Imtijungla Longchar
“... The angel said to them, do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people...” – Luke 2:8-14
When Dr. E.W. Clark and his team arrived at Nagaland in 1872, they brought good news of great joy. It was not Christmas, but it was the right message for the people of Nagaland. Nagas were a depressed people. Our foreparents were filled with fears; they were superstitious and frightened by every noise they heard because anytime their heads would be gone as they engaged in headhunting. They were by no means a fearful people. Then the missionaries arrived and brought a message; “Behold, I bring you good news of great joy!” The good news of Jesus was fearlessly preached by those missionaries to our headhunting forefathers. Finally, when they accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, joy came to their hearts. They started speaking of love. The mountains, rocks, trees and rivers were no longer vengeful gods for them but they recognized them as gifts to be received from the hands of creator God who gave them richly to enjoy. They were not forced to hide themselves under the rocks or mountains in fear because they were not afraid of each other any longer. This is what the good news of Jesus had done to our people many years ago. For 2005 years the good news of Jesus has brought joy to billions of people who have been living in fear and sorrow.
It is a very strange mg at great joy is missing from Christmas in this land of ours. Where is the joy that our fore parents had received about 150 years ago? Can we truly laugh and enjoy when there is bloodshed, violence, crime, and tragedy in our land? How can joy be restored to the human hearts?
Well, let’s think back to what prompted the angel to make this startling announcement. He said, “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” Notice that it is not just joy but great joy. What prompted the angel to make such an amazing statement? Let us go back now to the first Christmas story to see the event, the announcement of the good news and the purpose of the good news of great joy.
The Event
The event is well known to us. It is the familiar record of Christmas story which you probably have heard many times already. However, let us look at Luke’s account. It is a superb, yet simple story surpassing all others. Luke begins by saying: “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world” (Luke 2:1).
Who was Caesar Augustus? Well, he was a very interesting man. To begin with, he was not born a Caesar. He was the adopted son of Julius Caesar, and he took the Caesar name. Augustus is a title. When he came to power, he got rid of the republic and became the first emperor. As such, he wanted a title, he was not satisfied with the title of EMPEROR, and he didn’t like the title KING, nor did he like the title DICTATOR, by the way. He wanted something more grand than that. So they gave him the name AUGUSTUS, which carries a religious significance. In other words this is the beginning of the Worship of the Roman Emperors as gods: The archeological evidence shows that the Romans actually gave Caesar Augustus the title “SAVIOR OF THE WOLRD.” But Caesar Augustus was a man who was cold, callous, cruel and brutal. He did n9~ care for human lives; he was only interested in power (like some of the rulers today). He made a decree that all should be registered for the purpose of taxation. That order went out through all the Roman Empire. He was raising money to extend his empire. But while Caesar Augustus was in Rome feeling the pride of prestige of being the savior of the world, the true Savior of the world was born in Bethlehem.
When the decree of Caesar Augustus went out, there were Joseph and Mary of the family of David in Nazareth who had to go back to their home town to be registered. It was necessary for Joseph to take with him Mary who was great with child. She should not have been traveling but that would not have made any difference to this brutal Roman Emperor who was concerned, not with babies but with power, fame and money. She must go along. They arrived in Bethlehem in time for Jesus to be born there. To understand this, we need to go back to a prophet in Israel who wrote; “”But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times” (Micah 5:2).
According to the prophet, he was going to come out of Bethlehem, but in order for Jesus to be born in Bethlehem, it was necessary to get Mary down there. We understand that God was using Caesar Augustus to fulfill prophecy of Micah. Jesus Christ was born in a small town called Bethlehem as It was prophesied. At first none of the residents of Bethlehem or its visitors knew about it. The officials in Rome and the priests in Jerusalem had no idea about what had occurred. For anyone who was near the manger, Jesus’ infant cry was just a cry of another baby. However Mary and Joseph knew that an extra ordinary birth had transpired.
The Announcement of the Good News
The angels’ message was the good news. All heavenly gates were opened when angels appeared and started praising God to a small and most unlikely audience. Some anonymous shepherds were the first to hear news of one of the greatest events of God’s eternal plan.
Lowliness of the Shepherds
If you were an information in charge to proclaim the message of Jesus’ birth you would not have considered the shepherds. Instead you might have considered telling the high priests, scribes or the Pharisees first. After all, they were looking forward to the Messiah’s arrival. Or you might have sent a message to Caesar Augustus to let him know that the true savior had just arrived.
But none of those people were in the list of God to announce the good news. Instead, He just took the special message to the lowliest class of people. God’s preference for the lowly began at the very beginning of the gospel reflected in the angels’ message to the shepherds, some of the most unappreciated laborers in Jewish society. Shepherds were basically an insignificant class of workers, poorly educated and poorly paid. They were also the lowest people on the Jewish social steps because they had to care for sheep everyday. They could not observe any Mosaic law. Therefore, people viewed shepherds as outcasts. They were despised and considered as dishonest, unreliable and guilty of sheep stealing. Nonetheless, God used the shepherds’ social and religious status to perfectly implement His plan for announcing the savior’s arrival.
