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Luke 2:9-11 - Good News of Great Joy for All People!

Luke 2:9-11 (NIV) An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.

WORD STUDY

GLORY: "the glory of the Lord" that was shining all around them. "Glory" refers to the majesty and splendor accompanying God's presence. [Life Application

GOOD TIDINGS: "Good tidings" or "good news" became another way of describing the gospel message itself; Luke used this phrase as the name for the gospel throughout the book of Acts (for a sampling of verses, see Acts 5:42; 8:12; 10:36; 14:15). At the very hour of Jesus' birth, the good news was already being spread supernaturally by an angel. [Life Application

CHRIST the LORD: The title Christ the Lord is found only here in the New Testament, although the understanding of Christ as the Lord appears elsewhere (Acts 2:36; 2 Corinthians 4:5; Philippians 2:11). The word "Christ" is Greek for "Anointed One"; the word "Messiah" comes from the Hebrew term with the same meaning. To be anointed meant to be set apart for some special purpose. Moses anointed Aaron and his sons as the first priests of Israel (Exodus 28:41); the prophet Samuel anointed both Saul and David as kings of Israel (1 Samuel 10:1; 16:3). The title was applied to that future one whom God would raise up. The Jews were awaiting this special deliverer, one who would be the Anointed One of God, the Messiah, the Christ. The word "Lord" refers here to deity. That this tiny baby was the "Lord" means that God had arrived in human form. Thus the angel gave no doubt as to the identity of this child. He was the one for whom all Israel had been waiting. [Life Application Commentary]

INTRODUCTION

   The greatest event in history had just happened! The Messiah had been born! For ages the Jews had waited for this, and when it finally occurred, the announcement came to humble shepherds. The good news about Jesus is that he comes to all, including the plain and the ordinary. He comes to anyone with a heart humble enough to accept him. Whoever you are, whatever you do, you can have Jesus in your life. Don't think you need extraordinary qualifications - he accepts you as you are.
   What a birth announcement! The shepherds were terrified, but their fear turned to joy as the angels announced the Messiah's birth. First the shepherds ran to see the baby; then they spread the word. Jesus is your Messiah, your Savior. Do you look forward to meeting him in prayer and in his Word each day? Have you discovered a Lord so wonderful that you can't help sharing your joy with your friends? [Life Application SB]

COMMENTARY PEARL

   In the fields where the boy David had led his flock, shepherds were still keeping watch by night. Through the silent hours they talked together of the promised Saviour, and prayed for the coming of the King to David's throne. "And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."
   At these words, visions of glory fill the minds of the listening shepherds. The Deliverer has come to Israel! Power, exaltation, triumph, are associated with His coming. But the angel must prepare them to recognize their Saviour in poverty and humiliation. "This shall be a sign unto you," he says; "Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger."
   The heavenly messenger had quieted their fears. He had told them how to find Jesus. With tender regard for their human weakness, he had given them time to become accustomed to the divine radiance. Then the joy and glory could no longer be hidden. The whole plain was lighted up with the bright shining of the hosts of God. Earth was hushed, and heaven stooped to listen to the song, -
      "Glory to God in the highest,
      And on earth peace, good will toward men."
   Oh that today the human family could recognize that song! The declaration then made, the note then struck, will swell to the close of time, and resound to the ends of the earth. When the Sun of Righteousness shall arise, with healing in His wings, that song will be re-echoed by the voice of a great multitude, as the voice of many waters, saying, "Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth." Revelation 19:6.
   As the angels disappeared, the light faded away, and the shadows of night once more fell on the hills of Bethlehem. But the brightest picture ever beheld by human eyes remained in the memory of the shepherds. "And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger."
   Departing with great joy, they made known the things they had seen and heard. "And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God."
   Heaven and earth are no wider apart today than when shepherds listened to the angels' song. Humanity is still as much the object of heaven's solicitude as when common men of common occupations met angels at noonday, and talked with the heavenly messengers in the vineyards and the fields. To us in the common walks of life, heaven may be very near. Angels from the courts above will attend the steps of those who come and go at God's command.
   The story of Bethlehem is an exhaustless theme. In it is hidden "the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God." Romans 11:33. We marvel at the Saviour's sacrifice in exchanging the throne of heaven for the manger, and the companionship of adoring angels for the beasts of the stall. Human pride and self-sufficiency stand rebuked in His presence. Yet this was but the beginning of His wonderful condescension. It would have been an almost infinite humiliation for the Son of God to take man's nature, even when Adam stood in his innocence in Eden. But Jesus accepted humanity when the race had been weakened by four thousand years of sin. Like every child of Adam He accepted the results of the working of the great law of heredity. What these results were is shown in the history of His earthly ancestors. He came with such a heredity to share our sorrows and temptations, and to give us the example of a sinless life.  DA 47-48

