Unwrapping the Greatest Gift: A Lesson From The Shepherds

get the gift so it's usable.

You see, receiving a gift is a critical part of the human experience in the gift-giving exchange.

As I prepared this message, this Christmas message, god has really placed on my heart this burden to ask ourselves and maybe learn from the shepherds how to receive the gift of Jesus.

They were the very first to receive this gift.

Let's read the text.

Some of you are so familiar with this text, but it's worth reading.

In Luke 2, verse 8.

Luke 2:8

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 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 with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace among those whom he has pleased.

So the shepherds hear the announcement of the gift.

And what do they do upon the announcement of the gift?

We see that in the following verses when the angels went away from them into heaven.

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 them concerning the 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 God and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Think about this the shepherds are the first people to receive the gift of the incarnate Son of God as their Lord and Savior.

They are the first witnesses of this salvation and therefore become to us a prototype, an example of what it is to transform from knowing nothing about Jesus to joyfully and confidentially proclaiming Jesus as Lord and Savior.

They are the first ones.

We don't know when Mary and Joseph got it, but we know we have this story here of how these shepherds were in the dark.

Quite literally, they were shepherding by night, physically, literally in the dark, but also spiritually and cognitively and in conscience they were in the dark and then they got the message they had got, went from not knowing anything about Jesus to knowing a lot about him, to be able to proclaim him with a lot of confidence.

Now the scriptures tell us in Romans, chapter 15, that all of the stories of the Bible are given to us for an example.

Romans 15 · chapter mention

We can look into Scriptures and see what are some lessons to be learned.

So it's appropriate to look at the historical fact of the shepherds, these first, this prototype shepherds.

These first, this prototype, these first responders, if you will, to the gospel, how they responded and what happened to them, to see what might be replicable in our lives spiritually.

You see, the shepherds were transformed by the gospel In this story and remember gospel means good news.

In this story they went from being terrified by God's glory to celebrating his glory.

You see the start At the beginning the glory of the Lord shone around them and they were terrified.

The King James says they were sore, afraid, they were very afraid.

It's hard to emphasize in English what was emphasized in the Greek, but they were just petrified in fear around the glory of God.

And at the very end they are celebrating the glory of God and they're giving glory to God and praising God, and there's actually extra words inserted in there.

Not just they gave glory to God or that they just praised God, but they glorified God and praised Him, as if to make it mega praise and extra celebratory and extra confident into what they were doing.

Their minds went from not knowing what to do with the glory of God because the Bible says that all of us in our minds have fallen short of the glory of God and they did not know what to do with the glory of God.

They saw it with the angel and then they saw the multitude of the heavenly host.

Those are words that are exponential in meaning.

In other words, there's a multitude and it's not just a multitude.

That means many, many, many, but it's a multitude of heavenly hosts.

There's many of many.

There's a lot of a lot.

So they now have been surrounded by angels that are singing glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace to goodwill to men.

They're seeing that thundering chorus all around them.

This has become for them an objective experience.

For them, an objective experience Objective as opposed to subjective is the idea that a lot of witnesses have seen this.

It's outside of your personal experience, as far as what can be testified about.

It is something that can be affirmed and ascertained, confirmed, and other people have witnessed this.

It is objective truth, this objective reality of a message that was given to them by the Word of God.

Theologians might refer to it as revelation from God.

The Bible tells us about Jesus and I want all of the younger people here that have grown up in church especially, to listen to me.

Listen, it is not guaranteed that you have actually received Jesus just because you've grown up in church and heard the objective word of God preached to you faithfully week after week, and taught to you in home faithfully, week after week and taught to you in home.

It is not guaranteed that you've had a reception or that you have embraced and received Jesus Christ until that which is objective becomes subjective and the subjective experience.

It doesn't mean it's any less real than the objective, but it means it's what's inside your heart and what's inside your mind, and you need to understand that.

Your mind, like the old Puritans used to say, is the seat of your spirituality, it's the headquarters of your spirituality.

Your mind is the headquarters of your body.

It's with your mind that you decide to look at bad things or to not look at bad things.

It's with your mind that you decide to look at bad things or to not look at bad things.

It's with your mind that you make immediate micro decisions in the morning as you wake up.

It's with your mind that you pray to God.

It's with your mind that you decide to numb your conscience when you've done something wrong and just scroll through reels on social media.

It's with your mind that you decide to invest in something that doesn't pay, that doesn't give you anything.

It's with your mind that you decide to obey or not to obey.

Your mind has to be transformed by the glory of God.

In Romans, chapter 11, paul talks about the glory of God in one of the most exclamatory expressions of God's glory.

