The passage of scripture from which our teaching is taken this morning is found in Luke chapter 2. And this is God's word. In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Querinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem. Because he was the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her first born son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And in that same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you. You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there were a multitude of angels of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace among those with whom he is pleased. Let's pray together. Father, as we come to your word, we pray that everything that we do here would bring glory and honor to Jesus. In his name, Amen. Maybe it's never crossed your mind to wonder, why would the angels come to shepherds? I mean, why wouldn't they come to the kings, to the royalty, to the powerful? Why would they come to shepherds and announce the coming of the Savior? After all, shepherds were, maybe you didn't know this, were considered the bottom of society. They didn't go to temple, so they were ceremonially unclean. They smelled, stunk actually, because they smelled like sheep and other shepherds. They were known as thieves. A common saying among the shepherds was, what has thine is mine. Not sure they spoke in King James English, but their testimony was not admissible in court because they were considered untrustworthy. So it's even more astounding that when the birth of Christ, the Savior of the world, the Son of God, becoming a man, becoming a baby, is announced by the angels, he announces to shepherds of all people. What does this tell us? God comes to the lowly. Paul writes in Corinthians, for consider your calling, brothers. Not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many powerful, not many of noble birth, but God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise. God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong. God chose what is low and despised in the world. Even things that are not to bring to nothing things that are. So that no human being might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption. Therefore, as it is written, let the one who boasts boast in the Lord. God comes to the lowly and he does so by first coming to Mary and Joseph, who have no reputation, and he chooses Mary to bear the Christ child. And then he chooses shepherds to announce the coming of the Lord. So it's interesting then that in the 21st century, so many churches, especially in the Western world, seem to reach out primarily to those who are well off in society. But God came to lowly shepherds. He says, the glory of the Lord shone round about them and they were filled with fear. Now this isn't the first time that God has appeared in some form to people in the Bible. Abram, Moses, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Paul. And over and over again, when anyone, when God comes to anyone, they're filled with fear. Whatever pride was in them, whatever they thought would account for their goodness just shriveled up when they come into the presence of the Holy One. Isaiah said, woe is me for I am undone. For I'm a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips. By saying I am undone, he was saying I'm coming apart at the seams. I can't even hold myself together in the presence of the Holy God. Ezekiel and John fell down as dead men. Now although God didn't personally appear, he sent his angels to the shepherds. Now our modern conception of angels is influenced, how we see them, influenced by our culture. This time of year especially we have some fairly nonsensical views of angels. One of the most popular movies at this time of year is A Wonderful Life. And the angel, George Bailey, the angel for George Bailey, who played by Jimmy Stewart, is an old man named Clarence. If you've seen the movie, he's anything but awe inspiring. But these angels display the glory of God. The weight of the glory of God causes the shepherds to fear. The light that's shown around them, the singing. And the shepherds were sore afraid. And they do not come to the rich and the powerful. They come to the weak and the lowly and the rejected and the left out. It seems like there's always a crisis or the claims of a crisis. I don't want to step on any toes here, but I was reading somewhere, and I don't have a position on this, I'm just relating what I've read. Since 1967 there's been 41 proclamations of what climate change is going to do to us, and they're all horrible. The ice melting, the oceans, you've seen them. Anyway, there's been 41 predictions. So far they're 0 for 41. So that's a crisis. There's an economic crisis, supposedly. And yet we are the richest people in the north and western hemisphere that have ever graced the face of the earth. There's a societal crisis. There's violence. And people think it's a crisis, and I guess I suppose it is to some degree, but if you have any knowledge of real history of the world, now is maybe a little milder than it used to be. There's always been violence. Because the real crisis, the real crisis of humanity, although some of those things that I just mentioned could be important, the real crisis of humanity is sinful people. That's why this is good news. That's why Jesus comes. That's why God sends His angels and says that for unto you this day is born a Savior. The Gospel is for sinners, and that's why it's such good news. And as we see in this story, God is the one who initiates. These shepherds are not seeking, yet God sought them. Jesus said the same to His disciples in John 15. