Day: December 1, 2024

THE GLORY SHONE

Luke 2:9 NET.

“An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were absolutely terrified.”

Two years ago, we examined the shepherd’s story, but this year, we are going to begin our Christmas series by zooming in on one incident in that story. The very first thing the shepherds saw that night was an angel. At first, it was just one angel. The text says that the glory of the Lord shone around them. It wasn’t just an angel with the glory of the Lord around him. When the angel appeared, the glory of the Lord shone around all of the shepherds.

the story begins in terror

If it was really a silent night when the angel showed up, it was because the shepherds were scared and speechless. We Christians sometimes talk about angels as if they are warm and fuzzy creatures who make everybody smile, but the picture we get in the Bible is that angels are supernatural warriors who are a force to be reckoned with. In fact, all it takes is one angel to slaughter an entire army.

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians that they should not be immoral as some of the Israelites were in the wilderness. He spoke about the time when 23,000 immoral Israelites died in a single day. Paul told the Corinthians not to “put Christ to the test, as some of them did, and were destroyed by snakes.” He told them not to “complain, as some of them did and were killed by the destroying angel” (1 Corinthians 10:8-10). All it took was one angel to destroy thousands. All it took was one angel to kill all the firstborns in Egypt not protected by the blood of the lamb.

So, when the shepherds saw the angel on that first Christmas night, they didn’t feel like singing. They did not feel warm and fuzzy. They could only feel what anyone would feel when faced with an uncontrollable danger. Lions and tigers and bears, Oh my! An angel. Oh my, Oh my!

So, first contact had all the makings of a terrorist attack. Nobody would ever imagine that two thousand years later, we would be celebrating the event with Christmas cards, gifts, and chocolates! When the prophets saw angelic beings in visions, they had so little experience with their form that they often described them by saying that they looked like fierce beasts with a head of a “this” and legs like a “that.” Part of their terror was the fact that they looked so unusual.

But, then, sometimes, they looked just like a man. The angels sent to destroy Sodom looked like ordinary men – so much so that the corrupt inhabitants of Sodom wanted to abuse them. Lot realized that they were not the simple men they looked like. Joshua encountered the Angel of the Lord and dared to ask him whose side he was on – was he for the Israelites or their enemies? The angel told him that he was the commander of the Lord’s army. At that, Joshua “bowed down with his face to the ground and asked, “What does my master want to say to his servant?”

In the Book of Daniel, an angel appeared as just the palm and fingers of a human hand writing something on a wall. King Belshazzar saw it, and the color drained from his face. The joints of his hips gave way, and his knees began knocking together. He was terrified and visibly shaken (Daniel 5). All it took was this meager demonstration of God’s power to take down the pride of the most powerful man in the empire.

Now, these men out in the fields that night were not powerful kings. They were just ordinary men. In fact, they were the lowest of the low. They were humble shepherds. As shepherds, they were probably pretty tough. They kept watch over their flocks. They were perhaps prepared if a wolf or lion came after their sheep. But they saw that angel, and they were absolutely terrified. It was not just their sheep who seemed in danger. They saw an angel. They were probably convinced that it would be the last thing they saw.

Add to that, the glory of the Lord shone all around them. It was night-time. None of these me had ever seen a flashlight, much less the glory of the Lord. It was a brilliant light, brighter than anything in their experience, and it shone all around them. Their first feeling was not the blessed assurance of their salvation. It was a desperate feeling of doom and impending destruction.

But the story ends in joy.

The angel immediately tells them not to be afraid because he is not coming to destroy them. Angels are agents sent from heaven. An angel is a messenger. The message can be bad news or good news. On this occasion, the message is good news. He said, “Do not be afraid! Listen carefully, for I proclaim to you good news that brings great joy to all the people: Today, your Savior is born in the city of David. He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:10-12).

A woman travails in labor – sometimes for hours while her anxious friends and family await the news in anticipation and trepidation. Then the news comes in just three words: “It’s a girl” or “It’s a boy.” The last message these shepherds expected to hear that night was, “It’s a boy.” But that was the angel’s message.