Romans 11 · chapter mention

Read this along with me as I follow along oh, the depths of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God.

How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable are his ways.

For who has known the mind of the Lord or who has been his counselor?

That's a rhetorical question.

Nobody can really know the mind of the Lord.

No one can counsel God.

He is above us in magnificent glory.

It is spectacular and we can't explain it.

There's so much that we don't know.

Listen, we haven't even begun to start knowing until we realize that we don't know a lot of things.

And the more we know, the more we realize that there's a lot that we don't know.

But one thing we do know is that God, in his word, has revealed to us some of his glory, and we see that glory and our minds have got to engage with this somehow.

Who is greater than God?

Who has given a gift to him, to God, that he might be repaid?

Again, the answer is no one.

This is God in his glory, for from him and through him and to him are all things and to him are all things.

To him be glory forever.

Amen.

That is a profound statement of the glory of God.

And what is the very next line that comes from Paul, the Apostle's pen.

He says I appeal to you, therefore, that you have seen this great glory.

I appeal to you, therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that, by testing, you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

I want to submit to you today that the shepherds.

The shepherds had their minds changed by the good news.

Think about it.

The shepherds had their mind permanently, irrevocably changed by the good news.

They saw this infinite wonder and glory of God.

Imagine armies.

Host means armies, so these aren't little fat baby cherubs with diapers on them and little golden hearts.

These are fearsome creature warriors in glory and light.

And as far as you can see, to the east and to the west and to the north and to the south, are the thundering armies of God singing glory to God in the highest.

And they've heard this message, they've been told there's a sign and they see this magnificent glory.

They're terrified, they don't know what to do.

They get the good news that access to understand and know this glory is through a person, the Son of God, who is given to you this day and he is born in the city of David.

And you will find this baby wrapped in a, and they hear the gospel of Jesus and they're going to respond to it, and so they respond to it and they go away with their minds changed.

And I think this shows us a prototype, if you will, of how we can analyze our own walk with God.

I put it this way by observing their story.

We can break down the shepherds unwrapping the greatest gift and the transformation of their way of thinking into features that can be identified in our own personal experience with the good news if we choose to follow Jesus.

Let's look at the features, because I want to tell you, my friends, that what I'm talking about now is experiential, and the experience you can have can be just as real and just as felt as what the shepherds felt.

It is something that changes your mind forever and it's an experience that the first time you've received Jesus Christ.

It's a gift.

Jesus is the gift that keeps on giving, and you'll see these features if you look closely at your own mind.

And if you don't, I'm going to ask you would you receive Jesus, the gift?

First of all, there's confusion.

There's confusion.

They were out about doing their business.

The Scriptures say they were shepherds watching their flock by night.

That's what shepherds do.

They were in their normal vocation, they were out at their job, it was nighttime and in this confusion suddenly came a new reality.

The reality was such that they didn't know how to process it.

They did not realize before about the angels, and I just imagine they hadn't thought much about angelology and they hadn't contemplated much what it must be like to get a word from God in the particular way that they did.

They lived in a concept of reality that was constrained only by what their eyes could see, not knowing that all around them were spirit beings that were surrounding them.

They didn't know that until suddenly an angel made himself visible to them and it was shocking to them.

And immediately is confusion when there's this clash of realities, the reality that you thought was total now being interfered with with a reality that is expansive and bigger than what you could have even ever imagined.

They were dumb about reality.

They're like the two old farmers, as the story goes, that were arguing about which light is greater, the moon or the sun, and one farmer was saying well, the moon is the greatest light, of course, and the other farmer was like what?

What are you saying?

That the moon is the greatest light, is greater light than the sun?

The first farmer said what are you saying?

That the moon is the greatest light, is greater light than the sun?

The first farmer said well, of course, it's the moon.

It gives us its light at night, when it's dark, and the sun only shines in the day when it's light already, and that's how a lot of people are about God.

They don't recognize that everything that they see and everything that's given and everything that's moving about, it's all in the light of the glory of God, and they haven't even begun to understand the reality of God that's around them.

And so there's confusion that's in their life and they don't know how to respond.

And so the message of the Word of God is one of comfort and clarity.

The angel says do not be afraid, for I'm bringing to you good news.

So he calms them right down, and the very first thing they need to get is a message that is clear.

Get is a message that is clear.

Kim Scott, in her book Radical Candor, has this statement clarity is kindness.

And she tells this story.

She was an executive at Google, I believe, and she tells this story that one time when she was in New York City, she was walking her dog and they were crossing the street.

