"But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord." -Luke 2:10-11 (NIV)

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                                              is defined as:

​                                                                   to feel happiness or joy

                                                     to feel joy or great delight

                                                           to feel or show that you are very happy about something

 

Imagine these shepherds out in the field, attending to their flock as they normally did and suddenly encountering something that would forever change their lives. As a matter of fact, their encounter changed all of our lives. Although at first, they were gripped with fear, the angel told them not to be afraid for it was a message of "good news" that was being brought unto them. The angel goes on to tell the shepherds that Our Lord Jesus, the Savior, had been born.

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Even without reading the whole chapter of Luke 2, there is so much to reflect on within these two verses alone. Let's Explore:

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FEAR NOT

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We all might be experiencing some unexpected things, some things that have shaken us, some things that are beyond our understanding. Some of us may be experiencing some things that might be causing some pain and some despair. Many of us in this very moment may have been going about our usual routine, and along came a moment of darkness, in which we suddenly encountered this unexpected thing that appears like it has come to defeat us, but "DO NOT BE AFRAID", there is good news.

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Because some of our situations are traumatic, maybe even catastrophic, the only good news that we think will benefit us is news telling us that the issue has been handled, the bill has been paid, the loan has been approved, the bloodwork came back negative, the surgery was successful, the student loan covered everything, the case was dismissed, the judgement was rewarded, the offer was accepted, or the papers are final.

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Anything that is not a message that equates to ridding us of whatever burden we are facing is hard for many of us to accept as good news. However, if and when we realize that for all the things that are outside of our control, God remains in control, as difficult as it may be for us to do, we will be able to recognize the birth of Christ as the "good news" that will be forever truthful, relevant, applicable and never grows old regardless of where you are or what you are facing.

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We say that we believe that "Jesus is the Reason for the Season". We say that although we buy gifts and make the holidays about friends and family,  we acknowledge and proclaim that the real celebration is about that baby boy, born in the city of David, who lay in a manger.

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However, while Jesus is the thing that remains constant and unchanged, we often times during this season, find ourselves rattled and unhappy about all the other things around us that aren't where we want them to be. There are many people who around this time are fearful wondering how they will survive the holidays because their relationship ended, or their finances are tight, or because they are experiencing some challenges concerning their health. There are many who are facing things that make joy seem completely impossible, but the answer is still, "Fear Not!".

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The angels understood something that we all wrestle with accepting as our own personal truth and that is the fact that Christ's birth was the hope and joy that we all needed. Christ's birth is the greatest gift that any of us will ever receive. Christ's birth is something that was to the advantage of everyone across every nation. Christ's birth was a cause for celebration because his birth meant that we were all going to be set free just as God had promised and as the prophets had foretold.

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However, if truth be told, it is hard for many of us to allow the joy surrounding Christ's birth to resonate in our hearts and keep us both happy and joyful because while we appreciate the joy that is rooted in the birth of Christ, the truth is that it does not appease our flesh therefore leaving us needing something more tangible to make us smile and put us in "the holiday spirit".

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The truth for many of us is that although we love God, we feel like He is not enough to give us the happiness, the joy, or the peace that we are searching for. Because we are human, for many of us, our joy comes through the connection of companionship, material things, and happy circumstances. For this very reason, while many of us will find ourselves singing "Joy to the World", we truly will be speaking of Christ's birth as a joy to the world, excluding ourselves from this joy because our hearts are heavy and burdened, far from reflecting the joy that we are singing about because Jesus in all his glory simply is not enough for some of us. Far too many of us feel like, "WE NEED MORE!"

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And this is not a judgement call nor is it unrealistic thinking, or expectations that are too high. This is just an open conversation for all of us to take the time and examine our hearts and reflect on our actions and ask ourselves, "Is Jesus Himself Enough?"

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There is nothing wrong with wanting things. We are human. We all have hopes, dreams, goals, and desires. Jesus is aware of this, and he does not fault us for it. Scripture even tells us that He will give us the desires of our hearts. However, we must first delight ourselves in Him. We must put Him above all.

 

If you were to look within yourself, what would your response be if the question was, "If God did not give you what you are currently praying and asking Him for, could you still find joy in Him?"

 

What would your response be if the question was, "Is Jesus enough to take away the fear surrounding the situation that you are currently facing?"

 

What would your response be if the question was, "If Jesus was the only gift that you received this holiday and the message of his birth was the only gift that you could give to those that you love, would Jesus alone be enough?"

