By Russ Wilkins
Dir. of Missions, Shiloh Baptist Assoc., Adamsville
Focal Passage: Luke 2:4-19
Today’s title is “PROCLAIMED” and the first thing I thought about when I saw that word was the old Fanny Crosby hymn, “Redeemed how I love to PROCLAIM it, redeemed by the blood of the Lamb; redeemed through His infinite mercy-His child, and forever, I am.”
We think of Luke 2 as “The Christmas Story” as we read about the birth of our Savior; the promised Messiah, but is this where it begins? Why did the angels PROCLAIM Jesus? Why did the shepherds PROCLAIM, “about this Child?” Because that child was and is the redemption of all mankind.
In Genesis 3:15, after sin entered the world, God promised the seed of woman would bruise the head of Satan. Most scholars believe this is the first reference to the coming Messiah, Jesus. Isaiah 7:14 says this Messiah will be born of a virgin and in Luke 2, we see the birth of Jesus and He is born to a virgin (Luke 1:27, 34). Throughout the Old Testament we see that God had a plan for our redemption and according to Micah 5:2, the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. The angels were able to PROCLAIM the good news of Jesus birth.
Do you remember when you got your first car? Were you ever named as a starter on a team, make the cheer squad or first chair in the band? Do you remember when you got engaged? What did you do in these situations? You went and told someone (or posted it all over social media). Why? Because it was good news, and you were excited about it. The “angel of the Lord” had “good news of great joy” that he was excited to tell — PROCLAIM.
What is Christmas for? Christmas is the event that took place where Jesus, our Savior, God incarnate, was born in Bethlehem. Why? Verse 11 tells us that “in the city of David a Savior was born for you.” So, what is Christmas for? Christmas is “for you” because from the very beginning God had a plan for Jesus to be born as that perfect sacrifice which enabled us to be a part of His family!
One of the things I love about this event is that the shepherds were outcasts, they were unclean, they were not even considered a credible witness and yet, this is who God chose to see and share Jesus. I am a sinner, we are sinners, but God chose this gift for us even though we are just as unworthy as the shepherds.
Ultimately, all of this was foretold for us, so we could recognize Jesus was born “for us” to have a relationship with God. It is for the world to know. In advance, God shared with us a plan and a place for a reason and that reason is because Christmas was foretold so we would PROCLAIM the birth of a Savior, Christ the Lord.
From the time of creation God had us in mind. At one time we were the ones that didn’t understand what the true meaning of Christmas is, and we did not understand that God had it planned all along. At one point, we were the ones that needed a Savior, but now what was foretold is for telling and it is our opportunity to share the greatest gift of all — CHRIST THE SAVIOR IS BORN.
