As Linus (from the Peanuts) would say . . . “Lights please.”

“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angels said to them, ‘Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.  This will be a sign to you:  You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’  Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests.’  When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.’  So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.” – Luke 2:8-16

Imagine that you were the shepherds that first Christmas night.  You were gathered out on the hillsides surrounding Bethlehem watching your livestock.  You were bundled up to keep warm.  Having never been a rancher or taken care of any animal larger than my 36 pound Beagle, I have a hard time imagining what they were doing.  My best guess is that they were living out the imagery of James Taylor’s classic “Sweet Baby James”:

“Their horse and their cattle are their only companions.  They work in the saddle and they sleep in the canyons, waiting for summer, their pastures to change.  But as the moon rises they sit by the fire, dreaming about women and glasses of beer.  Close their eyes as the doggies retire.  They sing out a song which is soft but is clear, as if maybe someone could hear.”

So, as the doggies retire, these shepherds saw an impressive sight.  It is hard for me to imagine what shepherds were doing on that Christmas night, but it was even harder for the shepherds to imagine the sight they were getting ready to behold.  Out of no where angels appeared in the sky singing a different song (sorry JT).  They were singing “Gloria in Excelies Deo!”  For me today, it is easy to imagine the shepherds seeing the angels . . . this is a story I have heard since I was born . . . but for the shepherds, this was a very “out of the ordinary” situation.  It was not normal for them to see angels on the hillside, no matter how many glasses of beer they may have been dreaming of.  This was a unique event!  The angels told the shepherds to go to Bethlehem and see a baby which was the Savior of the world.

The shepherds quickly took off for Bethlehem.  Can you imagine the conversation they may have had with each other all the way to the stable?  “I wonder what He looks like?  What could this all mean?  I wonder if everyone got this same announcement . . . if so, I wonder how long we will have to wait in line?!?”  The questions would have no doubt fired back and forth throughout their walk/run to the manger.

Upon arriving on the scene, however, I am sure the shepherds were probably scratching their heads a bit.  There was no line outside the stable filled with government and religious dignitaries and local celebrities.  Upon entering the stable, the place smelled more like a barn full of animals than the temple incense.  As they approached the baby in the manger, no halo circled His head, and the child was probably crying for His mother to give Him more milk.  While the text does not say it, I am guessing that the shepherds were probably wondering (either aloud or to each other) if they had heard the angels correctly.  Given the disparity between what they saw and what they had heard, these old school cowboys were placed in a spot that is very familiar to us . . . they were being asked to take God at His Word.

I walk through this story today because many times as I read the Christmas story I think, if only all people could see what the shepherds saw then all people would believe that Jesus is the Savior of the world.  To my old way of thinking, the shepherds, based on what they had seen, would not have needed a lot of faith to believe in Jesus as their Savior.  The reality, though, is that I still think it took LOTS OF FAITH for the shepherds to believe.  In fact, they did not have some of the benefits that we have.

When the shepherds saw Jesus in Bethlehem, they had never heard Jesus preach; they had never seen Him work miracles; they had never imagined the cross;  they had never conceived the empty tomb.  While they had an angel declaration, there were many facts of the story that they did not have.  Based on what they knew, they were asked to take God at His Word (through the angels) and trust Him with the rest.  As people today, we have record of His preaching, miracles, death and resurrection.  We have the testimony of  2,000 years of Church History, and the corroborating evidence of ancient historians.  Given that, however, we have never seen Jesus face to face, and angels have not visited us on hillsides.  Based on what we know, however, we are asked to take God at His Word (through the Bible) and trust Him with the rest.  When we do this, great blessings come our way.

The Apostle Peter wrote a letter to the first generation of Christians who were growing up in our present reality . . . people who had the testimony of eye-witnesses and the Scripture, but had not physically seen Jesus.  To this group (to us) Peter writes in 1 Peter 1:8-9, “Though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”  Peter celebrates the faith of those who have not seen Jesus, but still love and believe in Him.  This verse of Scripture is talking to you and me!

1 Peter 1:8-9 further indicates that when we believe in Jesus based on what we know (but have not seen), we reap the same benefits that His first followers experienced, “an inexpressible joy” (“Good news of Great Joy”) and “the salvation of our souls” (“a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord”).

