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Discover the Lamb: Part 2

The Lamb Provided

At this holiday season we've been kind of watching together, looking together as God has put forth his plan to send his lamb into the world and now it is starting to unfold.

When man fell into sin in the Garden of Eden, God made a promise that a redeemer would one day come. This redeemer would come as the savior of the world. He made that promise in Genesis 3:15.

So all through the Old Testament, God worked to bring this event to pass. Every sacrifice, every ritual of Jewish worship, everything God did was moving steadily toward the moment when the Lamb of God would enter this world and pay the price to save men and women from their sins.

A Father, A Son, and A Promise

Now, I can think of one occasion that kind of is another forerunning point to this—when a brokenhearted father named Abraham walked up the mountainside with his only son Isaac. He was taking that son to the top of the mountain to offer him as a sacrifice to the Lord.

On the way up that mountain, Isaac asked his father Abraham what they were doing. What is the significance of this? And here is what was said that day. I'm going to show it to you. It's out of Genesis 22:6-8:

And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife, so that they both went of them together. And Isaac said to his father Abraham, "My father." And he said, "Here I am, my son." He said, "Behold the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" Abraham said, "God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son." So they went both of them together.

I bring that up because I want us to see the consistency of our God all throughout the scriptures, all throughout history.

And our text in Luke 2:1-20 tells us about the night that all of those many promises were fulfilled. It was the moment when God's promise to send the redeemer into the world was fulfilled. And as we look on those events of that special night 2,000 years ago, we can learn something about what God did when he provided that lamb.

Point One: The Location Involved in the Provided Lamb

The actual location is significant.

See, first off, the fact that Jesus was born in Bethlehem was no accident. It was predicted years before and it came to pass. Micah 5:2 for those of you taking notes. This was common knowledge among those who studied and knew the scriptures. Matthew 2:1-6 tells us as much, right?

So while it should not be a surprise to us that Jesus was born exactly where the Bible says he would be, think about the events surrounding his arrival there. It's absolutely amazing when you stop and ponder it.

See, there are tons of plot twists going on here.

And as verse 4 tells us, Mary and Joseph lived in Nazareth. Nazareth is 70 miles north of Bethlehem. For the Messiah to be born in the right location, a series of events worked together to bring that to pass.

A pagan emperor named Caesar Augustus, living thousands of miles away, had to issue a decree that all of his subjects be registered and taxed. This order for a census was then sent out far and wide. The call is issued in Israel and Joseph and Mary now have to return to their ancestral family home which is Bethlehem.

Now this may not mean much to some but what it does teach us is a couple things.

One is that Caesar may have been ruling but God was overruling.

God in his providence worked out all the details necessary so that Jesus might be born where the prophet said he would be. And by the way, if he can do that, then surely he can take care of our little needs, right?

No Room in the Inn?

In verse 7, we're told that the Savior's entrance into this world was anything but glorious. When the young couple arrived in Bethlehem, they discovered that there was no place for them to stay. Now they found refuge in a stall used to house animals. Whose animals? That's key. Stay with me.

When Mary delivered Jesus, she placed the baby in a feeding trough.

Now, I don't think human beings, you and I, can comprehend the enormity of the truth that's contained right here. Imagine now: God himself came into this world. The same God who made the universe and all the treasures found in that universe. And he came into the world as a little baby. But he was not born in the lap of luxury.

When it says no room in the inn, it is not necessarily talking about the local Bethlehem Motel 6. Did they have hotels back then and refuge places to stay? Of course. Were they probably full because of the census? Yeah. But I think it says something different here.

See, think about this now. When all of Joseph's extended family arrive in Bethlehem for the census, they are not just staying overnight or for a long weekend. Most would be there for at least a week or two.

When you show up to Uncle Simon's house, and he only has so much room to offer, the word "inn" in our text should be translated as referring to the inner parts of the family house, which would be given out based on age and status.

Mary and Joseph hadn't either.

So Jesus was born into the lesser of the family. The younger and the least in status would have been given the least accommodations within the family house.

What was attached to almost every large family house in that time? Their stable.

So, the stable attached to the side of the house makes a lot more sense, doesn't it? These would have been Joseph's relatives' animals that were in that stable.

