"Just What Did
the Angels Promise?"
Text: Luke 2:8-14
May the birth of the Savior continue
to fill you with the same wonder and joy first experienced by the shepherds. Amen.
The world continues to make problems
for itself. Some time ago I read a discussion on gift-giving in light of
current PC thought. What caught my eye was the fact that the folks engaged in
this discussion could not seem to agree upon suitable gifts for general
distribution. So as not to offend, gifts could not be violent, sexist, racist,
fattening, or otherwise unhealthy. No gift could shoot or pollute, smoke or
joke, none just for boys, none that made noise. In the end they finally agreed
that the only politically correct present would be "peace on earth."
Isn't it
interesting that of all the wisdom, all the truth that is to be found in our
Bibles, the world during this time of the year homes in on this one concept -
"peace on earth" - and then gets it flat wrong.
The world turns "peace on earth" into something very much different
than what was originally announced by the angels. This morning we will examine
this oft repeated and mostly misunderstood phrase "Peace on Earth"
in the light of Holy Scriptures, and we will find that the angels announced
much more than the world's idea of peace. The text on which we will base our
study is found in the Second Chapter of the Gospel of Luke:
Luke 2:8-14 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping
watch over their flock by night. 9
And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord
shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 10 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. 11 "For there is born to you this day in the city
of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 "And this will be the sign to you: You will
find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger." 13 And suddenly there was with the
angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: 14 "Glory to God in the
highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"
So far the very words of God. We pray: Remind us
often, oh Holy Spirit, that these are your words, and hear us when we pray,
"Sanctify
us through Your Truth, O Lord. Your Word is truth!" Amen.
Dear Fellow
Messengers of true and eternal peace, it is certainly a popular word today,
isn't it - "peace." Everyone is for peace, which makes it the perfect
wish, the perfect present, and the perfect blessing. Peace. Yet when you
actually take a moment or two to investigate the thing, the waters get muddied
in a hurry. What is this "peace"; how do you get it and how do you
give it. Are we talking about world peace (as in the cessation of all war),
religious peace, internal peace, marital peace, peace of mind, or what?
More to the
point this morning, is that the sort of thing the angels had in mind when they
announced the birth of the Son of God with the words, "Peace on earth, good will
toward men"? Seems rather unlikely, but let's let Scripture speak
for itself.
As is so
often the case, we begin understanding a word or a concept by first
understanding what it is not. Is the "peace of God" or the
"peace on earth" all about cessation of wars? Jesus was no fan of
war, but he himself gave us a warning that war did not come to an end with his
arrival. He told us in Mark 13:7-8, "But when you hear of wars and rumors
of wars, do not be troubled; for such things must happen, but the end is not
yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And
there will be earthquakes in various places, and there will be famines and
troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows." So much for the
most common understanding of the term as the world uses it. The angels weren't
announcing an end to all wars, since Jesus himself said that such a thing was
not to be.
If not world peace, does the Bible mean
"general tolerance and acceptance of differing religious beliefs"
when it speaks of peace? Jesus again answers for us: (Matthew 10:34-38 NKJV) "Do
not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace
but a sword. For I have come to 'set a man against his father, a daughter
against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law'; and 'a
man's enemies will be those of his own household.' He who loves father or
mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who
loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of
Me." Jesus obviously did not believe in acceptance of all
religions as equal. In fact in John 14:6 Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth,
and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
We would all have to agree that this is a pretty exclusive – and therefore divisive
– statement. No one gets to heaven ("comes to the Father")
except through faith in His Son Jesus. That's the sort of thing that causes
strife, not harmony.
Well if the
angels weren't talking about world peace or religious peace through toleration,
were they perhaps talking about something as simple as "peace of
mind" - the confidence that comes with knowing that you will be
"healthy, wealthy and wise" in this life. Again Jesus' words: (John 16:33 NKJV) "In the world you will have tribulation." "He who does not take his cross and
follow after Me is not worthy of Me."
So just
what sort of peace were the angels talking about and what exactly did they
promise on that Christmas Night?
First of
all, the angels didn't promise
anything. What they did is announce to the world three facts as decreed by their Creator God. The first
announcement was that glory was the possession of God in heaven. The second
was that peace has come to earth. The
third was that mankind now has, as our possession, God's good will.
We examine
the first declaration: "Glory in the highest to God."
Every gift
has a source, and that source is worthy of more than just a thank you. The source
is also deserving of acknowledgement. On a very simple level, that means that
when you open a gift at Christmas, not only is the person that gave you the
gift worthy of a thank you, it is altogether right for the recipient to bring
to mind all that the giver of the gift has done – investing thought, time, and
money for you – and to honor the
giver accordingly. In other words, the gift itself takes on greater value when
you consider that the giver thought about you, considered your needs, and then
spent the time and money to buy and wrap your present. If you have ever seen
the shameful spectacle of a child bragging about what he got for Christmas, you
probably have a sense of what it looks like to get this sort of thing wrong.
