Do You See What I See?
Luke 2:1-20 (KJV)
“Said the night wind to the little lamb,
Do you see what I see,
Way up in the sky, little lamb?
Do you see what I see?
A star, a star, dancing in the night
With a tail as big as a kite
With a Tail as big as a kite.”
That must have been a striking sight in the dark sky over Bethlehem—a brilliant star hovering over Bethlehem, announcing His birth.
Actually, how many were able to see that star we do not know. It seems to have been a miraculous sign seen only by the wise men.
But there were many other things about that first Christmas that were more moving and profound than the sight of the star.
The problem is that we often do not see them.
We have told the Christmas story so often that we have become blind to these great realities.
So what we need to do is take a fresh look at the story—to see what we can see.
Do you see what I see?
I. I See a Family Where Love Is Modeled
A. Scripture
Luke 2:5-7: “[Joseph came to Bethlehem] to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.”
B. There were all kinds of pressures on this little family.
1. There were the circumstances of Mary’s pregnancy before she and Joseph were married.
a. At first, Joseph didn’t believe Mary’s story, but after he had learned from the angel that Mary was telling the truth, he was willing to swallow his wounded pride and take her to live with him as his pledged wife.
b. The fact of the matter was that Mary was not carrying Joseph’s son; she was carrying the Son of God who had been conceived by the Holy Spirit.
c. Both Matthew and Luke handle this matter with tact, but with complete clarity.
Matthew wrote in Matt. 1:24-25 (NIV): “When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.”
Luke wrote in Luke 2:5 (NIV): “He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.”
d. They were not yet married in the full sense of that word, but she was “pledged to be married to him.”
e. Joseph had the maturity and love to handle these unique circumstances.
2. But there was a price to be paid for all of this.
a. When Mary returned from Judea and was three months pregnant, Joseph had not believed Mary’s story about her becoming pregnant by the power of the Holy Spirit. He did not believe it until the angel appeared to him and confirmed the story.
b. No angel appeared to all of the people in Nazareth, so they did not believe Mary’s story either.
c. For six long months, Joseph and Mary had to live with the talk and criticism they encountered on the streets of Nazareth.
d. That’s not easy to do in a small town, and it probably explains why Joseph carried Mary with him to Bethlehem even though it was time for her to give birth to this son.
e. Joseph’s love for Mary was so great, that he did not want her to be subjected to any more accusations without his being present to help shield her from those accusations. He was willing to take her burden upon his broad shoulders and bear it for her.
3. Bethlehem was not much of a respite.
a. The town was crowded with people who had come to enroll for the census, and there was no room for them in the inn.
b. Joseph looked for a place for them to stay, and the best that he could do was a stable for a room.
*Ill.—I don’t know how many of you husbands have had any experience in looking for a room at the end of a long day of travel, but, let me just put it this way, it does not have a positive effect on marital relations. Dan and Ruby and Danielle and I used to leave on vacations, not having any reservations, and not really even knowing where we would be each night on the trip.
At the end of a day on the road, Dan and I would go into a motel to check on the availability of a room, and, how shall I put this, we were not as discriminating about the kind of place where we would stay as Danielle and Ruby. They were much more particular than we were. They expected things like a room with running water and air conditioning.
We soon learned to look at the expressions on their faces as we pulled into a place. You could tell by just looking at them whether there was any need for us to get out of the car and go in to inquire about a room.
I hate to think what might have happened if we had suggested that we stay in a stable for the night. It would not have been a pretty scene.
4. I’m sure that there were some tensions between Mary and Joseph upon their arrival in Bethlehem that night. The Bible says that their son was perfect, but it never says that they were perfect. They were human. They had their own frustrations and feelings.
5. But whatever those tensions were, they handled them.
6. They did the best they could do with their difficult circumstances.
7. And there that night the most significant birth in all of history took place.
Verse 7: “And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”
8. Jesus was surrounded by a feeding trough and a stable, but he was also surrounded by a mother and father who had made their way through many challenges with a deep and unshakeable love for each other.
*Ill.—Methodist Bishop Kenneth Shamblin once told about something that happened to his son, Ken, Jr. on Christmas day. Ken, Jr. was about five years old at the time, and for weeks leading up to Christmas he had pointed to a red toy truck that he wanted for Christmas that year.
Then, on Christmas morning, he found that toy truck under the Christmas tree and was overjoyed. All that morning he played with that truck. But then that afternoon, the father looked up and saw Ken crying. He asked his son what had happened. In his right hand, his son held red toy truck, and in his left hand he held the wheels. Through his tears he said, “Daddy, my Christmas is broken already.”
That’s what happens to a lot of Christmas gifts. Some don’t make it through Christmas day.
That leads me to ask you this question on this Christmas morning—what are the Christmas gifts that won’t break?
What are the gifts that will last?
One of the gifts that will last is the gift of love.
Joseph and Mary could not give their son very much on that first Christmas, but they could give him love, and nothing is more important than that.
I challenge you to give each other that kind of love today.
It is a gift that cannot be broken.
Do you see what I see? I not only see a family that modeled genuine love, but also
II. I See a Messenger Who Shared the Best News That This World Has Ever Heard
A. Scripture
Luke 2:8-11: “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”
1. On the hills outside of Bethlehem these shepherds were watching over their flocks on the night of Jesus’ birth.
2. The darkness of the night was suddenly illuminated by the glory of God that shone around them.
3. The silence of the night was shattered by the voice of the angel of the Lord.
4. He said, (v. 11) “For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”
It was astounding news!
