Scripture reading: Isaiah 9:1-7.

Sermon text: Luke 2:1-20.

One look at our world today reveals a lot that's wrong. People today still struggle to repair their lives from disasters that befell us this year. People today celebrate their first Christmas without loved ones. People wonder how they'll  make a living in a depressed economy. Governments still oppress God's people, even as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, Our Lord.

In most ways, little has changed in the past two millennia. People still struggle; people still grieve. People still fight oppression, both legal and traditional. If the fight continues, why do we celebrate a birth in Bethlehem?

Two thousand years ago, Mary and Joseph found themselves over 70 miles from home in an overcrowded village. They traveled to Bethlehem at the command of a pagan Roman emperor who ruled over the Jews through a paranoid and psychotic king named Herod. Herod may have called himself the "king of the Jews," but everyone knew he ruled only with the help of Roman legionnaires.

No one knew the true identity of Mary and Joseph; no one suspected her baby would bring the end of an era and inaugurate a new kingdom, the Kingdom of God.

The first heralds of the new kingdom appeared to some of the most unsuspecting recipients of a heavenly message. No one would have chosen shepherds as the first to hear the announcement of Jesus' birth. Shepherds ranked near the bottom of the Jewish social scale. Shepherds smelled rank, and because they rarely parted from their sheep, they spent most of their working lives ceremonially unclean, so they almost never participated in the great festivals at the Temple.

Yet, God sent His angelic choir to a group of grungy shepherds in the fields outside Bethlehem, not to the sophisticated religious elite of Jerusalem. "Fear not," said the first angel, "for 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 Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign into you: ye shall find the Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger."

The appearance of the angel would have thrown the shepherds into a panic, but what happened next would have overwhelmed them. "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, good will to men.'" Can you imagine the majestic appearance of an entire heavenly choir? The "glory of the Lord" bathed the shepherds in indescribable light, and the music of their song would outrank the greatest symphony orchestra.

It's no wonder the shepherds (when they recovered) said to one another, "Let us now go even into Bethlehem and see this thing which the Lord hath made known unto us."

When the shepherds saw the Baby, they did 2 things that still apply to us.

First, notice the shepherds told everyone they met about the Child. Christians, we have great news to tell the world: Jesus has come, and He brought a new Kingdom with Him. The old ways of doing business in this world should no longer apply to believers. Pride, envy, and a shortsighted focus on this world should never appear in a Christian's life. We live even now in a new Kingdom, an eternal Kingdom which values the person over the possession, because we know that only those we take with us will partake in the Kingdom of God.

Every action, every thought, every attitude of believers must reflect eternal values that bring people to a realization of their worth to Jesus. Anyone who wants to know their worth to Jesus need only look past His manger to His cross and empty tomb. Jesus didn't come into the world to give us another religious celebration; every society had plenty of celebrations. Rather, Jesus came into the world to reestablish our peace with God and, in that peace, to establish a relationship with our Creator. Jesus came to defeat sin and death, and He accomplished His victory at the cross and an empty tomb.

Secondly, The shepherds left the manger  "glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen." We, too, must praise God for all He has done for us. God has graciously included all believers in His eternal Kingdom. He has also protected us and provided for us in this life. Have you praised God for His gracious blessings in your life? Have you brought glory to God through your life? God deserves our praise: first, for Jesus' life, death, and resurrection; secondly, for accepting all who believe in Jesus, confessing Him as Lord, into his eternal Kingdom; and lastly, for His gracious provision in our lives.

As the angels shone the light on the shepherds 2 millennia ago, we must let the light of our salvation shine in our lives. This Table today reminds us of Jesus' sacrifice, the sacrifice He was born to offer for us. However, this table also reminds us of Jesus' victory. As you celebrate Holy Communion today here at New Hope, may you leave today and let Jesus' glorious light shine through you, illuminating a world that needs to hear of Jesus' victory through His birth, death, and glorious resurrection.