At first glance, it appears that we have very little in common with the shepherds that first Christmas night, but in the end, we have something big in common . . . we are both being asked to embrace by faith that the child born in Bethlehem is our Savior, Christ the Lord.  Upon hearing this announcement this Christmas will you run to the manger as the shepherds did?  Will you believe in Him based on what you know and trust Him for the things that are harder for you to understand?  If you will, then joy and salvation await.  Those are two Christmas gifts that are on everyone’s list.

This devotional is part of a 25 day devotional guide.  Download all 25 days of the devotional in pdf or ebook format (for free) by clicking here.

I still remember the morning when our son was born.  It was truly an event to celebrate!  After 11 years of marriage, our family had grown from two to three, and joy filled our hearts.  When Josh was born, the news was so great that we could not keep it to ourselves . . . we had to get the word out.  We made phone calls, sent birth announcements, and even had friends decorate our front lawn, all announcing the arrival of this precious newborn!

As I think back on how we announced Josh’s birth, however, I am mindful of the fact that we were quite focused in our announcement.  The waves of people we informed were customized to our situation.  We did not take out an ad in the “Oklahoman” newspaper, or notify ABC News.  Instead, we contacted friends and family in a very targeted way.

In a similar way, when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, God the Father could not keep the news to Himself.  After thousands of years of relating to His creation, His one son had now taken on flesh and entered the world.  The Father was so overjoyed, He began sending birth announcements to the world.  He had Angels sing to shepherds and He placed a star in the sky for the Magi.  Far more than just placing an ad in the newspaper, these two announcements were a very targeted form of communication letting us know something of the purpose of Jesus’s life.

The shepherds were common, working class people in Jesus’ day.  These Jewish commoners sleeping in a dirty field receive an announcement to remind the world that Jesus would be more than just the Messiah of the Government Palace or Temple, but that He came to seek and to save all Israel.  The shepherds became a figure of the scope of Jesus’ saving work in Israel.

The Magi were Gentiles.  These foreign star gazers bring gifts to the new born King reminding all that Jesus’ rule was not just Jewish.  He came to provide a way for any person of any ethnicity to be saved.  The Magi (in some senses) represent me (and probably you), a person of non-Jewish origin forever changed by Israel’s Prince of Peace.

This Christmas as you set up your nativity set and place the wise men and the shepherds beside the manger, may you remember the targeted communication that brought them there . . . and the blessed hope that means for you and me.

This devotional is part of a 25 day devotional guide.  Download all 25 days of the devotional in pdf or ebook format (for free) by clicking here.

From a secular, United States culture perspective, Christmas is a marketers dreamland.  Beginning sometime in mid-October or early November, marketers begin their work to convince us what we “need” this holiday season.  Our desire to be festive, drives us to ask the question, “What trinket, toy, bling, or do-dad really says ‘I love you’ most effectively?”  Marketers representing virtually every product begin a targeted blitz to get the word out for their product.  After two months of being worn down by the marketing machine, we all realize NEEDS, we never knew we had, so we go out to purchase the product.

Most people have negative views of marketing because they have had a bad experience with it.  Virtually all of us have bought (at some point) what marketers have been selling.  Many times, we thought we were buying happiness, but instead we were just buying a bill of goods.  In the end, it is amazing how few of the “needs” marketers sell that we actually have.

The very first Christmas gift ever given was given by our Heavenly Father to mankind.  The gift was the baby Jesus, born in Bethlehem.  When God gave this gift to men and women, He also launched a “marketing campaign” to announce His arrival.  Angels appeared in the sky to speak to “certain poor shepherds in fields where they lay,” advertising the birth of Jesus and telling them why it was Good News for them.  About the same time that the Father sent His Angels to talk to the shepherds, He also placed a marquee in the sky, illuminating the way to the Savior for those in the East.  This star would be a cosmic press release announcing His coming to a set of gift-bearing star gazers.  On the night of Christ’s birth, God launched a media blitz to remind the people of their need and illustrate how Jesus was the One who could bring them joy.

Now, because of our past experience with marketers, the language I used above might have made you furrow your brow.  It seems rather crude and insincere to think of God’s announcements in this way.  In some respects, I agree with you, and it certainly is not my intention to dumb down Advent as a result.  However, I think it is important for us to think through the illustration provided above, because marketing a product that is actually necessary is not self-serving, but loving.

