God Will Toward Men
Luke 2:1–14
1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. 2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) 3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) 5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. 6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. 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 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 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. 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. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
God had done everything to show good will toward men from the moment he clothed Adam and Eve with coats of skin teaching them that only by the shedding of innocent blood will their sin be covered, to when he called Abram out of the Ur of the Caldees and choose out a people to himself to reveal God to the world.
Through saving this people via a great famine then bringing them out of severe bondage in Egypt by revealing his great power to the world and into the land he had promised to Abraham centuries earlier.
He made a nation out of a disobedient and gainsaying people, a people who continued to backslide from God even from the begining.
God set up for them the kingdom as they desired. He overlooked their desire to replace God for a King like all the nations and worked his plan of redemption for the world through that desire for a King to rule over them.
The first King was merely a reflection of the people.
But God sought for a man after his own heart and called David out of Bethlehem, a lad who became the giant slayer and would rule his people well for 40 years. Every king from that time forth was measured in comparison to David.
The wars he fought precluded him from building a temple to the Lord. Blood was upon his hands and he, as a man of war, was not suited to build the temple of peace.
This would come by a prince of peace, the son of David, King Solomon.
A young man who prayed not for fame nor fortune, but for wisdom that he may lead the people well whom God had given him charge.
And God added to the wisdom he gave to Solomon, fame and fortune he did not ask for.
God adding Glory to the the King who would build his Temple was fitting, for it would not be a poor man in want that would represent the eternal abundance of God, but a man renowned and filled with riches as well as wisdom that would build this wonderful house of prayer.
But not even this earthly king would keep the calling of God, his backsliding as renowned as his wisdom and wealth. Though he turned his heart back to the Lord, the son who came after him would split the kingdom through his vanity and pride.
From that time forth, no matter how many prophets came to the kingdom, the people continued to wrestle against God their Saviour.
A promise however would be given them, a great promise deep in the Old Testament, a promise of GOOD TIDINGS, a promise of coming GREAT JOY and peace, even to ALL PEOPLE, identifying with absolute certainty the heart of God toward men, his GOOD WILL TOWARD MEN.
Good Tidings
And so we begin with the promise of GOOD TIDINGS that demonstrate God’s plan to reveal his GOOD WILL TOWARD MEN.
We see the record of it here in this passage of the New Testament
Luke 2:10–12a
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. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you;…
Here the angel speaks to a “sign” which the shepherds ought to look for to the specific dwelling place of “Christ the Lord”.
But this was not the first time a sign was given as to the coming of “Christ the Lord”.
As stated in the introduction, God had long patience for his people inspite of their continuous rebellion. His plan was to usher in the only one who might take away their sin for ever.
And so a sign was promised them.
Turn to it with me. Isaiah 7
It would be given to a king of Judah, the great, great, great, great, great, great, great, (7) Grandson of King David, Ahaz a man who “did NOT that which was right in the sight of the LORD, like David his father. But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel.” (2 Kings 16:2)
Ahaz was a evil king whom God, in his grace, gave a sign of the coming prince of peace.
Isaiah 7:10–16
10 Moreover the LORD spake again unto Ahaz, saying, 11 Ask thee a sign of the LORD thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above. 12 But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the LORD. 13 And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. 15 Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good. 16 For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings.
It would be a sign of GOOD TIDINGS AND GREAT JOY. A sign that showed his “Good will toward me”, a sign that could not be mistaken and from that time forth every girl born in Israel had the potential to be that very Virgin spoken of in this text.
But this was not the only announcement given centuries before the passage we read of in Luke 2.
Turn to Isaiah 9
In the midst of war and trial one of the most incredible prophecies are given, yet another sign that identifies the very nature of “Christ the Lord”.
Isaiah 9:6–7
6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
In Isaiah 7 we saw his name called “Emanuel” a name that simply means “God with us”. This Child that would be born would be named according to his nature and reality, Emanuel, “God with us”.
Now here we have some more specific rendering of this child which would be born, OTHER NAMES to testify of the GOOD TIDINGS God had prepared 7 centuries earlier.
6…his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
No, not only is his name called according to his nature in Isaiah 7, “God with us”, but we see him also called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
These are names which name him in accord with how he is identified, in accord with WHO HE IS.
We don’t need to hear from his own lips that he is God, we have the witness from 7 centuries earlier claiming him to be The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
The Prince of Peace. Is that not good tidings?
Great Joy
Luke 2:10–12a
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. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you;…
Great JOY….GREAT JOY…
To have his name identify who he is, is certainly GOOD TIDINGS, it is one of the most incredible pictures since the garden of Eden that God would be “With us”.
John speaks to this saying;
1 John 1:1
1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
John begins this letter to the churches just as he ended his gospel account;
John 21:24
24 This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.
The Mighty God, the everlasting father, even Emanuel is certainly testified as GOD WITH US, he did indeed come to dwell with man to testify to his GOOD WILL TOWARD MEN.
But the GREAT JOY is seen in his title hinted as in verse 11 of our passage;
Luke 2:10–12a
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. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
A SAVIOUR!
None other than Mary the mother of Christ, that VIRGIN that was spoken of 700 years earlier, chosen by God to be the one who would bare the child that was to be born in Isaiah 9, even he whose name shall be called “Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
The one who would bear the government upon his shoulders, and that “ Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever.”
This is that same women, Mary, who also knows God to be her Saviour testifies to it with all plainness after she was found to be with child in he womb;
Luke 1:39–48
39 And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda; 40 And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. 41 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: 42 And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. 43 And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. 45 And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord. 46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, 47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. 48 For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
The GREAT JOY is in the title of the great King, Christ the Lord.
Christ is no the surname of Jesus, but his title. He is the Messiah of the Old Testament, the anointed of God who was to come to save his people from their sins.