Where is the boasting as far as the recipient is concerned?
So also on
that first (original) Christmas, the holy angels announced the glory of the
Giver of the Gift. They draw, as it were, a great big arrow that points away
from mankind and to God, the one true Provider. Note especially that they
really don't encourage mankind to do
something here; they make a triumphant announcement that the glory is God's.
They do not say, "Mankind ought
to give glory to God," but "All
of the glory connected with this great event belongs to God."
Mankind
often has a direction problem. These declarations by the angels seek not only
to declare the birth of the Savior, but they do so by also addressing our
direction problem. An example might help to illustrate what that means.
When you
hear that the Virgin Mary was blessed, how do you pronounce that word
"blessed" and what do you mean by it? The word can be pronounced
"bles-sed" or "blest." The first
means that Mary possesses some quality or attribute that makes her special, the
second that Mary is the recipient of God's gracious gifts. While the Roman
Catholic Church promotes the idea that Mary is bles-sed
(and therefore to be venerated or adored as something of a goddess), we believe
and teach that Mary was "blest" by her God – which God alone
is worthy of all glory and praise.
You see the
direction problem. Man sees a gifted person and wants to praise and glorify the
person. What we are supposed to do when we encounter a gifted person is to
praise the God who gave such gifts to men. So also here the angels direct our
attention first to the God who gave the Gift, and in the next two announcements
give evidence why the glory belongs to him alone.
The second
announcement made by the angels was that peace has now come to earth. You will
recall that the world has a bit of difficulty with the concept of "peace
on earth." Let it not be so with us.
While every
sane human being certainly longs for an end to all wars, mankind actually had a
much bigger problem: we were at war with our God.
Make no
mistake. God is the last person you
and I want as our enemy. Jesus himself said in Matthew 10:28, "And do not fear those who kill the
body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both
soul and body in hell." If God is our enemy,
nothing else matters. On the other hand, if God is our friend, again, nothing
else matters. The second announcement by the angels declared that a state of
peace now exists between God and man. It was the announcement that God has
extended the hand of peace to mankind by sending the Savior. We had separated
ourselves from our God by our wickedness. Since mankind's fall into sin, a
state of war had existed between God and man. God deserves all of the glory in
correcting the problem because he himself gave his greatest possession to fix
the problem that you and I had created. Paul basically paraphrased the
announcement of the angels when he wrote to the Corinthians: "Now all things are of God (Glory to God in the highest!) who has reconciled
us to Himself through Jesus Christ (peace on earth!) and
has given us the ministry of reconciliation." Paul then goes on to
explain what sort of peace mankind has been given: "That is, that God was in
Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing
their trespasses to them..." (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)
The peace that
the angels announced is objective.
That means that they are describing God's attitude toward man, not man's
attitude toward God or man's attitude toward each other. In the place of wrath and
enmity, there is now good will on the part of our holy God. In Christ Jesus,
our God is also now our friend.
That is, in fact, the final announcement by the
angels to all mankind through the shepherds – that mankind now has, as our
possession, God's good will. Sin was the wall that separated us from our God.
Do not here think in terms of the sins of others. Your sin, my sin, separated
you and me from our God. God himself
removed that barrier by placing 100% of the blame and condemnation upon his
innocent Son.
This was the final announcement by the angels – that
the ultimate act of reconciliation and good will has been accomplished by God
in the sending of his Son as our Savior.
What then did the angels promise to the shepherds?
Again, they promised nothing. They
made declarations of truth that would stand for all time: "Glory is the
sole possession of our God, for he has demonstrated his loving attitude toward
mankind by restoring our relationship with him through the birth of his Son.
- Glory is God's!
- A state of peace now exists between God and man!
- God's good will now shines upon all mankind!
No wonder
all creation rejoiced at the birth of Jesus Christ. No greater news has ever
been announced. Amen.
Scripture Readings and Sunday Bulletin
for December 23, 2007
NKJ Isaiah 7:10-16 Moreover the LORD spoke again to Ahaz, saying,
11 "Ask a sign for yourself from the LORD your God; ask
it either in the depth or in the height above." 12 But Ahaz said, "I will not
ask, nor will I test the LORD!" 13
Then he said, "Hear now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for
you to weary men, but will you weary my God also? 14 "Therefore the Lord
Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son,
and shall call His name Immanuel. 15
"Curds and honey He shall eat, that He may know to refuse the evil and
choose the good. 16
"For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good,
the land that you dread will be forsaken by both her kings.
NKJ Matthew 1:18-25 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was
betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the
Holy Spirit. 19 Then Joseph
her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public
example, was minded to put her away secretly.