Since the needs Christ addresses are not imagined but actual, and since Jesus provision delivers all it promises and does not disappoint . . . the marketing of the coming of Christ is a blessed thing!  Can you imagine if someone came up with the cure for cancer but never told anyone about it?  That would be crazy.  You would want them to market that cure because its provision is so important and its need is so real.  In the same way, the arrival of the Savior of the world is not a truth to keep quiet, but something that should be shouted from the mountaintops.  God did that through the media blitz on the night Christ was born.

Think about that this year as you consider what God wants you to do with the good news that the baby in Bethlehem is the One who saves you from your sins.  God does not want you to conceal that information . . . He wants you to be a part of His marketing campaign, spreading the good news to all who you interact with.  He began this campaign on the first Christmas, and is continuing it through us today.

This devotional is part of a 25 day devotional guide.  Download all 25 days of the devotional in pdf or ebook format (for free) by clicking here.

One day, Kimberly and I went Christmas shopping.  Faced with a long list of “to dos” that needed to get done, I took a day of vacation and we headed out in the All Wheel Drive sleigh trying to fill it with presents to deliver on Christmas morning.

As we worked our way around the malls looking to make purchases, we were guided by a list of names of people we were buying for.  On this list were friends and family, and because they are so dear to us,  the opportunity to bless them with a gift is always a real privilege.  The problem, however, was what kind of a gift do you bless them with?  Moments like this are a great object lesson for understanding the need for a budget.  If I were to let my love for the people on my list dictate what I bought them, I would never be able to pay off the balance of the bills!  I simply have more love in my heart for the people on that Christmas list than I have money in my bank account  — or even than I WILL have in my bank account if I did not spend a cent between now and when Jesus returns.  Therefore, I could not determine what to give them based on how much I love them, because I do not have a matching resource to offer to the scope of my love.

A second way I could determine what to give them would be to play the principle of reciprocity.  By this, I mean that I would try to give a gift back to someone of equal value to what they have given me.  This principle, however, is also flawed.  I can never pay back my parents (for instance) for all they have done for me.  No sweater (I don’t care which logo is on it) can ever equal sitting through little league games in 40 degree weather or caring for me when I was sick or providing love, food, and shelter for me throughout my growing up days.  I simply will never be able to pay back what has been given to me — I have just received so much.

I was thinking about all as we shopped, and it reminded me of a deep spiritual truth that impacts my understanding of God’s love for me and my response to that love towards Him.

First of all, though our budget always constrains our ability to give, it never constrains God.  God is the only One anywhere who has no budget.  Even Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have their limits, but God does not.  He has everything at His disposal, so He never tires at ways to demonstrate His love for us.  The obvious “big gift” that God gives us each day (including Christmas) is the gift of salvation through His Son Jesus Christ.  As Romans 5:8 says, “God demonstrates His own love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  The God who has everything gave His very life so that we might live and know that He loves us.  Even beyond that big gift, however, God continues to give to us without a budget.  The beauty of nature, the spiritual encouragement of the Body of Christ, tasty food to nourish our bodies, etc. are all evidences of God’s gifts to us.  He never tires or grows weary in giving to His children.  He has all the resources to match the scope of His love for us.

As I was shopping, however, a second thing stood out to me.  I cannot practice the principle of reciprocity with God.  There is no “sacrifice” that I can make in this life that is of equal value to the gifts God has given to me.  No “I’ll go serve you in Africa” claim could ever be the same as all that God has given to me.  We cannot pay back to God what He has given us — for we simply have been given too much.

Given these truths, what are we to do?  Well, when it comes to understanding how much God loves us, we should stand in awe of the gifts He continues to send our way.  What great demonstrations of His budgetless love!  Stop right now and thank Him for His indescribable gifts.  Second, stop trying to pay God back for His gifts to us, for you can never give enough.  This does not mean that we do not serve Him or worship Him or love Him or give back to Him.  We absolutely do that.  Just as I still bought presents for family and friends that day as reminders of my love for them, we still give to the Lord out of our love for Him . . . we just don’t do it to settle a score.  This frees us up and purifies our motives in responding to His gifts!

As you take a day or two to shop this December, may the gifts you purchase remind you of the gifts we have received from Him that we can never repay.

This devotional is part of a 25 day devotional guide.  Download all 25 days of the devotional in pdf or ebook format (for free) by clicking here.