COMMENTARY

The Arrival
   God had entered the world as a baby.
   Yet, were someone to chance upon the sheep stable on the outskirts of Bethlehem that morning, what a peculiar scene they would behold.
   The stable stinks like all stables do. The stench of urine, dung, and sheep reeks pungently in the air. The ground is hard, the hay scarce. Cobwebs cling to the ceiling and a mouse scurries across the dirt floor.
   A more lowly place of birth could not exist.
   Off to one side sit a group of shepherds. They sit silently on the floor; perhaps perplexed, perhaps in awe, no doubt in amazement. Their night watch had been interrupted by an explosion of light from heaven and a symphony of angels. God goes to those who have time to hear him - so on this cloudless night he went to simple shepherds.
   Near the young mother sits the weary father. If anyone is dozing, he is. He can't remember the last time he sat down. And now that the excitement has subsided a bit, now that Mary and the baby are comfortable, he leans against the wall of the stable and feels his eyes grow heavy. He still hasn't figured it all out. The mystery of the event puzzles him. But he hasn't the energy to wrestle with the questions. What's important is that the baby is fine and that Mary is safe. As sleep comes he remembers the name the angel told him to use ... Jesus. "We will call him Jesus."
   Wide awake is Mary. My, how young she looks! Her head rests on the soft leather of Joseph's saddle. The pain has been eclipsed by wonder. She looks into the face of the baby. Her son. Her Lord. His Majesty. At this point in history, the human being who best understands who God is and what he is doing is a teenage girl in a smelly stable. She can't take her eyes off him. Somehow Mary knows she is holding God. So this is he. She remembers the words of the angel. "His kingdom will never end." (Luke 1:33)
   He looks like anything but a king. His face is prunish and red. His cry, though strong and healthy, is still the helpless and piercing cry of a baby. And he is absolutely dependent upon Mary for his well-being.
   Majesty in the midst of the mundane. Holiness in the filth of sheep manure and sweat. Divinity entering the world on the floor of a stable, through the womb of a teenager and in the presence of a carpenter.
   She touches the face of the infant-God. How long was your journey!
   This baby had overlooked the universe. These rags keeping him warm were the robes of eternity. His golden throne room had been abandoned in favor of a dirty sheep pen. And worshiping angels had been replaced with kind but bewildered shepherds.
   Meanwhile, the city hums. The merchants are unaware that God has visited their planet. The innkeeper would never believe that he had just sent God into the cold. And the people would scoff at anyone who told them the Messiah lay in the arms of a teenager on the outskirts of their village. They were all too busy to consider the possibility.
   Those who missed His Majesty's arrival that night missed it not because of evil acts or malice; no, they missed it because they simply weren't looking.
   Little has changed in the last two thousand years, has it? [Max Lucado Daily Devotional at maxlucado.com]

What Are The Chances?
   Who likes math? (Did somebody just groan?)
   While some kids love this subject and others just put up with it, math can be fun and helpful - even when you're talking about your faith.
   Look at probability. This type of math predicts how likely something is to happen. For instance, if you flip a coin, there's a 50 percent chance that it will land on heads. The only other option is tails, which also comes up half of the time.
   Now think about this: If you put four red marbles and one blue marble in a bag, what are the chances that you could reach in and pull out the blue marble? Well, because there are five marbles but you're looking for a specific one, you'd have one in five odds of selecting the blue marble - or about a 2 percent chance.
   So what does this have to do with my faith in Christ? you ask.
   A lot. Jesus didn't just show up on earth and start proclaiming he was the Messiah, sent from God. Anybody could do that. Jesus had facts to back up his claim ... lots of them. Bible experts have calculated that Jesus' life fulfilled more than 300 prophecies from the Old Testament These prophecies (made hundreds and even thousands of years before Jesus' birth) predicted where Jesus would be born, that he'd be betrayed by a friend, and that he'd be in the family line of king David - to name just a few.
   Filling over 300 prophecies sounds amazing. But to understand how awesome it is, you have to look at the probability. A science professor at a Christian college studied the chances of one man fulfilling just eight prophecies. He concluded the odds were one in 100,000,000,000,000,000! It just couldn't happen by chance.
   Think of it this way. Imagine the state of Texas covered two feet deep in silver dollars. One is marked with an X. You're blindfolded and placed on the Oklahoma-Texas border. You can walk anywhere, but can reach down and pick up only one coin. You'd have the same chances of getting the right one as Jesus did in fulfilling eight prophecies - and he fulfilled over 300 of them! From the time he was born, angels declared, "He is the Messiah, the Lord." When you believe Jesus is God's Son, it's not blind faith. Its built on facts ... because Jesus proved who he was. [Case For Christ For Kids by Les Strobel]

Delivered by a Son
   A Catholic king of a Protestant nation, James II of England was tolerated because his subjects assumed that his Protestant daughter Mary would acquire the throne. But when he announced the birth of James Francis Edward in 1688, public sentiment changed and wild rumors flew. Maybe the child had died stillborn, and a replacement was smuggled into the royal chamber in a warming pan. Or maybe the king was not the father, said to be impotent from venereal disease years earlier. To verify the birth, the king published statements by 70 witnesses. Nevertheless, he and his family were forced to flee as William of Orange took the throne.
   Not every baby is welcomed, but when Jesus was born, it was "good tidings of great joy ... to all people." The birth of Christ has special meaning, not just to Abraham's seed but to "all the families of the earth" (Acts 3:25). He is "the God of the Jews" and "also the God of the Gentiles" (Romans 3:29).
   While the birth of James Francis Edward eventually put a foreigner on the throne, the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus broke the power of a foreign ruler, Satan. The angel told the shepherds, "There is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:11). The word "savior" means deliverer, while "Lord" indicates ownership and supreme authority.
   Have you accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior? "Great joy" comes when you give Him His rightful throne in your heart.
   Lord of All, I praise You for rescuing the world from sin and Satan. Thank You for the joy of Your deliverance! [The Most Amazing Bible Promises by Amazing Facts]