20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel
of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do
not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her
is of the Holy Spirit. 21
"And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He
will save His people from their sins."
22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken
by the Lord through the prophet, saying:
23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a
Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated,
"God with us." 24
Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded
him and took to him his wife, 25
and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he
called His name JESUS.
NKJ Luke 2:8-14 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping
watch over their flock by night. 9
And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord
shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 10 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. 11 "For there is born to you this day in the city
of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 "And this will be the
sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a
manger." 13 And suddenly
there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and
saying: 14 "Glory to God
in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"
ST. PAUL
Bismarck, ND 58501 (701)
223-4885 Cell: (701) 226-8510
Mr. Mark Johnson, President
(222-1855) Mrs.
Eileen McEnroe, Organist
Michael Roehl, Pastor mjroehl@bis.midco.net
The Fourth Sunday in Advent – December 23, 2007
|
The Opening
Prayer by the Pastor
The Opening
Hymn ‑#66- (Red Hymnal)
"Hark the Glad Sound, the
Savior Comes"
The Service
of Word and Sacrament – Brown Hymnal page 12.
The Scripture Lessons: (Printed on the back page of this
bulletin)
The Old Testament Lesson: (Isaiah
7:10-16) When it comes to discrediting Holy Scripture, mankind can be very
inventive. That is why a big part of the hardship borne by the believer in the
last days will be dealing with the very persuasive condemnations brought by the
world against God's Word. So in this lesson the very fact of the virgin birth
is today brought into question.
Psalm 2 (Supplement
page 30) (Brown Hymnal)
The Gospel Lesson: (Matthew 1:18-25) The best
interpreter of Scripture is Scripture itself. We need not wonder if Mary's
divine conception was in fact a fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy. The
Scriptures themselves tell us that it was just that. Jesus was and is the One
promised of old.
The Confession
of Faith ‑
The
Nicene Creed (Brown Hymnal page 5)
The Pre‑Sermon
Hymn ‑#65- (Verses 1-5) (Red Hymnal)
"When Sinners See Their Lost
Condition"
The Sermon – Text: Luke 2:8-14 (Printed on the back page of this
bulletin)
"Just What Did the Angels
Promise?"
"Create
In Me" (The Offertory) – Brown Hymnal page 16 (insert)
The Installation of the 2008 Church Council
The Offering, followed by the Prayers
The Post Sermon Hymn -#342 (Verses
1-3) (Red Hymnal)
"Chief
of Sinners Though I Be"
The
Preparation for Holy Communion (Brown Hymnal page 17)
The
Distribution -Hymn #316- (Red Hymnal)
The Nunc
Dimittis and Thanksgiving (Brown Hymnal page 20)
The Benediction
The Closing
Hymn ‑#65- (Verse 6) (Red Hymnal)
"When Sinners See Their Lost Condition"
Silent
Prayer
Attendance ‑ Last Sunday (58) 2005 Average (56) Wednesday (33)
This Week
at
Today -10:00 a.m. – Worship Service w/Communion
-11:15 a.m. – Fellowship Hour
-11:45 a.m. – Lunch and Christmas Eve Rehearsal
Monday -6:30
p.m. – Christmas Eve Service
Tuesday -10:00
a.m. – Christmas Day Service
Wednesday -No Scheduled Church Activities
Next Sunday -8:45 a.m. – Sunday School
and Bible Class
-10:00
a.m. – Worship
Service
-11:00
a.m. – Fellowship
Hour
Upcoming Schedule – A
Christmas Eve rehearsal is scheduled for the children and adult choir this
morning following a lunch at the church. Parents of children in the program are
invited to join us.
Annual Voters' Meeting Notes – The Voter's Assembly met on December
16th. Full minutes are available from Secretary Adams. Treasurer
Weiss reiterated the need for a strong December offering to pay our year-end
bills. Mark Johnson and Les Weiss were elected by ballot to new terms on the
Church Council. In a subsequent meeting, the Council voted to return the same
officers in 2008: President - Mark "#1 on the Speed-dial" Johnson; VP
- Mick "Is this Paris?" Johnson; Secretary - Fred
"Dr. Minutes" Adams; Treasurer - Les "Check is in the Mail"
Weiss; Financial Sec - Gary "Mr. Deposit" Miller; and Trustee
Coordinator -Joel "M-Points" Baumgarten. The Council also
agreed to have the Pastor serve again as the Pastor. The 2008 Budget was
adopted with a 3.3% increase, and the FY09 CBP (synod contribution estimate) as
set at $12,000. The Voters agreed to use two baskets, placed in the front pews,
for disposal of used communion cups.
Budget Implications – The 2008 Budget, as noted above, calls
for a 3.3% increase over last year. Members of St. Paul are encouraged to
consider the increased need as they plan their 2008 contributions.