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and your fruit should abide so that whatever you ask in My Father's name, He may give it to you. These twelve disciples, and at that time there were eleven because Judas had already left, but these eleven disciples had been chosen, chosen by Jesus Himself. They were not seeking Him. Ephesians chapter 2 tells us the same. That we were dead, and our trespasses and sins in which we once walked, according to the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air. That's the devil, in case you didn't know. The Spirit that is now at work in the sons of Bedeans, among them too, we all once lived in the passions of our flesh. What's important to know there is that Paul is a Pharisee. He calls himself a Pharisee among Pharisee, as to the law blameless, and yet he says of himself that he lived in the passions of the flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath like the rest of mankind. What does that mean? That means that every single one of us are born sinners. Every single one of us have committed sin. Every single one of us will bear the judgment of God when we are no longer alive on this earth. Every single one of us will have to come face to face with the true judge of the universe. And every single one of us, apart from Christ, will be sentenced to eternal life apart from God and what the Bible calls hell. And Dante's Inferno, as people arrive there, there's a sign, and I don't think there will be a sign, but there's a sign that says, abandon all hope ye who enter here, and who will enter there, people who did not believe in the Savior. So, Paul goes on to say, but God, being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead under trespasses, made us alive together with Christ by grace you have been saved. So, even though that was our situation, even though that was our fate, even though we had sinned against God and deserved the punishment that he rightly would administer to us for all of eternity, it says he was rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us. He was rich in mercy when he sent the angels to announce the birth of his own son, Jesus. And he raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places. So, in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace and kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Another version says his unfathomable riches. Don't yell out loud, but you know what a fathom is. A fathom is a measure, I think it's about six feet, is a measure of the depth of water, the ocean. So, what Paul is saying is that the riches of his grace and kindness toward us in Christ are too deep to be measured. Too deep. Too deep. Think about it. You were destined to abandon all hope ye who enter here and instead you have been seated with him in the heavenly places in Christ if indeed you believe the gospel. How much do you have to believe the gospel? Some people think, well, you know, I only believe maybe like 50%. That's enough. God says a smoldering wick you will not put out. It's not the size of your faith that makes you a Christian. It's who you have faith in that makes you a Christian. Because your Savior is big even if your faith is small. So, he is a Savior. He is a Savior from sin. And to save us from sin, he had to be God. And he has to be man. And he has to keep the law perfectly. So, why do we need a Savior? The gospel says that peace among those with whom he is pleased. Of course, the King James version of this verse is often the most quoted. Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace goodwill toward men. It's frequently quoted because it speaks to the deep desire in every human heart to be at peace. It resonates with us to rest, to be free from conflict, to be at peace. When Reed was praying, he was praying for the peace in all these different places in the world. Peace is what we desire. Jesus says in John 14, peace I leave with you, peace my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives you do I give you, do not let your heart be troubled nor let it be fearful. Paul promises peace in his letter to the Philippians. He tells us to be anxious for nothing but in prayer and supplication and thanksgiving. Let our request be known to God and the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. So, we're not without biblical warrant to desire peace. And if the Bible is true as we believe and teach that it is, then we can ask where is the peace? Maybe it would help if we understood what kind of peace is being offered. One possibility is that the Bible is referring to peace between nations. Yet it seems the history of mankind since the birth of Jesus has been one of constant conflict. I think somebody once did a study and they came up with since the birth of Christ there have been 37 years where there's been no conflict. Now that may be just because they didn't have access to the conflict during those 37 years. But you think about in our lifetimes, well some of our lifetimes. There's been Korean War, a Vietnam War, a Persian Gulf War. Lately there are hostilities between Ukraine and Russia. There's ongoing hostilities between Gaza and Israel. In Nigeria, Islamic terrorists are killing Christians by the hundreds and it barely gets a mention. So it would seem by any standard of the measure that the birth of Christ did not bring peace. At least not peace between nations or between peoples. What about personal peace? Perhaps the peace that the Bible promises in Christ is personal peace. In one of his books, the late Dr. James Boyce of Second Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia points out that many famous and successful people, after having attained their success, wealth, etc. confess that high on their list of priorities is peace. Might be peace with family members, peace of mind, peace of conscience, whatever form it takes. It's peace that's desired. And if you think about it, it's no wonder that our bookstores, when we had bookstores, were filled with books that designed, at least in part, to bring us peace in one form or another. You can look on Amazon if you can't find a bookstore. Here are some of the titles. Doing Less Than Having More, Seven Laws of Spiritual Success, Don't Sweat the Small Stuff, It's All Small Stuff, The Aladdin Factor, Feel Good Handbook, Wisdom of the Ages, Pull Your Own Strings, The Joy of Stress, Freeing the Soul from Fear. Why is everyone so cranky? Ten trends that make us cranky and how we can find peace of mind instead. There's no doubt that each of us desires what we would call peace of mind. It can be found. The danger is that often when it is found, it's false peace. The Bible is full of examples of those who have found false peace. One such example is found in the book of Jonah. Jonah was instructed by the Lord to go to Nineveh and preach against the sin of the city. Instead, he boarded a ship headed for the city of Tarsus. Tarsus is in the opposite direction from Nineveh. He went to the bottom of the ship and fell asleep. He had peace, peace of mind. But it was false peace, circumstantial peace. And we're vulnerable to that same sort of peace. People make all sorts of sinful decisions and justify it