On Christmas the majority of us think about Christmas dinner, gifts we will give and receive, who we will be with, who we will be without...all important. But, the most important thought we should have is about Who's day this really is! Who's birthday we are celebrating?
LUKE 2
7 She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.
That is why we have Christmas. The best gift you could ever receive was born that day. Could you just imagine when the angel showed up at the shepherds camp that night? I'm sure they were startled to say the least! You have to wonder...had they ever even seen an angel before? Did they know immediately it was an angel from GOD? Then, when the "one" angel was joined by...a "vast army" of angels!! WOW!!
8 That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! 12 And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in highest heaven,
and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”
and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”
15 When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
What a sight...and sound...that must have been! If they never had seen an angel before I can imagine there would have been "no doubt" that they were angels! I can bet they left that camp in a hurry...probably forgot a few things...and almost ran all the way to Bethlehem!! Then what a sight they beheld...
16 They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. 17 After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 18 All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, 19 but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. 20 The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.
Like I said, seeing those angels had to have been something incredible! But Ohhhh...it couldn't even have compared to seeing baby Jesus that day! The Savior of the world!!! What could a sheep herder have thought?? Would you have believed when you saw baby Jesus that He was the Messiah...the Savior...your Savior?? I have to think that yes...I would have believed! At least I pray I would have.
Most of us don't have "an army of angels from Heaven" come down and visit us. However, the Holy Spirit is here on earth with us. What is so great about that is...if you have asked Jesus to be the Savior of your life He lives inside of you. You can have Jesus with you every second of every day! He will be even closer to you than He was to the shepherds when they saw Him in Bethlehem. He may not be a babe in a manger...and we don't have to travel to a far off city to find Him...Jesus is just right where you are today...wherever that may be. He is waiting for you to celebrate His birthday with Him...right now!
Ask Jesus to come into your heart today! Celebrate His birthday with Him in the best possible way! If you do that today...not only will you someday see those "armies of angels"...you will see and be forever with the SAVIOR of the world...JESUS CHRIST, God's one and only Son!!
Have a very Merry Christmas!!
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