In 1833 William Sandys wrote the hymn, “The First Noel.”  The song details the story of Jesus birth, with each verse of the hymn telling a new part of the story, separated by the chorus refrain, “Noel!  Born is the King of Israel!”  The word “Noel” is a French word for Christmas that comes from Latin roots that mean “New birth.”  Therefore, the song is ultimately about how the “new birth” of Jesus in Bethlehem’s stable leads to the New Birth of the people of God in Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”  Again Jesus tells Nicodemus in John 3:3-8, “‘I [Jesus] tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.’  ’How can a man be born when he is old?’ Nicodemus asked.  ’Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!’  Jesus answered, ‘I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.  Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.  You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’  The wind blows wherever it pleases.  You hear its sounds, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going.  So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.’”  These verses talk about the new birth that believers in Jesus Christ have.  A Christian’s “second birth” occurs because in Christ, their full identity has changed.  The core identity of who they were before Christ was an “object of wrath” before a Holy God.  After trusting in Christ for the forgiveness of their sins, the Christian’s core identity is as a child of God . . . an heir according to His promise.

What this means is that believers in Christ celebrate the first birth of Jesus because it provides for them their new birth into the family of God.  That is why the sixth verse of this hymn has such power to me.  It begins, “Let us all with one accord . . . ”  Since this song has been sung for 180 years now, our voices join the “one accord” with literally millions who have sung this very song.  The verse concludes with declaring the reason for our cross-generational unity, “With His (Jesus) Blood mankind hath bought.”  Because of the blood of Jesus Christ, all believers now have a second, “new” birth.  With this in mind, the chorus sounds off like a 1930′s newspaper salesman shouting, “Extra, Extra, read all about it!”  The chorus shouts out, “New birth!  New birth!  New birth!  New birth!  Born is the One who brings us new birth!

Think about that as you reflect on the lyrics of this great Christmas hymn today.

“The First Noel, the angel did say,

was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay;

In fields where they lay keeping their sheep,

on a cold winter’s night that was so deep.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel!

They looked up and saw a star

shining in the east, beyond them far

And to the earth it gave great light,

and so it continued both day and night.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel!

And by the light of that same star

three wise men came from country far;

To seek for a king was their intent,

and to follow the star wherever it went.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel!

This star drew nigh to the northwest,

o’er Bethlehem it took its rest,

And there it did both stop and stay,

right over the place where Jesus lay.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel!

Then entered in those wise men three,

full reverently upon their knee,

And offered there in His presence

their gold, and myrrh, and frankincense.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel!

Then let us all with one accord

sing praises to our heavenly Lord,

That hath made heaven and earth of naught,

and with His blood mankind hath bought.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel!”

This devotional is part of a 25 day devotional guide.  Download all 25 days of the devotional in pdf or ebook format (for free) by clicking here.

In 1868, Episcopalian Pastor Phillip Brooks needed a song for the kids to sing at a Christmas service at his church.  Not satisfied with any other songs he had heard, Brooks decided to write a song himself.  Inspired by a Christmas Eve service Brooks had attended in Bethlehem during a Holy Land trip three years prior, Brooks sat down and wrote the song, “O Little Town of Bethlehem.”  Not only did the children in his church sing this song in their Christmas program, but millions more continue to sing the song today, some 150 years later.  Think about that for a moment.  This Philadelphia Pastor has a top hit that has lasted 15 decades!  Knowing that best sellers in the iTunes music store top the charts for only about 15 days and even the best of our contemporary praise and worship songs might only persist for about 15 years, Brooks song is amazingly durable.  What is it about this song that has allowed it to endure?

I think the message of this hymn is very powerful.  I have always been struck by the phrase at the end of the first verse, “the hopes and fears of all the years are met in Thee tonight.”  The idea that Jesus Christ comforts our deepest fears and provides for us our greatest hope is an amazingly powerful message!  As I ponder the significance of this phrase, I am reminded of 1 Peter 1:8-9, “Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”  Our deepest fear is death.  Our greatest hope is eternal life in fellowship with our Creator, the salvation of our souls.  Truly, in Christ the hopes and fears of all the years are met.

As you read the words to this hymn today (and as you sing this song many times in the days to come) may you be reminded of the comfort and hope Jesus Christ provides to you and me.

“O Little Town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie!

Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by.

Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light;

The hopes and fears of all the years are met in Thee tonight.

For Christ is born of Mary, and gathered all above,

While mortals sleep, the angels keep their watch of won-d’ring love,

O morning stars together proclaim the holy birth!

And praises sing to God the King, and peace to men on earth.

