Hey! Good News!

I’ve often wondered what it must have been like for the shepherds the night Jesus was born. Imagine having your flock-watching routine dramatically interrupted by important news from (are you ready for this?) – ANGELS!! Whaaaa! I think we’ve grown so accustomed to our tradition of telling the Christmas story complete with shepherd’s, wise men, and lowing cattle that the shock and amazement that there were actually angels (and hosts of them, no less) delivering news to the shepherds on the hillside somehow now escapes us! I think it is safe to say that the events of that particular evening varied significantly from the normal course of most every other evening in the fields – just crazy!

But another thing has sadly escaped us – the amazing message the angels were heralding: “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. (I’m imagining a drum roll here) The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! (cymbal crash!) And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” Wow! Good News! I’ll bet the shepherds could have used some good news about then (and maybe a little toilet paper).

If they were anything like me I know they could have. All of us love good news. Right? I mean, given a choice between good news and bad news, I’m taking the good news every time! The interesting thing is that the news of a Savior being born is as good for us today as it was for the shepherds and everyone else on the planet back then! As is often the case, good news is usually “good” because of the bad news that it stands in contrast to. Jesus’ arrival on earth marked the beginning of the culmination of God’s plan to save the world from sin by giving His only Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the debt that sin created. The bad news that this good news stands in contrast to is just that – we are sinful by nature, and the sin into which we were born separates us from the love of God forever. NOT good news! Imagine if that had been the message of the angels that night – “You are separated from the love of God forever….” Uhhh… Bummer! Hardly a theme for the “most wonderful time of the year!” Right? But there is good news! Wonderful news, in fact! And it has everything to do with Jesus and what He came to Earth to accomplish. You’ve heard John 3:16 right? …Go ahead… say it with me…. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Very good! So, what does that mean for us? What makes that news so good? …

Glad you asked… Given the fact that we are all sinners (the Bible tells us that all have sinned and fall short of God’s standard of perfection in Romans 3:23), AND that because of our sinful disposition we are all deserving of death (eternal separation from God; Romans 6:23), AND that there is nothing perfect or right enough that we can do to solve the separation problem that our sin has created (Titus 3:5), we are in desperate need of a plan for rescue! Enter: Jesus! (wild applause) While we are sinful, Jesus (the Son of God) is perfect and righteous! While we are powerless to save ourselves from eternal separation and punishment, He has all the power necessary to do the saving for us! While our moral resources are grossly insufficient for repayment of the debt that our sin creates, His resources and righteousness are limitless and He lovingly transfers them to our account! Man, I love good news! Don’t you? We don’t have to be separated from God for eternity! We can spend eternity with him! Do you remember what John 3:16 said? “…that whoever BELIEVES in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” We must believe – ALL who put their trust in God and turn to Him from their sin will enjoy life with God forever! That’s good news! That’s the best news of all! Merry Christmas Everybody!🎄