by saying, I have a peace about it. It's a kind of Norman Rockwell or Kurian Ives or Disney kind of peace. It's circumstantial and it's temporary. And it might be beautiful to be sure, as all false peace is. It seems pleasant enough at the time, but it doesn't deliver the implied promise. For you history buffs, it's like Neville Chamberlain, waving the agreement with Hitler and proclaiming to the world that we would have peace in our time. And we know what followed World War Two. So it's not mainly peace between nations or peace of mind that Christ came to bring. So what then is this peace? The answer is found in the words of the angel to Joseph. She will bear a son. You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. People just in general don't like to talk about sin. But we sing about it in all our favorite hymns at this time of year. Listen to some of the words. Come now long expect to Jesus, born to set thy people free from our hearts and sins. Release us, let us find our rest in thee. O holy night, the stars are brightly shining. It's the night of the dear Savior's birth. Long lay the world in sin and error pining, till he appeared and the soul felt his worth. Hark the herald angels sing, glory to the newborn King, peace on earth, and mercy mild. God and sinners reconciled. No more let sin and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground. He comes to make his blessings flow, far as the curse is found. Far as the curse is found, far as, far as the curse is found. And we sing those hymns, and I don't think we even notice the words we're singing. We're admitting that we're sinners. We're admitting that we need a Savior. We're admitting that we can't do it on our own. So many of us, even people who believe the gospel to some degree, think it like this. They think, you know, I'm pretty good. I'm pretty good. I just need Jesus to top me off. I'm three quarters of the way there. I just need Jesus to get me the last quarter. I'm almost finished the race. I need Jesus to get me across the finish line. But the reality is, is you are dead in your sins. If you've seen an illustration I've used before, imagine three of you. I'm going to pick on Graham because he's here. Graham and Tracy and me are all on the shore of Nova Scotia. And we are going to swim to Great Britain. Okay, when we take off, who's going under first? Probably me. Although I have a little bit of marine mammal layer, so maybe I would survive a while. And then Graham goes down and then Tracy goes down last. But you know, if you put a dot on where, even if Tracy swam ten miles further than either of us, if you put a dot on where we went under, we'd all be under the same dot. Because that's how far we are from the grace and the holiness and the mercy of God on our own. We can't get there. We can't get there. No matter how good of a swimmer we are, no matter how good of a person you are, no matter how much you've given to the church, no matter how many acts of righteousness you've done, you aren't good enough to go to heaven. You're not. I hate to break it to you, but it's a kindness to tell you that you're a sinner headed for hell apart from Christ. But the good news is, unto this world, a savior is born, Christ the Lord. So what is the peace that Jesus Christ is born to bring us? It's peace between God and us. Ephesians 2 says, But now in Christ Jesus, you who were formerly far off had been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall. By abolishing in His flesh enmity, which is the law of commands and ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into one man, thus establishing peace. He might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by having put enmity to death, enmity, and He came to preach peace to those who are far off and peace to those who are near. It goes on to say, so that you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and are of God's household. There is always a cost to peace, and the cost was the cross. The cost was the cross. Jesus had to be a man, He had to be God, He had to be perfect. We couldn't pay for each other's sins because we are all sinful on our own. Somebody who wasn't sinful had to take our place, and that's Jesus. Both God and man. If you read further in Luke chapter 2, it says, Mary treasured these things up in her heart. I know I've used this illustration before, but I only have two more Sundays with you, and we're about done with this one, so I'm going to tell you again. Maybe you can remember it. Maybe it'll be something that you can use when you witness to somebody, if you ever do witness to somebody. Imagine everyone is to be executed. Pick your poison. It could be hanging, it could be a guillotine, it could be an electric chair, it could be a firing squad, whatever it is. Everybody's in line. Everybody in the world is in line. And if Tracy's the first in line and I'm the last in line, and I say, I'll trade places with you, that might seem like I'm doing her a favor, but I'm not because she's just going to get to watch everybody else die ahead of her. And she's going to die too. Somebody not in line. Somebody not in line has to take your place for you not to suffer what you deserve. And that somebody is Jesus. That's why He's the Savior. He took your place in line. He took your place. And He suffered execution on the cross to bear the penalty for all of your sin so that you might live forever in the presence of God in a heaven that you do not deserve. That's the story of the Incarnation. That's what the angels were singing about. That's the good news that was announced to the shepherds. If you're here and you've never given your life to Christ, if you've never committed your life to Christ, I'm asking you to do it now. To bow the knee. To tell Jesus, I believe I want to be a Christian. I want to turn from my sin and believe that you died in my place and will save me from my sin for all of eternity and I will go to heaven. That's what repentance is. We talked about it earlier in the service. You repent by turning from your sin and embracing Jesus. That doesn't mean you'll never sin again. But what it does mean is that all your sin, past, present, and future, is forgiven in Jesus. If you haven't ever done that, if you haven't ever put your faith in Christ, now is the time. Don't leave here today without doing that. Life is short. We don't know when it will end. Believe while you can. Let's pray.