I invite you to turn with me then this afternoon to Luke's gospel, Luke chapter two. We'll read a more conventional, if you will, account of the birth of Christ here this afternoon. Luke chapter two will begin in verse one. And with God's word open before us, let's seek the Lord in prayer and ask the Lord to speak to our hearts through his word, let's pray. O Lord, as we open now thy word, we pray that the Holy Spirit will bear witness to its truth and draw our hearts out after Christ. May we be strengthened and encouraged and built up in the faith, and may we indeed glory in our Redeemer today and in the days ahead. We ask, O Lord, that we'll make progress in our sanctification, that will live more and more unto thee, die more and more to sin and self in the world. And we ask, O Lord, that thou wilt use us, use us in thy service. Help us to shine brightly for our Savior during these days. May we have opportunity to point others to him. So hear our prayers drawn near to us now. We ask these things in Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Luke chapter two, we begin in verse one. And it came to pass in those days, and let me pause there just long enough to point out what we have been noting in our studies in Luke's gospel. We're dealing with actual history here. This is not fable, this is not myth, this is not fiction, this is actual history. And it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria. And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth into Judea, under the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 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. 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 Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you. You shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. And it came to pass as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherd said one to another, let us now go even unto Bethlehem and see this thing which has 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. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. Amen, we'll end our reading in verse 19. We know the Lord will add his blessing to the reading of his word for his name's sake. I actually added verse 19. I was gonna read through verse 18, but I couldn't help but include verse 19 in it because I love what it says about Mary, that she pondered these things in her heart. Boy, what an example to follow, to ponder these things in your heart. I read a message not long ago, a Christmas message, in which the preacher was pointing out that the things that this season suffers from is not the consumerism, not the secularism, not all the hype and hoopla that accompanies the holidays. The thing that most robs us of the joy that ought to be ours this time of year is when the people have God grow bored with the story of the incarnation. And I thought to myself, oh Lord, revive me. Revive my heart. Let me not lose the wonder of what we read when we read the accounts of the birth of Christ. Now I wanna call your attention in particular for just a couple of moments this afternoon. to this message that was sounded out by the multitude of the heavenly host. It's in verse 14. Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. You just never know, do you, when you're going to find an outstanding choir performance. Usually when you think of such things, you envision a very large cathedral-type church with a huge pipe organ that takes up an entire wall, a large choir with a multitude of robed choir members, and a full symphonic orchestra. I know whenever I think of the times I had occasion to see and hear Handel's Messiah when it was performed on at Bob Jones University, I never forget the opening scene. You've got the orchestra on the platform, you've got the choir that is behind a curtain in a very large choir loft. And before the whole thing starts, that curtain is opened and you see this very large choir. And the thought that strikes me at the time is, I'm about to be blown away. And that usually turns out to be the case, indeed. In comparison to that kind of vision, most choir performances in small churches might seem a little obscure and probably nowhere near as majestic in sound. But if you think that a small church setting as being obscure and lacking in sound quality, what about a choir performance in an outdoor setting? Not an outdoor theater like what you might find at Connor Prairie for their seasonal performances of various kinds. but rather an obscure country setting in a field at night without any kind of lighting beyond what the moon and the stars provide, and without any kind of sound amplification equipment to make the choir loud enough to be heard for more than a few feet away. I find it fascinating to try to envision the impact of this angelic appearance to a group of sleepy shepherds whose toughest task was probably to stay awake. as they're engaged in the mundane activity of watching over their flocks by night, and then all of a sudden to see the heavens open, and there in that obscure country setting in a field by night, they are able to behold what could perhaps be the greatest choir performance of all time. This is a heavenly choir, and it's a large choir, a multitude of the heavenly host, verse 13 tells us. And their performance is described for us in verses 13 and 14 as praising God and saying, glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men. It's this line especially that I want to focus on for just a moment or two this afternoon, especially this notion of peace on earth. Peace on earth. That was their song, that was their announcement, wasn't it? Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men. And I have a question with regard to that angelic announcement of peace on earth. The question that occurs to me is, did the angels really get that right? Did the angels get it right? Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men. peace on earth, goodwill toward men. One might argue, I suppose, that these angels must not have known history very well, where the history of mankind leading up to that moment when they appeared is anything but peaceful. All you have to do is read the Old Testament, and you find strife and turmoil among the nations. You could say that Christ's statement that there would be wars and rumors of wars is as true historically as it is prophetically. Historically, what do you find? We find nation rising against nation. And even within the kingdom of Israel, you find the same thing. A nation divided between northern tribes and a southern tribe of Judah constantly going at it with each other, as well as going at it with other nations. So what are the angels talking about when they say on earth, peace, goodwill toward men? Perhaps they're indicating that even though the world had not known peace up to that point, now it would, now that Christ was born. But then we follow Christ in his time in this earth, and there doesn't appear to be peace at all during the time that he walked this earth. When Herod, the ruler of the Jews, became jealous of Christ, perceiving him to be a potential rival, we read the terrible account in Matthew's Gospel of how he slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently acquired of the wise men. Why, no peace in that circumstance, is there? Certainly not in and around Bethlehem. And when you follow Christ and his earthly ministry, you find him constantly having to argue with the Jews, hardly a peaceful time when he had no place to even lay his head. One attempt after another is made to try to catch him in a gotcha moment in order to give the Jews an excuse to turn him over to the Roman authorities. His apostles had high hopes. when he entered into Jerusalem triumphantly near the end of his years in this world. What a glorious moment that was when it seemed that he had won over just about everyone. It was an impressive parade in which he rode upon a colt, the foal of an ass. So we read in Matthew 21 in verse nine, and the multitudes that went before and that followed cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David. Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Oh, that appeared to be his triumph. Now would peace come on earth in this triumphal entry into Jerusalem? The Jewish authorities were so full of anxiety on that occasion that we read of them in John chapter 12 and verse 19, how the Pharisees said among themselves, perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? Behold, the world is gone after him. Oh, they thought that they were defeated, that Christ had prevailed, that Christ is triumphant. Would this bring in the time that the angels announced? Would Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem at last bring peace on earth and goodwill to men? Well, alas, just a couple of days later, they would arrest Christ. They would carry out a sham trial of Christ, and in that trial, they would condemn him to death and execute their sentence by nailing him to a cross. His enemies undoubtedly thought that they had secured their peace and preserved their offices, but surely that's not what the angels had in mind when they said, peace on earth and goodwill toward men. It is true he would rise again from the dead. It is true that he's ascended into heaven where he makes intercession for his people. But what has ensued in this world during that time of Christ's intercession, following his death, burial, and resurrection? Still nation rises against nation. We've gone in our nation through a civil war. We've gone through two world wars. We fought wars now in Korea, in Vietnam, in Iraq, in Afghanistan. We're at war against terrorists. We're watching now anxiously the drones over New Jersey. Is this the beginning of a foreign invasion, people are wondering. We're told to be vigilant for attacks could happen any moment and in any location. Given such a context of war and strife and crime and tragedy, I can understand the sentiment that asks the question, did the angels get it right? Or is this scene in Luke's gospel just kind of a warm-hearted story that's designed to make us feel fuzzy and warm, which makes for nice pictures and a quaint saying for Christmas cards, but which in fact has little or nothing to do with reality? Well, we need to consider another question in lieu of what I've just called your attention to. And the next question is this, how did we get into this predicament in the first place? And in order to answer the question as to whether or not the angels got it right, we really have to ask this other question. And that question goes something like this. Why is there so much strife and crime and war and misery in this world anyway? How did this world get into the predicament that it finds itself in today? When I think back to my own experience as a young man living during what's called the Cold War era, It was the Bible's answer to this question that really convinced me that the Bible is the authoritative Word of God. It used to bother me, used to bother me deeply. that as a nation, we were in a race to build more bombs, to build bigger bombs than anybody else in other nations, most notably the Soviet Union. We're trying to keep up and go even further in building more bombs and bigger bombs than we were to the point where we've reached the capacity where we can destroy each other 20 times over. And I believe that's literally true. And why is that? I used to wonder. Why do the nations compete among themselves to have more destructive capability than anyone else? Why are we so bent on self-destruction and mutual destruction? Well, the Bible