A side note, another reason for this interpretation is that when the magi show up in Matthew chapter 2, they're now in the house. Think it through for a second with me. So as all the other relatives moved on, space opened up and Mary and Joseph stayed on a little bit longer. You got the 40 days of purification after childbirth. You got the dedication at the temple. It's pretty much obvious that Mary and Joseph probably stayed at Uncle Simon's house for probably up to a year or a little longer before they fled to Egypt.

It makes sense, doesn't it?

But this is also good news for us. It wasn't that people were turning away a pregnant lady on Christmas Eve. It was that the family was set up and so they got set up in the family stable where she could have the baby and still be comfortable and still have family around. That's the way I look at it.

The Humility of Our King's Arrival

Back to the text.

Our God through Jesus Christ humbled himself and entered into the world in the most basic no-frills way. His humble birth signified the kind of life Jesus would live all the time while he was here on earth.

At one point in his ministry, he had no place to call home (Matthew 8:20). When he died, others provided the place and the things necessary for his burial in John 19. The God who made everything and who could have had anything chose to live a life of the most basic existence.

Why? Why did he do that?

I sometimes think the answer is just this one thing: because he loves us in such a way that he wanted to make sure that all of us—all of us—would feel he was approachable.

He was born to be our king. But he came into the world as one of us.

Those of you who know who you are. You know who I'm talking to. And if you know any of my background, you know I'm right there with you. Listen to 2 Corinthians 8:9:

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

That has nothing to do with earthly wealth. That has to do with the richness of contentment—godliness is great gain. And you're going to step into eternity with all of your sins forgiven.

And he did it so that we might understand our burdens. Hebrews 4:15-16 says:

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in the time of need.

See, he did it so that he might enter into our suffering, die in our place, and lift us up out of our circumstances when we call on him by faith.

I thank God for the humility of our king's arrival.

The Swaddling Clothes

Then in verse 7, we are told that Mary took her baby and wrapped him in swaddling clothes.

There it is. My favorite part of the Christmas story, the swaddling clothes and what that actually meant.

People commonly wrapped their infant children in blankets and what they had available in that time period. And they did that to help strengthen the limbs and provide protection for the child. We still wrap little babies up tight to this day, don't we?

However, those strips of cloth were used for one main reason in that culture and in that town.

You see, the town of Bethlehem was known for raising sheep and having the best lambs to be purchased for sacrifice on the way to the temple. Swaddling cloths were used in the breeding and maintaining of a certain value item. And I'll get to that in the next point.

But Jesus was wrapped this way because those swaddling clothes were then going to serve as a sign to the seeking shepherds.

But before we get to that, let me just sidebar and add: this is the intentionality of our God on full display. There are no accidents and coincidences along life's way.

The Bread of Life in a Feeding Trough

Then we are told that Mary took the baby and placed him in a manger. The word refers to a feeding trough where animals would find their food.

Question. Do you believe it's an accident that the Bread of Life (John 6:35) is placed in a feeding trough?

He came to satisfy the hungry souls of men and women. Therefore, it was appropriate that Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

Do you know what the word Bethlehem actually means? It means the house of bread. And now he's laid in a manger.

I want you this holiday season when you hear the word manger, I want you to think about the bread of heaven. Have you tasted heaven's bread? Has the Lord Jesus Christ been in your life to satisfy your hungry soul? If you will come to him, you will find that he does satisfy in such a huge way and that he is the Bread of Life.

I'm glad that Jesus was born in a stable and laid in a manger. I'm glad that he was born into humble surroundings and not into the silver spoon of wealth.

Why?

Because if he had been born in a palace, the shepherds we're about to talk about in a moment, they would have not had access to him. But because he was born in these humble surroundings, he is more approachable to the common man. You know, folks like you and I.

Maybe some of us would feel uncomfortable approaching a savior reared in the lap of luxury. But we have less trouble coming to the Lord Jesus who has walked some of the same hard paths we've had to walk.

Point Two: Some People Involved in the Provided Lamb

Let's talk about some of the people involved in the lamb that was provided.

The birth of the savior did not happen in a vacuum. While the people in Bethlehem were ignorant of the wonderful events happening in their town, God revealed the good news to some poor, humble shepherds who were outside the town on the Judean hillsides.

Look in verse 8.

In verse 8, you will see their occupation is actually how they're identified. The Bible simply calls them shepherds.

These were men who were responsible for watching over flocks of sheep. Their work was dirty and hard. It required the men to be away from home for long periods of time as they searched for places to graze their flocks.

