Luke 2:10-11 - "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.'"
Happy New Year on this 8th Day of Christmas!
I must admit, when my kids would calmly say, "Daddy, I have something to tell you," I used to cringe. Was this going to be good news or bad news? I had no idea.
It's the same reality for the shepherds in today's verse. We often think the shepherds were afraid because they saw angels, which is a possibility since angels are huge and appear seemingly out of nowhere. But heaven, the unseen realm, is not nowhere, and angels were seen regularly in a day and age when people were not distracted by all the stuff that potentially distracts us today.
So why did the angel say, "Fear not," to the shepherds? The angel said, "Fear not," because the shepherds knew that the angel had news because that's what angels do; they bring news. And the shepherds didn't know if it was good news or bad news, so they cringed.
But the angel said, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news." Yaaaaaay! Good news!
But this is no ordinary good news. The angel gave them the good news that changes all news. The good news of the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, seals the deal. The shepherds, and all people who come after them, get to see what has always been true, namely, come what may, God, through Jesus, is Lord over it and Savior within it.
This is why, in the movie, "Facing the Giants," the characters can say to God, "Come what may, I will praise you!" If I find out I can't have kids, I will praise you, Lord. If I find out the powers that be are running me off, I will praise you. If I find out something else in my home just broke, I will praise you. Whatever the news, I will praise you, Lord, because you are Lord over it and Savior within it. And you, Lord, have given me to know this beyond the shadow of a doubt by the good news that you are with us through Jesus Christ.
So now, by God's grace, when my kids say, "Daddy, I have something to tell you," I don't need to cringe, wondering if it's good news or bad. Instead, I can take a deep breath of the Holy Spirit from Jesus Christ and say, "Yes, Sweet Calley, I'm listening, and come what may, we will praise the Lord!"
And in the same way, there is one and only one way that we can say, "Happy New Year!" And that's because, in Jesus Christ, we have the good news that changes all news. Come what may, God, through Jesus, is Lord over it and Savior within it. So therefore, it is going to be a very good and happy new year, indeed!
Happy New Year!
Praise God!
Pastor Chris
"The gospel is the story of Jesus [what God's only Son has done for us that we can't do for ourselves], spoken as a promise." - Robert Jenson
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