provides the answer. Like I say, this has, as much as anything, convinced me of the authority of the Bible. I love the diagnosis it provides for the condition of the world. And it presents it with amazing simplicity. Indeed, you could say that the Bible diagnoses the world's problem in a single word, a three-letter word, sin. That's the problem. James puts it this way in his epistle, from whence come wars and fighting among you? That was the very question I used to ask as a young man in the Cold War era. From whence come wars and fighting among you? The answer, I wasn't ready to receive initially, come they not hence even of your lusts that war in your members? When you think in very broad terms, you see, of nations and alliances and coalitions and world wars, it's easy to think that the problems of the world are out there problems. But what James is saying in his epistle is that it's not an out there problem, it's a right here problem, right here within our own hearts. Now, our pride keeps us from admitting this. Our pride wants to make the world's problems out there problems. And in our pride, we like to view ourselves as not being part of the out there problem at all. After all, I'm easy to get along with. I say to myself, we all say to ourselves, I suppose, I don't have any desire to kill my neighbor or steal his goods. If everyone in the world shared my outlook and ethics, this world would be a peaceful world. We say to ourselves, I'm for peace. Why can't everyone else be just like me and be for peace too? The deceptive lie behind that kind of thinking, however, is just this. I'm for peace if I can have my own way. Most of the things in this world that agitate me are the things that are not fair to me. It's not fair to me that someone else got the promotion at work that I should have gotten. Not fair to me that someone else is favored more than I am. Not fair to me that rich people have so much more than I have. Why should my neighbor have a fancier car than I have? He's no better than me. Why should my neighbor have a bigger house than I have? He doesn't deserve that fancy house. and any faults or failures such as outbursts of anger or even petty thefts that we commit, we justify by thinking that life hasn't been fair and someone owes me something, therefore my temper or my stealing or my cheating is justified at the very least If it's sin, it's not that greatest sin, and I'm not responsible for it because someone else or some circumstance in life makes my sin fair. And when you think that way, whether you realize it or not, you become a microcosm of all that is wrong in the world. Take that kind of thinking that minimizes your sin and magnifies the faults in everyone else. Multiply that kind of thinking by the number of people that are in the world today, and you can account for why the world is the way it is. It's just like James says in his epistle, from whence come wars and fighting among you? Come they not hence even of your lusts that war in your members? It's an internal thing for each one of us. So it's against that backdrop of sin that the angels made their announcement, peace on earth and goodwill toward men. They weren't mistaken. They weren't naive. They knew what kind of world existed in which they made that announcement. And so the thing we have to consider then finally is what in the world did they mean when they appeared to those shepherds and said, peace on earth and goodwill toward men? What in the world did the angels mean? That's my final question I'll put to you this afternoon. And to understand their meaning, we must look at the previous part of their announcement. When they said on earth, peace, goodwill toward men, that announcement followed something that they said earlier. We've been considering all this time the very last part of their message. The previous part of their message provides the basis for the last part of their message. Look at the very first thing they said to the shepherds, beginning in verse 10. 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 Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And I love that statement, that phrase in there that says, for unto you is born this Savior. That makes it something very personal, doesn't it? Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. A Savior has come. A Savior was born. This was the good tidings of great joy. The long-awaited Messiah has at long last arrived, and this announcement is not only beneficial to the Jews, but this is good tidings for all people. The key part to the announcement is the word Savior. And the other account of Christ's birth given to us in Matthew's Gospel, the reason for His name being Jesus is given to us in Matthew 1 and verse 21. This is the angel now giving instructions to Joseph as to what he is to name the child and why he is to name the child by the name the angel gives him. And thou shalt call his name Jesus. Why, you might ask, why that name? Why not some other name? Well, he is given that name for a very specific reason, which the angel goes on to say, for he shall save his people from their sins. The name Jesus, you see, means Jehovah saves, or Jehovah is salvation. This is why the angels call him a savior. This is why Joseph was instructed to call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins. That was his aim, that is Christ's aim from the moment he arrived in this world. Everything he did, everywhere he went, everything he taught, every miracle he performed, it all served that common goal to save his people from their sins. And in order to accomplish his aim, he had to live a life of obedience to his father's law. His obedience must be perfect, not only in its external compliance to the law, but in his heart as well. So every deed he performed, every word he spoke, every