Now these guys were often crude, vile men known for their sinful lives and their evil ways.

Shepherds were considered ceremonially unclean because of their duties and what their occupation required of them. Their work prevented them from regular attendance at the temple where they could be ceremonially cleansed. And as a result, these men were considered the lowest of the low.

Of course, it would be these very men who tended the lambs that would one day be used in the temple sacrifices.

Yet, it was these dudes that heard the glad tidings first. It was these guys who received the message of peace from the angel of the Lord.

How cool is that? What a blessing to someone like me.

See, folks may not care about you and I. Some people may look down on us with disgust because of who we have been or because of what we have done in this life. But there is a God in heaven who loves us in spite of everything.

And if he can take me off the salvage pile and have me standing here talking to you this morning, he can do the same and more in your life. Trust me on that.

If you know this and you've tasted the bread of life and know that you are saved, then celebrate this Christmas season.

When I hear the shepherds, I always think about this whole deal is for all of us.

The Sign of the Swaddling Clothes

So in verse 12, we hear that swaddling clothes would be a sign unto them. So a baby wrapped in these strips of cloth. Why is that a sign to some dirty-faced shepherds?

Because these pieces of cloth were very specific in nature and they had but one job.

These strips would be what you would wrap the spotless lamb's feet in. Whenever a lamb was born without spot or blemish, immediately the feet were wrapped in swaddling cloth so that the animal never actually touched the ground. See, it would be more valuable. It would bring a bigger price.

The sign then is a very specific sign.

The Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world was marked as such by his own mother who wrapped him in a way that would mark him as the one, the Messiah, the king had been born.

It's been said that these cloths also had a second purpose, and that was to wrap a dead body. So, it's also marking Jesus as the one who came to die.

How cool is that, huh?

The Obedience of the Shepherds

In verses 15 and 16, I want you to check out the obedience of the shepherds. As soon as these dudes hear the news of the Savior's birth, they leave their sheep on the hillside and they run into the town of Bethlehem to find the Lord Jesus. When they arrive, they find everything just as the angel had said.

What a picture of grace.

Regardless of a person's past or how low they have fallen in life, there is still hope for them in Jesus. The Lord turns none away, but invites all who will come and meet him to be saved by the grace of God.

So my message is regardless of your station in life, if you will come to Jesus, he will save your soul. Don't let some sin or some situation stand between you and heaven. Come to Jesus today because he will not turn you away.

Sharing the Good News

Now look to verses 17 and 18.

As soon as they realize the magnitude of the things they had experienced, they began to share the news with anyone they meet. They tell everyone about the baby in the manger who is Christ the Lord.

Now, of course, the people who hear them, they're kind of astonished to hear these kind of guys talking about such spiritual matters, but I like to think that some heeded the message and went to see for themselves.

And one of the blessings of the gospel of grace, it's too good to keep quiet about.

As soon as you experience the power, you want others to experience it also. In fact, those who know the good news of salvation through Jesus are actually under divine obligation to share that news with people as they pass through life.

Not strangers that you meet. Don't go on an airplane and sit next to a stranger and say, "Do you know where you're going to go if you die?" That's not sharing the good news. That's being an annoying religious nut job.

But people that you meet and that you understand and that you talk with, you can't help but share the good news of Jesus Christ with them when you are saved because it's that good.

We have a savior and we have a message worth sharing. May the Lord help us get out there and do whatever we can to tell the lost world about a redeeming Lord.

Point Three: The Provided Lamb Involved Praise

The provided lamb involved praise.

If you go back to verses 9 through 14, you see, first of all, there was heavenly praise.

As those shepherds go about the business of another boring night with their flocks, something astonishing goes down. There is the appearance of the heavenly entourage, bearing the good news that heaven has now invaded earth and that nothing will ever be the same again.

Heavenly Praise

In verse 9, suddenly the angel of the Lord appears above those shepherds. No doubt this angel is blazing with the brightness of heaven itself. And like a flash, he lights up the night sky. And the shepherds are instantly, insanely terrified by their heavenly visitor.

But the angel doesn't leave them in fear for long. He begins to speak. And as he does, he shares with the shepherds a message from heaven that the earth had been waiting for for 4,000 years.

He tells them that the hope of the ages had been provided. He tells them that a savior has been born. He tells them that Christ, the Messiah, the anointed one, of whom the world has waited since the Lord told Eve he was coming in the Garden of Eden through the seed of the woman in Genesis 3:15—that moment had arrived.