The wise men from another country got the message when they observed his star. That sent them on a mission to find this newborn king and honor him with gifts. Despite the Christmas mythology, they didn’t show up that night. They came later after Mary, Joseph, and Jesus had moved into a house in Bethlehem.

But that night, when the angel told the shepherds that it was a boy, they hurried to find this newborn. When the wise men saw the star, they were overjoyed. When the shepherds saw the baby, they rejoiced and spread the news. They “related what they had been told about this child and all who heard it were astonished at what the shepherds said” (Luke 2:17-18). Then, the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen; everything was just as they had been told (Luke 2:20).

The whole universe had been waiting for this good news. Paul told the Galatians that “when the appropriate time had come, God sent out his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we may be adopted as sons with full rights” (Galatians 4:4-5). Because he was born, we can be reborn. Because he lives, we have the option of living again and forever.

Today’s text suggests the question, how will you meet Jesus?

The glory of God that shone around the shepherds that night terrified them until they heard the good news. It was the Shekinah glory—the glory of God’s presence among his people. That was a one-time event, not to be repeated. But the Bible does speak of a time in the future when Jesus himself will appear in glory.

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne” (Matthew 25:31). When Jesus was born, he did not look glorious. He looked like an ordinary child. The shepherds had to be told that Jesus was the savior, or they would not have gone to look for him. His birth was normal, aside from the fact that his mother was a virgin.

The angel announced his birth with glory. A whole sky full of angels joined him to celebrate that good news. Then, the shepherds went to see Jesus. Many others went to see Jesus while he walked this earth. The apostles said, “We saw his glory — the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father” (John 1:14). But they saw his glory in a vision—on the Mount of Transfiguration. Jesus came in the flesh but not in his glory.

We are still waiting for when the Son comes in his glory. My question for you – brother or sister – is how will you meet Jesus.”  Will you meet him as your savior, master, and king? Will his coming terrify you or be a cause of great joy? The answer to that question will depend on your relationship with him now. When he comes, he will separate the faithful followers from the faithless pretenders. The sheep will be put on his right side, the goats on his left. The sheep will know the joy of a permanent life in his kingdom. The goats will depart from him, destined for a fire which is called the second death. It is a death from which there will be no resurrection. It is what Paul called the penalty of permanent destruction (2 Thessalonians 2:9). All of us will meet the same Jesus. For some, it will be a time of weeping and gnashing of teeth. For some, it will be a blessed reunion with our loved ones to be with the Lord forever. I cannot answer for you. I can only ask the question for you. I can answer the question for me because I have put my faith and hope in Jesus Christ, so my destiny is sure.

Is your destiny sure? If so, good. But I have one more question.

how will your neighbor meet Jesus?

Yes, that neighbor who you see on a regular basis as he comes and goes. When the shepherds got the good news, the first thing they wanted to do was go and see Jesus for themselves. Then, they did not rush back to their regular jobs and regular lives. They had to share the good news. It was too good to keep to themselves. They had the joy of meeting Jesus; then, they had the pleasure of sharing Jesus. But it was not just for their benefit. The villages around Bethlehem were filled with people who needed to know that God had not forgotten them. They needed to understand that a savior had been born.

Your neighbor needs to know that Jesus is not just a religious myth or an excuse to get together with family and pass out presents. Your neighbor needs to know the gospel. The Bible says, “Look! He is returning with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all the tribes on the earth will mourn because of him” (Revelation 1:7). Why will the tribes of the earth mourn? They will mourn because they will meet Jesus as their judge, not as their savior. He must be one or the other. He will either be their savior and welcome them to permanent life, or he will be their judge and punish them with permanent destruction.

On that first Christmas night, the shepherds were given a great privilege. They saw the baby in a manger that all heaven had rejoiced over, and that experience caused them to rejoice as well. But with that great privilege came a great responsibility. The shepherds had to get the good news out. So, as you celebrate the birth of your savior this year, use this holiday period to reach out to your friends and neighbors and make sure they are ready to meet Jesus. Because, when he comes again, it will not be as a baby in a manger. He’s coming in his glory as king of kings and Lord of Lords.