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If you realize that your answer to any of those questions was "No", "Maybe", or you simply didn't know, the "good news" is that it's not too late to make a change. While Jesus does not fault us or hold our desires and those things that we long for against us, he at the same time doesn't want us to place these things as being more important to us than he is. While he does not fault our "wants" he wants us to realize that the reality is that he is all that we need and through him, we have it all. He wants us to realize that WE HAVE NO REASON TO FEAR because not only was he born into the world, but he overcame it. "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33, KJV).​ 

 

Jesus knew that his disciples were puzzled by the things he was speaking to them concerning his foretelling of what was to come as he knew that he was close to enduring the cross. And it was within this that Jesus shared with his disciples that they would have grief and would have some sorrow as it concerned his purpose being fulfilled. Jesus' purpose being fulfilled would take him physically away from his disciples, but he told them that the world would rejoice.

 

Jesus was letting his disciples know that their loss would be the world's gain. Jesus also told them that their sorrow would too, turn to joy. Jesus wanted them to have peace that in spite of what he had to endure, it was all well and they could be joyful because he had the victory. Even though he had to bear the cross, it would still be their win. He was letting them know that they could have peace because he had everything in control and all things would be in his control. Jesus gives us this same encouragement even now. No matter where you find yourself or what comes to take you by surprise, FEAR NOT, but REJOICE because Our Savior was born, he has already overcome the world on our behalf.

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NO EXCLUSIONS

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God did not send His Son for a select few, a particular group, or an exclusive majority, but He sent Jesus for the saving of us "ALL" which is why the angel appearing to the shepherds is a profound reflection of the message of Jesus Christ. Jesus is for EVERYONE! It was not royalty that was the first to see Jesus, Our Lord, The King of Kings, but it was shepherds that God orchestrated to see this very thing that had been foretold. Status was not important.

 

While a great majority of us will never have access to royalty, dignitaries, celebrities, and world influencers, WE ALL HAVE ACCESS to JESUS! He does not discriminate, categorize, or exclude anyone from the chance to know him. No one is off limits to the gift of salvation which is why God gave us the gift of Jesus.

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Not only did God choose shepherds as the ones whom the angel would share this news with but really reflect on the fact that Jesus, the Son of God, the Son of the MOST HIGH, was not born in a royal palace. He lay in a manger. A manger was a trough (open box) that horses and cattle ate from. Yet, inside of this manger lay a baby who would become man and one day 'men' across every nation would reverence and bow down to him. This baby who lay in a container where animals were fed from would one day have the whole world in his hands.

 

There was not a written decree that was signed, sealed, and sent out announcing the birth of the Messiah inviting everyone to come and celebrate him. Jesus made a humble entrance into the world. And it was through the shepherds that it was proclaimed that the Messiah had been born. The shepherds found joy in this. They praised and worshipped God for all that they had seen. They simply REJOICED!

 

God does not miss a beat. See it as no mistake that He chose shepherds to be the ones who would spread this news. This was a message that was for "ALL PEOPLE". Had God first shared this with those higher up in status, would they have shared the news with those that they considered lower than they were? Would they have tried to claim that Jesus was only for the esteemed? Furthermore, would the other rulers, dignitaries, and kings have been able to accept that a royal one had been born that would lower all of their ranks regardless of the throne that they sat upon and regardless of how long they had reigned?

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Consider the envy that Herod had for Jesus. This is perhaps another reason why it was not the rulers who first received this message. The shepherds found joy in Jesus' birth while Herod became distressed and angry because he was stuck on the praise of himself and all the glamour, prestige, and lust of material things and his own fleshly desires. Jesus was a threat to Herod. We cannot place our joy in the lust of flesh.​ Much like the angels and the shepherds, we must find JOY in this very special gift that God has given us through the birth of His only begotten Son.

 

We also see that although the angel had told Mary that she would conceive a son who would be called the Son of the Most High and that God would give him the throne of his father David, and that he would reign over Jacob's descendants forever, and that his kingdom would never end, we see that Mary still could not fully comprehend the essence of what this really meant.

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In Luke 2:19 we read, "But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart" (KJV). Mary gave birth to this miraculous child and was still reflecting on all that had taken place and all that she had seen and had been told. She was reflecting on the excitement of these shepherds who had a reverence for this baby boy. These men knew nothing about Mary neither Joseph, yet they worshipped this child who was born unto them. Mary was still trying to take it all in. This child that she had given birth to literally had people everywhere rejoicing in his birth not just because of whose he was but because of who he was and what he would become. She gave birth to a child whose destiny was already known by all those who awaited his coming.