How silently, how silently the wondrous gift is giv’n!

So God imparts to human hearts the blessings of His heav’n.

No ear may hear His coming, but in this world of sin,

Where meek souls will receive Him still the dear Christ enters in.

O holy Child of Bethlehem! Descend to us, we pray;

Cast out our sin, and enter in; be born in us today.

We hear the Christmas angels, the great glad tidings tell;

O come to us, abide with us, Our Lord Emmanuel.”

This devotional is part of a 25 day devotional guide.  Download all 25 days of the devotional in pdf or ebook format (for free) by clicking here.

I love how our house looks at Christmas time.  Lots of meaningful decorations fill each room.  In our house, we have the great blessing of three nativity scenes.  These nativity scenes are all different, yet the same.  Each set has different characteristics.

One set is a “Willow Tree” nativity.  The characters have no faces, but their long carved bodies evoke emotion like an impressionist painting.  I love the simplicity of this set.

A second set is a “Precious Moments” nativity.  This set was a gift to my wife from her parents as she was growing up  . . . a different piece every year.  Because of that history, this set is a yearly reminder of the “good deposit” Kimberly’s family gave her by telling her the truth about Jesus.

The third set is a “Little People” nativity set that we acquired when our son was only a couple of years old.  It allowed our two year old to play with the pieces in an interactive way, and learn the Christmas story (or at least his version of the Christmas story).  A short time after he got this nativity set, he started to tell me the Christmas story using the angel and Mary.  The angel came to Mary’s house and told her (in his words), “Good news about Jesus.  He came to take away our badness.”  I was so proud.  Then the angel tackled Mary.  We asked him what Mary said to the angel, and he said, “Thank you for coming to my house and tackling me.”  I think that last twist must have come from a Dan Brown novel.

For all the differences between these three nativities, there is one striking similarity.  They all have Jesus as a baby, asleep in a horse trough full of hay.  As I look at that each year, I am awestruck again by the fact that the God of the universe would humble Himself to THAT point.  The independent God coming as a dependent baby.  The One who sits at the right hand of the Father, lying in a cow’s cafeteria.  This just seems so drastic . . . and so odd.  However, there is a plan in it all.  Jesus comes as a baby to fully identify with our experience (Hebrews 4:15).  Jesus came in a mortal Body so that He might be able to die to bring immortality to His people (Romans 5:8).  The baby in the manger looks out of place until we place it in context.

In the Old Testament, the presence of God hovered over the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies.  First this was in the Tabernacle, then it was in the Temple.  The Holy of Holies was a place of great grandeur and formality.  Because of this, it is surprising to find the Savior in the manger in the Christmas story.  I think it is possible that Jesus was born in the stall to announce to the world in a very definitive way that the presence of God would not reside behind a curtain any longer.  The Spirit of God was moving away from a super-protected room inside the Temple that only a few people would ever see, to a public location where lowly Shepherds and foreigners could visit.  This move of the presence of God from private to the public, helps set the stage for the Spirit of God taking up residence in the hearts and lives of those who believe in Jesus Christ today.  The same God who lay in the manger, now resides within us!

This awesome truth is spoken of in today’s song for reflection, Julie Miller’s “Manger Throne” (recorded by Third Day with Derri Daughtery and Julie Miller on 2002′s “City on a Hill:  It’s Christmastime” album).  May you be reminded of God’s residence in your life each time you see the baby in the manger in a nativity scene this Christmas.  ”Our heart is a home for God’s Own Son!”

“What kind of King would leave His throne in heaven

to make this earth His home?

While men seek fame and great renowned, in loneliness our King comes down.

Jesus, Jesus precious One

How we thank You that You’ve come

Jesus, Jesus precious One

A manger throne for God’s own Son

You left the sound of angels praise to come for men with unkind ways

And by this baby’s helplessness, the power of nations is laid to rest.

Jesus, Jesus precious One

How we thank You that You’ve come

Jesus, Jesus precious One

A manger throne for God’s own Son

What kind of King would come so small from glory to a humble stall

That dirty manger is my heart too.  I’ll make it a royal throne for You.

Jesus, Jesus precious One

How we thank You that You’ve come

Jesus, Jesus precious One

A manger throne for God’s own Son

My heart is a throne for God’s own Son.”

This devotional is part of a 25 day devotional guide.  Download all 25 days of the devotional in pdf or ebook format (for free) by clicking here.