*Ill.—When Douglas Meyer was in college in the 1950’s, he worked at the college radio station. Since they were a small operation, the deejays also read the news.
In those days before computers and other sophisticated communication devices, the news they read each hour came in on two teletype machines which clattered away constantly.
What Meyer remembers most was that these machines had bells attached that the broadcaster could hear faintly, even in the broadcast booth. These bells would go off and alert the deejay when a particularly important story came over the wire. Posted above the teletype machines was a list of what the various number of rings on the bells meant.
Normal headlines and news were signaled with only one or two rings. Three or four rings meant a severe storm or tornado. Five or six rings meant a major accident or disaster, like a plane crash or ship sinking. Seven or eight rings meant a national emergency of some type, like the death of a president. Nine or ten rings meant a grave national or global threat, like a nuclear attack.
Beneath this typewritten list, there was one other note that someone at the station, probably one of the deejays, had written out by hand. It read: Fifteen bells—the Chicago Cubs win the World Series.
B. If there had been such a system and such a list in place in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago, someone could have written on it: 100 bells—“Birth of a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”
1. This world has never heard greater news than that.
2. See, the problem was that these shepherds had been written off as “sinners” by the most of the people of their day.
a. Their lifestyle branded them as religious outcasts.
b. They had little hope of being included with God’s people.
3. And then this startling good news: “Unto you (shepherds, sinners) is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which Christ the Lord.”
a. That was exactly what they needed
b. They needed a Savior.
4. Of course, it was not just the shepherds that needed a Savior; we all need a Aavior.
a. The reason that we all need a Savior is that “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
5. And God has provided exactly what we need.
*Ill—Many gifts are being given at this Christmas time. In fact, I have read that Americans are using 38,000 miles of ribbon to wrap their Christmas presents this year. In addition to that, they are using 4 million tons of wrapping paper and gift bags.
*Ill.—Every conceivable kind of thing will be given as a gift this Christmas, but the best gifts given will be those that reflect the nature of the giver and the need of the recipient.
It’s the kind of gift that reflects the nature of the giver. It causes someone to say, “Isn’t that just like him to give something like that?”
And it is the kind of gift that reflects the need of the recipient. It causes someone to say, “Oh, that is just what I needed.”
When I look at the gift that was given by God on that first Christmas, it was the perfect gift.
Our heavenly Father loved us so much that he gave His only begotten Son. Isn’t that just like Him to give something like that?
It was the perfect gift. Because when I see that He gave us the Savior to save us from our sins, it was exactly what we needed.
So, ring a hundred bells. The angel of the Lord shared with us the greatest news about the greatest gift that has ever been given. “Unto you is born this day, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord!”
Celebrate it! Receive Him as your Savior on this Christmas day!
When you look at that first Christmas, do you see what I see?
III. I See a Baby Lying in a Manger
A. Scripture
1. That was the instruction given to the shepherds by the angel of the Lord.
Luke 2:12—“And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.”
Luke 2:15-16: “And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.”
2. The shepherds experienced a lot of miraculous things that night.
a. They saw the brilliant light of the glory of the Lord shine around them in the darkness.
b. They saw the angel of the Lord.
c. They heard his announcement of the birth of the Savior.
d. They heard the greatest Christmas concert ever presented as vv. 13-14 record: “A multitude of the heavenly host [were] praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”
3. But none of that was as powerful as what they found in Bethlehem.
Luke 2:16—“They came with haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.”
B. This miraculous child was the Son of God and the son Mary.
1. He was the mighty Son of God who had formed the universe.
2. Now He lay in a manger, unable to move unless His mother carried Him.
3. He had formed the treasures of the earth and now He lay in a plain, manger made of wood.
4. What a place to be born—a stable.
5. What a place to be laid—a manger.
*Ill.—Roy Corley was college classmate of mine. He lives in Austin, Texas. He told me about a man who was related to a member of the Sunday School class that he teaches.
The man he told me about was older, but still childlike in his development and mental capacity. He enjoyed Christmas, and he especially enjoyed singing the songs of Christmas with the children in his extended family. His favorite song was “Away in a Manger.” But whenever he sang the song, he sang it just a little differently. Instead of singing the words “away in a manger,” he would always sing, “No way in a manger.”
When the man died, the preacher who preached his funeral told about the way he sang “Away in a Manger.” He told how he would always say, “No way in a manger.”
The minister then said, “You know, there was no way that a baby in a manger could have been born of a virgin. There was no way that the mighty Son of God could have become a baby, lying in a manger. But the miracle of Christmas is that God made a way.
There was no way that anything good could come from the Son of God’s dying on the cross. But God made a way for this to become a way of salvation.
There was no way that anything good could come from a grave where He had been buried and the tomb had been sealed with a stone. But God made a way for resurrection and victory to come from that tomb and because of that we have the assurance of victory over death.
There is a way in a manger.
There is a way on the cross.
There is a way from the tomb.
In fact, Jesus is the Way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him.
Do you see what I see? A baby in a manger who is the way into the presence of God?
On this Christmas morning, I invite you to come to Him!