   It's amazing that God used lowly shepherds to be His first evangelists. It must have been quite a sight when the angel came telling them not to be afraid. There they were, watching in wonder as the heavens opened and the angels sang, "Glory to God in the highest, and peace to men in whom he is pleased."
   After hearing this message, the shepherds didn't fall back into the lull of the night. They left everything they owned - their sheep - and journeyed down the hill to find the Savior. What they didn't know was a girl named Mary needed them to show up.
   I can't help but think she may have been wondering if she missed God's best. After all, she just gave birth and her son lay in a manger. But in come these shepherds, out of breath and anxious to share their news. Mary's heart must have soared when she heard the angels were singing about her son ... THE SON ... Savior of the world wrapped in scraps of cloth; asleep in a food trough meant for livestock. 'But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart" (Luke 2:19). Today, I'm pondering a few things, too. Like the shepherds, can I leave everything I hold dear to behold my Savior? And am I watchful like Mary? Although circumstances didn't unfold the way she'd wished or planned, she bowed her life to God for His remarkable purposes. By Gari Meacham
   Faith Step: All day thank God for the brave shepherds, and pray to be a brave shepherd. too. [Mornings With Jesus 2018 Devotional by Guideposts and Zondervan]

   Life has its unpleasant moments, but when I think of happy occasions, I remember celebrations from the past: the day I graduated from high school, the day I married, the birth of our children and grandchildren, special birthdays, anniversaries, vacations - and more. The memories bring joy to my heart.
   When Luke describes some happy occasions involving both the birth of John the Baptist - the forerunner of Jesus - (Luke 1:14) and the announcement of Jesus's birth, he records the angels using the qualifier, great joy. I've always thought of joy as, well, joy. I found the same words in other passages as well. And most of them referred to a degree of emotion involving the Deity.
   Jesus Himself prayed before His death that His disciples would experience the full measure of His joy (John 17:13, NIV). And speaking to His disciples in John 15:11, Jesus told them He wanted His joy to remain in them, that it would be full. Other translations use the words complete joy or joy that overflows. Is it any wonder then that the angels would describe Jesus's birth at Christmas as bringing great joy, complete joy, overflowing joy?
   We still experience pain and heartache in this world. But the great joy that Jesus brings remains embedded in our hearts, ready to explode in celebration when we see Him face-to-Face.
   At that moment, every believer who has ever known Jesus, will experience a complete and lasting joy. by Rebecca Barlow Jordan
   Faith Step: Thank Jesus for happy moments and celebrations in your life that have brought you a measure of joy. Then write "Great Joy!" beside Luke 2. [Mornings With Jesus 2018 Devotional by Guideposts and Zondervan]

Take Time to Behold Jesus at Christmas
   There's a big difference between glancing at something and gazing at something. When you gaze at something, you're doing what the angel instructed the shepherds to do - you're beholding it.
   At Christmastime, most people will give God a glance. They might start humming "O Come, Let Us Adore Him" because it's playing on the store speakers as they do their Christmas shopping. Or they notice the nativity scene someone has placed in their home, with baby Jesus at the center, and they give it a glance.
   During the busyness of the Christmas rush, not taking time to behold the best news ever can be easy.
   What is the best news - the Good News - that God wants you to behold this Christmas?
   It's this: You are not an accident. Your parents may not have planned you, but God planned you. God made you to love you. If God had not wanted to love you, then he wouldn't have created you. You wouldn't be taking your next breath!
   The 80 or so years you have on Earth are short compared to eternity. In fact, this life is preparation for eternity. God wants you to live with him forever in heaven, but to do that, you've got to have a relationship with him here on Earth.
   How do you have a relationship with God? It starts with beholding him.
   It's the message the angel brought to the shepherds on that first Christmas: "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'" (Luke 2:9-11 ESV).
   Behold, God came to Earth. That's a big deal! At Christmas, God became a human so we could see what he's really like.
   You can know a lot of things about God just by looking at creation. But there are some things you'd never know about God if it weren't for Jesus. If Jesus hadn't come to Earth, you wouldn't know that God loves you, forgives you, and has a purpose for your life.
   If you want to know what God is like, take a long look at Jesus. He is the full picture of God's grace.
   Behold your Savior. Then you can make him Lord of your life. [Daily Devotional by Rick Warren: https://pastorrick.com/devotional/]

LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY

Luke 2:10-11 - Unconditional Joy.
https://www.abible.com/devotions/2023/20231226-0833.html
https://www.abible.com/devotions/2021/20211225-0908.html
https://www.abible.com/devotions/2020/20201225-0947.html

LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT

https://abible.com/links/