He tells them that the Lord had been born in Bethlehem. He also tells them where to find the child and how to recognize him when they arrive where he was.

What an announcement.

The world had wallowed in the grip of sin for thousands of years, waiting for the appearance of the one who would sever the bonds of sin and deliver men from the curse. Now he's here. The wait is over. Salvation will be accomplished just as God had promised it would be.

And the announcement was made to these dirty-faced, humble shepherds going about the ordinary business of life.

A Personal Message

Now, I really want you to notice one more thing. I want you to notice that the angel made the message personal to the shepherds.

In verse 11, what does it say? Unto you a child is born.

Thank God the message is a personal one.

It was given to those shepherds, but it was made available to all of us. When God breaks in on the ordinary events of your life, please don't turn away. You never know when God will take the routine and the ordinary and transform it into a supernatural event in your life.

When he does, it is his call for you to receive him by faith and be saved by his glory, by his sacrifice, by the grace that is imparted to us.

Look at verses 13 and 14.

We see that as soon as the angel finishes delivering heaven's message to the shepherds, he is joined by a great multitude of angels who praise God and declare the truth that the message is indeed for all of mankind.

That includes all of us.

It's interesting that when the angels appear, the content of their statements are designed to praise and magnify the name of the Lord.

Human Praise

And in verse 20, we also get some human praise.

After the shepherds hear the message, they meet the master. They return to their flocks, rejoicing as they go. Their voices are also lifted up to God in heaven to praise him for this glorious gift.

But notice the difference between their praise and the praise of the angels. I want you to see this today.

The angels praise the Lord for what has been done for others in verse 11.

And the shepherds praise the Lord for what has been done for them in verse 20.

Do you see it? There's a difference.

And I'm glad that you are saved and all that the Lord has done for you, but I sure am even more glad that the Lord has done something in my heart and saved me. I can now praise him as well.

When they heard the message, no doubt these shepherds were amazed and maybe a little skeptical as well, but when they found Jesus just as the angel said that they would, when they met him for themselves, they could praise him from their heart because they have now been stone cold convinced of the truth.

Must have been something to watch a group of raw-boned, rough shepherds leave that town rejoicing and praising the name of the Lord.

One old school preacher said that most likely the last time they came through Bethlehem, they had been carousing and acting like the sinners they were. Now they're new men. They're excited about it and they can't keep their praises in and they return to their flocks while their shouts fill the night air.

That's cool to me. I'm sorry. That is what meeting Jesus will do for you. He may not make you shout, but at least in this life, he will change you.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says this:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come.

He will give you a new life and a new way of going about things to go along with it. And when he comes in, he changes everything.

Don't fall for the stupid trap that Jesus came to make you good little boys and girls. Jesus came to make dead people alive—much different.

And when he does, there will be some excitement about it. There will be some joy.

And after all, when he saves your soul, he changes you and fills you with what's called joy unspeakable and full of glory. 1 Peter 1:8 says this:

Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory.

Come on. Some of that has to leak out from time to time.

When Jesus takes you, saves you, and changes you, you're going to want to praise him for who he is and what he has done in your life.

The Lamb Was Provided

So, at a minimum, at least agree with me today that the Christmas story is a special story.

That God would send his spotless lamb into the world to die for us sinners. That's a blessing beyond description. That he would love us to that level is amazing beyond the power of words to describe.

Of course, to some it's nothing more than a story, but to others, they've experienced the power of the Lamb of God in a personal way, and that changes things.

You may enjoy hearing the Christmas story and you may love Christmas time, but if you missed the real meaning altogether and never trusted Jesus as your savior, you don't have what the rest of us have.

Until you receive the Lamb of God as your personal savior and until you know the power of his salvation, you will never really understand Christmas and the wonder of what God did when he provided his lamb for the sins of the world.

An Invitation

So straight up, are you in a grace-covering-your-life relationship with Jesus Christ?

If you are, you know exactly what I'm talking about.

And if you're not, you can come to him if you will come before him and trust in him. Surrender your life. Accept Jesus's work as your substitute, taking your punishment upon himself.

And if you do that today, you will embrace heaven's lamb as the savior of your soul and you will have a very, very merry Christmas.

See, the lamb was provided for us and we may come together and have joy and peace as the reasons for the season.

Merry Christmas and may the Lord bless you this holiday season.