The Good News of Jesus

     What's the best news that you have ever received?  Maybe that you or your spouse were pregnant?  Maybe that you received a promotion you had worked hard for at work?  Maybe you got a clean bill of health after a long, hard battle with sickness or disease?  Maybe the news wasn't even about you, but rather it concerned a loved one?  Regardless of what the "good news" may have been, I'm willing to bet that you could hardly contain yourself from screaming it from the nearest rooftop!

     When we receive it, we want to share our good news with others.  This is a natural response when we are proud of or excited about something.  Good news is naturally meant to be shared.  Perhaps the greatest news that the world has ever received was that which was imparted to shepherds over 2000 years ago.  It was the birth announcement for the promised Messiah...our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

     When we talk about the story of Jesus, we often refer to the "gospel."  The word "gospel" is a "churchy" word that isn't used too often outside of a Christian context.  It literally means "good news,"  because that's what it is.

     When the shepherds received this good news, their response was swift and immediate.  Luke tells us that they went "with haste," which means with excessive speed or urgency.  They didn't debate it.  They didn't wait for the next shift of shepherds to come and relieve them of their duties.  No, they dropped everything and went to "see this thing that has happened" (v. 15).  And they didn't stop at simply checking it out for themselves, but rather they made it known to everyone they came in contact with.

     This was an exciting time for the shepherds and for the entire nation of Israel and for anyone who knew the long foretold promises of the prophets.  You see, since the very beginning of time (see Genesis 3:15), God had been making promises to his people about his Chosen Servant, the Messiah who would come and make right all that sin had made wrong in the world.  These promises were interspersed throughout God's revelation for mankind over the course of redemptive history.

     Peter says in his first epistle that the prophets searched and inquired about this promised Savior.  He concludes that even angels longed to see these things fulfilled (1 Peter 1:10-12).  In other words, the overarching question that the Old Testament is asking is who is this Messiah that is to come?  We see glimpses in the forerunners that drive the narrative forward...important figures in history like Abraham and David.  Each of them received promises from God that effectively pulled back the curtain a little bit more until the day when Christ was finally revealed to those shepherds on that first Christmas night.

     The gospel is good news for so many reasons.  Of course it is the good news of salvation to sinners, but it is so much more than that.  The gospel was then, and is now, good news because it is the fulfillment of all of God's redemptive promises in history.  Salvation is part of his plan, a big part for sure, but God isn't simply concerned with saving sinners.  Through his Chosen Servant, the Creator of the universe is RE-creating all things.  When the scriptures say that he is "making all things new" (Revelation 21:5), they mean ALL THINGS.  It isn't enough to simply reconcile sinful men to himself, but Christ is reconciling the universe itself to himself.  The gospel is the declaration that sin has been defeated and peace has been restored.

     This is good news and like all good news, it deserves to be shared with anyone and everyone.  We should shout it from the rooftops and proclaim it in the streets.  Jesus Christ is born!  The Messiah has come!  Hallelujah!!!

In Grace,
Chris Morris

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Part 3 - The Shepherd's Response

Questions discussed in this sermon:

1.  How did the shepherds respond to the gospel?
2.  How did Mary respond to the gospel?
3.  How have you responded to the gospel?