There are hundreds of pedestrians around the cross, light went on so that they were to walk across, and she tried to get her dog to cross, and the dog wouldn't cross at all and she was trying to pull on the leash.

The dog just sat there, rigid, refusing to cross, and people were going by and suddenly a man that she had never met before or seen before stopped, squatted down, looked the dog straight in the face and said cross the street.

The dog got off its haunches and walked with her and she walked across with her dog, got to the other side, she said why did he obey you and not me?

What did you do?

And the man said the dog wants to please you.

He just didn't understand you.

Clarity is kindness.

The dog wants to please you.

He just didn't understand you.

Clarity is kindness.

He understood.

It's a great kindness, to be very clear.

And so the shepherd said the angel said let me tell you, you will find a baby wrapped in cloths laying in a manger.

This day, a Savior has been born for you.

The implication is you need a Savior, you need a Lord.

You've been anticipating and looking for the Messiah, and so here it is right, here and here's exactly what you're supposed to do and listen.

In every single Christian life, in every single experience, let me tell you this God suddenly illumines your heart with a moment of clarity.

It is just as clear as day what is true, and you might not have understood it before, but now you understand it.

And, by the way, in your Christian walk, subjectively, this is also how God keeps bringing you to receive the gift of Jesus.

You're in a moment of confusion, you don't know what to do, and there's some anxiety and stress, and then suddenly something happens.

It disrupts your momentum or your peace or something, and you have this clarity about you that you've not had before.

The word of God penetrates into the heart and a line from Scripture, whatever it may be, the soul is suddenly enlightened.

And I'm talking about your personal experience and I remember how this has happened to me and has happened to me and happens to me in my walk with God, as I continue to just receive Jesus.

Yes, I am saved, but I can keep getting the gift that was given to me, my salvation, if you will.

I received for the first time two years ago, like this book bag, or three years ago now, I can't remember, but I receive it every day, when I pick it up, throw it over my shoulder and use it and appreciate it, enjoy it.

And similarly, in my Christian walk, there are times when I have confusion and anxiety and stress and whatnot.

And suddenly a word of God just comes into my heart, something providential.

I have instant clarity and I thank God for that.

And here's what I've learned, because the shepherds have done it, and this is true, because the shepherds have done it, and this is true you need to immediately act on the clarity, immediately.

If you don't act immediately on the clarity, you will invite again confusion and darkness.

But it says, the angel left them.

Now they're dark again.

Now there's nothing but the stars out there.

And now they're looking at a bunch of other dumb shepherds.

Like Now there's nothing but the stars out there, and now they're looking at a bunch of other dumb shepherds.

Like did you see that?

Yeah, we all saw that, did you?

Okay, I'm not.

Were we smoking something?

Was there something that we ate?

What was going on?

Everybody confirms you have this clarity.

No, the angel said.

The angel said unto us as shepherds, it didn't go to kings, it didn't go to anybody else.

It came to us, for us, this is we've been invited to receive this gift.

What should we do?

And at that clarity they say let's go.

I'm here to tell you, christian friend, some of you have stalled out in your Christian walk because God keeps giving you clear messages and you don't commit with a let's go, a clear message Forgive that person who did harm to you.

The Spirit of God enlightens you.

You know, if you forgave that person, everything would be done and you just don't commit.

A clear message, a clear message Leave this to me, says God, and you don't commit.

God wants you to say let's go and confirm this.

God actually wants you to confirm his word.

Did you know that he wants you to confirm it?

He's not afraid of his word being tested.

If God has spoken to you and directed you and convicted you of sin or righteousness or judgment or whatever it may be, if God has convicted you, he's not afraid of you saying all right, let's go and see it.

And you ought to know that the shepherds weren't doing this in doubt At that moment.

They had no doubt.

I've heard some people represent the shepherds like I don't know, I don't think it was real.

Well, let's go see, just in case.

There's no clue of that whatsoever.

How could they have doubted it?

We don't know how many shepherds there to be a significant amount of witnesses.

They all saw the same thing.

It was a spectacular experience.

There was no doubt whatsoever.

So they said we saw it, let's go.

And they went and saw it and they confirmed what they saw.

They said and they went with haste and found it.

It'd be a good side study to study the word haste we read in today's scripture, reading that Heidi read to us, that Mary, with haste, went to Elizabeth.

It would be a good side study to see the alacrity and the responsiveness and the quickness to revelation from God and acting upon it and to confirm did this thing really happen?

Was it told?

And it's not out of doubt, but it's in belief that we have to go see it.

And they did.

And they found out that it was as they had been told.

