you hear

Ted

what's

going on

over there

right

like

what is

this

they

just

went

they

just

went

where

did

they

go

they

went

to

Jesus

like

the

simplicity

of

that

they

went

to

Jesus

how

did

they

go

they

went

quickly

they

went

quickly

like

this

is

what's

happened

we

don't

need

to

unpack

it

we

don't

need

to

discuss

it

we

just

this

is

what

we've

heard

this

is

what

we

know

this

is

where

we're

going

to

go

so

let's

go

let's

go

quickly

we

don't

know