The Glory of The Lord Revealed
The angel revealed the glory of God in an amazing way to the shepherds in Luke 2:9 ‘’An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them and they were terrified.” It was right in the midst of the shepherds’ usual night time routine of watching the sheep, takingj1lrns sleeping, telling stories about wolves and lions and perhaps playing their flutes. We can hardly imagine how much they were startled when suddenly, without any warning God showed up in blazing glory.
We know that God does not have a physical body, but exists as the invisible Spirit. But when He has revealed Himself to human beings, He has done with brilliant manifestation of pure light. The light is so powerful that if God revealed it fully to mortals, they would be destroyed at once. The glory of God appeared to Moses (Exodus 33:20-23), at other times to His people (Exodus 40:34-5), centuries later, when Israel completed Solomon’s Temple, the same glory appeared (I Kings 8:10-11). However in a relatively short time, the people turned away from God and He responded by withdrawing His glory (Ezekiel Chapter 8-10). But God’s glory returned the night the angels confronted the shepherds near Bethlehem. This signifies that the presence of God returned to earth that first Christmas night.
The Shepherd’s Reaction
They were absolutely awestruck and were terrified by what they were seeing. But there is nothing new about that reaction. Even the prophets have reacted. For example when prophet Isaiah saw God in a vision he was so terrified (Isaiah 6:5). When Ezekiel saw a similar vision of God’s glory, he fell in a coma (Ezekiel 1:28). If those were the responses of great prophets, how could we expect some illiterate shepherds to behave any differently when the angels suddenly appeared to them? However, the angels in this instance told the shepherds, “Do not be afraid” (Luke 2:10). Often when the phrase “Do not be afraid” is used in the Bible it means that one truly does not need to fear because God’s grace has been revealed (Genesis 15:1; Exodus 14:13; Mathew 28:5; Luke 1:13; Revelation 1:17). And so it was for the shepherds the night the angel came to them. We need not be afraid in God’s presence when He announces His gracious purpose to us.
For Whom Is The Good News?
Is it only for the poor? Is it only for the chosen few? Or is it restricted to the elite? We know that, it is clearly said by the ‘1ngel, “That will be for all the people” (Luke 2:10). All the’ people refers primarily to the people of Israel, because salvation was first promised to the Jews. But the expression “all the people” covers far more than just the Jews. Eight days later, the aged Simeon took Jesus in his arms and praised God saying: “For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light of revelation to the gentiles and for glory to your people Israel” (Luke 2:30-32). That prophetic message expands the angel’s words and makes “all the people” truly mean all people without distinction. The good news is for the individual also. The angel told the shepherds that Christ the savior has been born to you (Luke 2:11). The good news is for the humblest and lowliest, the uneducated and unskilled, the most despised, even the worst of sinners. The Son of God, the one born as a baby that first Christmas night, came as the savior for the shepherds and everyone who believes.
The Explanation of The Good News:
The angel gave the explanation: “Today in the town of David a savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). What the angel wanted to tell the shepherds was, “He is savior, He is Christ and He is Lord.”
Jesus Is Savior: When Joseph had in mind to divorce Mary quietly (Mathew 1:19), the angel appeared to him and said: “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus because he will SAVE his people from their sins” (Mathew 1:21). That is Jesus’ purpose in coming into the world. Many people think that Jesus came to do nothing but teach. Jesus himself said that He came “to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mathew 20:28). Jesus came to stand between our sin and God and on the cross He bore it all.
Jesus Is Christ: The title Christ is the Greek form of Messiah, the anointed one. Anointing was the symbolic way that kings were recognized and set apart above their subjects. Therefore, Jesus’ being called the Christ indicates that He is God’s anointed King. He is the eternal King of kings who will set on David’s throne and reign over His kingdom forever. It remains ever amazing that the angel was identifying the baby in the Bethlehem’s manger as the greatest king, the Christ.
Jesus Is Lord: Over the centuries the high class people in England has had many men with the title “Lord.” In the Old Testament Sarah obeyed Abraham as, calling him Lord (I Peter 3:6). However when the angel used “Lord” in his announcement to the shepherds, he was not using a mere human title. Instead the angel was using a Devine designation and claiming that the child in the manger is God. ‘Jesus is Lord” implies all the sovereignty and authority associated with one who is God. So when the angel declared Jesus to be Lord, he was declaring Him to be the true God.
This Christmas let us search our hearts. Is your heart filled with joy? Do you have great joy in your life? Are you saved? Are you free from fears and tensions? Praise God by singing together with the multitudes of angels in Heaven (Luke 2:13).
But if you are filled with fear, if you are still living in sinful ways, if you are downtrodden, feeling rejected and lowly I want to remind you there is good news of great joy. Jesus freely offered this great joy on the first Christmas night and still is available for you. I hope that you will accept this great joy and have a wonderful Christmas with Jesus this year.
(The writer is a teacher and a well-known seminar and revival speaker; this is an abstract from her eight book “Christian Celebrations”)