The scriptures tell us that there were a lot of people around and I know this might blow your mind because you have the manger scene and you don't were a lot of people around and I know this might blow your mind because you have the manger scene and you don't have all those other people around.

But apparently there were other people around because the Scripture said that many people wondered and that word wonder does include doubt, and it says that Mary, when she heard it, she received the word and she pondered it in her heart.

So she's responding to it differently Now.

They're all wondering, but the shepherds are saying hey, we got to tell you.

They come up on the baby that's in the manger there and they say we got to tell you something.

All of us, all of us.

Amos, did you see it?

Yeah, ezekiel, did you see it?

Yeah, jerubabal, did you see it?

I can come up with whatever Hebrew names you can come up, you can ask all of them.

We all saw it.

We were sitting there watching our flocks by night when suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and the glory of the Lord showed around him and we were terrified.

And the angel said to us don't be afraid, For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior which is Christ, the Lord.

And then suddenly there was, with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host all over and they're all saying yes, yes, yes, yes, we saw it.

And they're confirming to people what they saw.

They're confirming in their own hearts what they experienced.

You need to know this.

The Christian life is experiential.

You can experience it.

You can in your own heart.

If you respond to the Word of God, you can experience this gift of God and confirm that it has been true.

And so what did they do?

There was confession.

They may known the saying.

The scriptures say they told everybody.

They presumably it's not actually written in our text worshiped the baby.

Our manger scenes have them bowing before the baby and presumably that's true because the baby has been presented to them as the Savior, which is Christ the Lord, and they believed it.

And they worshiped this baby and confessed with their mouth.

And listen, the Scriptures say that if we believe in our hearts and confess with our what, with our mouth, we will be saved.

Why?

Because the journey from the heart to the mouth shows a real internal, experiential happening.

It's an event that you testify to.

This really happened and nothing's going to alter it.

The angels are not going to appear again.

It's going to be dark every night for the rest of your time.

And listen, it may be difficult to process because or it may take patience because they said this baby is Christ, the Lord has been born to us.

But they would have to wait for 33 years before that baby would be crucified, buried, rise again on the third day and ascend up into heaven as the exalted Lord.

They would have to wait 33 years.

They didn't have to wait 30 years before he even came on the map.

But do you think they doubted?

No, they knew what they saw.

They knew what they experienced, and our own personal experience can stand as a witness to us.

I know what I have experienced.

I love that old hymn, for I know in whom I have believed.

I love that hymn.

They knew it and they confessed it.

Finally, there's celebration.

They returned glorifying and praising God for all they had heard.

Now I'm here to testify to you, my friends.

Jesus is a gift that you don't have to just enjoy the first time you ever hear about him.

It is a gift.

He is a gift to you that keeps on giving.

We still have sin in our hearts and in our lives.

We still have darkness and confusion in our hearts and in our lives.

We still have times when we just don't know what's going on.

And the gift that keeps on giving is this for unto you, bob, is born this day, a Savior which is Christ, the Lord, and I can say I know, I've experienced it and I am, with alacrity and with quickness and with speed, I'm going to commit myself to acting upon what God has told me.

Even though I don't know what the future beyond that may be, I know right now God has given me step one and step two, and when you walk with God you always have step one before you.

You always know what the word has said.

You may not know anything in a moment of confusion, but you do know this.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding In all your ways.

Acknowledge him and he will direct your paths.

You know that, don't you?

And so you can say I agree with that and I've experienced that before and I've understood that before, and so I'm going to act on it.

I'm committed to acting upon it.

You're confused by why some bad things have happened to you and some negative things and things that you did not want, but you know this All things work together for good to them that love God and are the called according to his purpose.

You know that and you've experienced that before.

You've seen God rearrange your plans in ways that you didn't like and then put you together in a different way.

That was so much better than anything you could have done before, and so with that experience, you say you know what.

I'm going to act with confidence on that, and I'm going to act this way.

And all these pathways lead you, my Christian brother and sister, to Jesus.

Jesus doesn't want you getting satisfied in anything else but him, because he is the fullness of God and the treasure house of wisdom before him.

And that enduring gift, that indestructible gift, may appear to you, in vulnerability and fragility and weakness, like a little baby, and you may wonder how could this be the Son of God that will save the world from their sins and conquer the enemies of God and redeem the whole universe.

How could this be this little baby?

I don't know, but I was told so by revelation from God, and I believe it and experience it.

Jesus is the gift that keeps on giving.

The transformation from confusion to confident celebration is the opportunity that every single one of us can experience if we respond to the gospel in the same way that the shepherds did.

May God add his blessing to the word.