thought he entertained, must be in obedience to his father, and it must all be done with pure motives. And he rendered that obedience. This was what made his trial before the Jews such a sham. He had never done anything wrong. Not even when sinful men tried to drum up phony charges against him could they make anything stick. He was blameless. He was, as Pontius Pilate said, without fault. And yet he was pronounced guilty of blasphemy, because he had the nerve to affirm that he was the Christ. And so he was taken and abused and scourged and crucified. Well, might we ask peace on earth? How was this peace on earth? This was nothing short of a travesty of justice, so it would seem. This was the triumph of sin and wickedness in darkness on earth. The Savior has come. The promised Messiah is here. He's demonstrated who he is countless times, and yet the Jews could do no better with the help of the Gentiles to take him and crucify him. The triumph of sin, or so it seemed. The thing you have to realize, though, is that this was all by divine design. This is what Peter proclaimed on the day of Pentecost, Acts 2 and verse 23, him, Christ, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken him by wicked hands up crucified and slain. This did not catch God off guard. This whole thing was designed from him before Christ was even born. Oh, they were the ones that took him and crucified him, but in a mysterious way that defies a mere mortal's comprehension, it was all by divine design. Indeed, it had been foretold hundreds of years earlier, Listen to the familiar words from Isaiah, which had been written centuries before in Isaiah 53 and verse 5, but he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed. Now, at last, we're able to reference the angel's message about peace on earth. The chastisement of our peace was upon him, or as Paul puts it in Colossians chapter one and verse 20, and having made peace through the blood of his cross. Peace, then, has come into this world. The angels didn't get it wrong. They got it right. It's come through Christ, who is the Prince of Peace. It's come on the basis of His atoning death. It's come because Christ has paved the way for sinners who have been alienated from God to be reconciled to God through Christ. Now, it's true, and we don't try to deny it, that this world is still filled with sin and misery and war and crime and despondency and depression. But it's also true that in the midst of such abysmal circumstances, the believer in Christ can nevertheless know peace. The Christian's peace, you see, is not something that's based on smooth sailing through life over calm seas under clear skies. Now, it's based on the knowledge, rather, that Christ has made the way for the Christian to be at peace with God, no matter what life throws at him, no matter what the circumstances are. It cannot rob the Christian of his peace, so long as he knows and he reckons upon the fact that he's reconciled to God, oh, if I'm at peace with God, let the world be against me, it won't matter. The one I want to be at peace with, I am at peace with. This is why Paul refers to the Christian's peace as a peace that passes all understanding, Philippians four and verse seven. Now the peace of sailing over calm seas under clear skies, that's easy to understand. But the peace that comes upon a believer who has sorely tried under trials and afflictions and yet knows a peace that rules in his heart, that passes understanding. At the very time you might expect the Christian to be in turmoil, he can be found in peace. And this is not to suggest that he doesn't feel pain or feel acutely the trials of life. It is to suggest that there is something deeper, something firmer, something spiritual that is found at the core of his heart, and that something is the peace of God. Glory to God in the highest, the angels sang, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. How can this be? How can there be peace on earth and goodwill toward men? This is how it can be. Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. The fact that this announcement of the Savior's birth is unto you, means that this is a glorious truth that must be appropriated by you by faith. Have you appropriated the truth of it? Have you exercised faith in Jesus Christ? You must appropriate Christ to yourself by faith, and in so doing, this peace that is announced by the angels can be yours. And oh, I hope it is your portion today. And if it's not, I hope that it will be in the coming days as you see the truth of your sin and as you call on Christ to be your Savior. Listen to the benediction Paul pronounces in Romans 15 and verse 13. This is a good benediction to close on. Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that ye may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost. Let's close that in prayer. O Lord, as we bow in thy presence now and bring this meeting to a close, we thank you for the peace that we can enjoy even in a world that knows so little of peace. There is no denying it, Lord, that we live in a world of strife and turmoil and crime and despondency. But, O Lord, how we thank Thee that the angelic announcement was and is true, that unto us there can be peace, because unto us a child has been born. And we thank you that that child did grow up and live a perfect life and die an atoning death. So reconciling us to God, that we can be at peace with God, even in this world of turmoil. Oh Lord, we pray indeed that thou would help us to follow the practice of Mary who pondered these things in her heart. May we be found throughout this day and in the coming days pondering these glorious truths in our own hearts, that we might know the peace of God to which we've been called. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.