 

Those who "BELIEVED", those that awaited and prayed for the coming of this Messiah did not have to question what he would become or whose footsteps he would follow in. THEY KNEW he had come TO RULE OVER AND SAVE ALL OF MANKIND! Therefore, they did not have to wait for him to finish schooling or choose a trade to celebrate his accomplishments. Instead, they REJOICED when he made his debut into the world because his purpose had already been accomplished even before he was baptized by John, began his ministry, chose his disciples, was crucified and died on the cross, and even before he rose. Because God had already spoken it, ordained it, and confirmed it through the prophets, those that BELIEVED did not have to wait until he physically fulfilled the purpose because BY FAITH, they believed that it already was as God said it would be. For this reason, they were able to IMMEDIATELY REJOICE!

 

They did not have to wait to see it come to completion nor did they have to see it with their own eyes. For those who BELIEVED, their FAITH was enough to give them the HOPE that they had been waiting for. Through Jesus, there were no exclusions. JESUS had come to SAVE ALL! 

 

As Jesus went about his ministry, we see in Luke 5:32 after the Pharisees and the teachers of the law questioned why Jesus was dining with tax collectors and sinners, Jesus responded, "I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" (NIV). Throughout his ministry, Jesus remained firm and made it known that he would not exclude anyone from the chance to know him and accept him as Lord and Savior. This baby boy did not discriminate but became the living and only sacrifice for each and every one of us. He became the one and only sacrifice for all of our sins, and yet for some of us that is still not enough, Jesus still is not enough.

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When the shepherds told others of what they had seen and heard, people everywhere rejoiced although they did not see it for themselves. Jesus was still lying in a manger, had not learned to crawl or walk, yet the people were already REJOICING! What can we take from this? Even before we see the full manifestation of what God has promised us, we can BEGIN TO REJOICE because if God said it, then our expectation has to await it because His having said it, makes it a "definite".

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If we read the entire account found in Luke 2, we discover that Simeon had an expectation that aligned with what God had promised him. The Holy Spirit had told Simeon that he would see this Messiah and Simeon waited in confidence knowing that God would do just as he had said. Simeon believed that he would see what God had promised him he would see. Not only must we learn to REJOICE but just like Simeon, we must allow our EXPECTATION to align with whatever it is that God has promised us no matter HOW LONG IT TAKES.

 

WILL YOU SHARE THE NEWS?

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When the angel appeared to the shepherds and told them about the birth of Jesus and that they would find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothing and laying in a manger which would be a sign to them, they did not wait, they did not contemplate, but the scriptures state that they hurried. And after finding Mary, Joseph, and this child who would save us all, they shared what they had seen. They shared with others that same "good news" that the angel had shared with them. They gloried in what they had experienced. They were happy and delighted in what they had seen. These shepherds who many probably looked down upon were the first to see the baby boy who would become the Risen KING! They had access to royalty in a way unheard of. These shepherds were the first to see Our Shepherd.​ And above these shepherds rejoicing, they did something else that for various reasons, many of us don't do, THEY SHARED THE GOOD NEWS! Sometimes, all it takes to bring hope and joy to others is to share the "good news".

 

As God leads, don't be afraid to share who God is but most importantly who He has been to you. As God leads, share your testimony, your joys, your pain, your tears, and your victory, with others. Sometimes it may be your story of triumph that pushes someone else toward theirs. Sometimes people may not realize that there is hope until its manifested and revealed by what God has done for you and through you.

 

Will you share the "good news" this holiday season? As God leads, share the gift of salvation as a message to others. While you are pulling names out of a hat to see whose "Secret Santa" you are or while you're stressing and feeling down because maybe you can't give the gifts that you want to the ones that you love, realize that there is a gift that costs you nothing and you can share it with as many people as you like without ever using your debit card or cash.

 

I challenge you to give someone the gift of hope! Write them a message telling them "Your Story of Hope"! What has God done for you or what are you trusting Him to do? Whether we realize it or not, we have all overcome something. There is nothing too big or too small to share. Whether it was overcoming a health battle or overcoming your self-doubt, it is significant to somebody, somewhere. Will you join me and simply "REJOICE and Spead the GOOD NEWS" that Jesus is Lord and because of Jesus, our very special gift from God, WE CAN ALL HAVE HOPE! You just have to be able to believe and grasp that Jesus alone, WILL ALWAYS BE ENOUGH!​