His name, Jesus, “Ἰησοῦς” in Greek, Yeshua in Hebrew (the shortened version of Yehoshua in Hebrew), means “God Saves”, it combines the abbreviation of the name of God with his purpose, and that is “to Save”.
A literal translation of Jesus Christ is “God Saves” as the Anointed Saviour.
It is his name that testifies to God’s ‘GOOD WILL TOWARD MEN. It is his title that brings GREAT JOY.
It is the very purpose statement that came from the lips of Christ only days before his Crucifixion;
Luke 19:10
10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
The GREAT JOY and GOOD WILL TO ALL MEN is that this is the singular work of Christ for mankind.
It is NOT OUR WORK, we cannot save ourselves, if that were true then there would be no need for GOD TO HAVE EVER DWELT WITH MAN, no need for CHrist to have come, no need for him to suffer and die.
Any claim that would compete with Christ is the most obscene heretical claim where one may as well claim themselves to be gods.
Beloved, if SALVATION could be attained in ANY way, or RETAINED in any way by our OWN efforts, we may as well claim we are our OWN Saviours.
No, man is helpless and hopeless, he cannot save himself.
Romans 3:10–18
10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: 14 Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: 15 Their feet are swift to shed blood: 16 Destruction and misery are in their ways: 17 And the way of peace have they not known: 18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.
It is GREAT JOY because For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
To ALL People
So we saw there was a sign to bring GLAD TIDINGS.
We understand that those glad tidings spoken of centuries earlier was to bring GREAT JOY.
And we now see that it would not be to a mere few or handful of people. It would not be limited to those who witnessed his life, who walked with him, who talked with him, who had seen him suffer and die, who had seen him raised from the dead…no, no, it would be to “all people”
Luke 2:10–12a
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. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
All people are in need of a Saviour.
Not just those YOU consider evil.
The simplest thing we can do is identify the sins of others. But we fail so terribly in seeing our own hypocrisy.
For in seeing the sin so readily in others we testify that we know what “SIN” is.
What is sin?
1 John 3:4
4 … sin is the transgression of the law.
When we so easily see evil and sin in others it actually leaves us without any excuse!
We hate what we see others do, and they hate what they see US do, for we all do the same things and are all guilty of breaking the same laws.
Romans 2:1
1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.
Beloved, ALL PEOPLE on earth NEED a SAVIOUR!
For none of us have a functioning “goodness” radar we are willing to engage to test ourselves, but the Bible DOES.
God has given to us his law that we might compare ourselves, that we might know;
10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: Romans 3:10–18
It is listed for us in Exodus 20, there are 10 of them, very simple.
The first four commandments are related to our relationship to God
1. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Exodus 20:3
2. Idolatry is banned in verse 4
3. Blasphemy in verse 7, “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain” (A Capital offence)
4. Keep the Sabbath day holy to the Lord in verse 9.
The next five governs our relationship to people.
The first and is that related to our mother and father, and one might say it is first for a reason, for its seems to set our level of respect in its proper order to all people., and it is the ONLY commandment that promises an extension of our LIVES when we obey it!
5. Honour thy father and thy mother v 12 (A capital offence. And the first commandment with promise)
6. Thou shalt not kill v13
7. Thou shalt not commit adultery v 14
8. Thou shalt not steal v 15
9. Thou shalt not bare false witness (Lie) v 16
The last one is that which governs personal LUST.
10. Thou shalt not covet v 17
Note that the first 7 commandments had a CAPITAL OFFENCE ASSOCIATED WITH THEM, YES, including the fifth commandment kids, to honour your father and mother which is so prevalent in these godless days.
As you look at each of these you may wonder how well you have done, but before doing so I would caution you to recognise that NONE ARE NEGOTIABLE and that ALL ARE THE MINIMUM STANDARD OF HOLINESS AND PERFECTION.
Break one, you break them all.
The entirety of the Law of God is summarised for us in a question given to Christ in Luke 10. A question which was answered by the questioner himself.
Luke 10:25–28
25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? 27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. 28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.
Beloved, the Bible makes it plain saying, 20 For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not. Ecclesiastes 7:20
Ecclesiastes 12:14
14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
Romans 3:23
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Hebrews 9:27
27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
I truly do not believe many people understand the seriousness of their state before a holy God and it truly grieves me.
Jesus spoke of the seriousness of this judgment by giving an example of that which will befall all who find themselves stand before God WITHOUT THE SAVIOUR.
Mark 9:43–48
43 And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: 44 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 45 And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: 46 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 47 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: 48 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
Only God the SAVIOUR can warn of hell with such clarity, because ONLY the one who came to “seek and to save that which is lost” is able to fully understand that which faces all of mankind in the hope of saving ALL PEOPLE
Romans 6:23
23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Good Will Toward Men
Luke 2:13-14
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
What now?
We cannot save ourselves.
God knew it.
Jesus knew it and suffered to save ALL PEOPLE.
The apostles knew it and died to tell the world of the Good Tidings or Great Joy TO ALL PEOPLE, for that GOOD WILL TOWARD MEN.
The Jews tried it and failed again and again and again.
Peter testified against those who thought their works could save them and rebuked the notion being taught at the time saying;
Acts 15:10–11
10 Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? 11 But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.
What now? If all men have sinned, and all men have an eternity to consider, how….
MY KING
A poem
Author
My King
He is the King of the Jews
He is the King of Israel
But He’s also
King of all the Ages;
King of Heaven;
King of Glory;
King of Kings;
…and Lord of Lords.
He is
a prophet before Moses;
a priest after Melchizedek;
a champion like Joshua;
an offering in place of Isaac;
a king from the line of David;
a counselor above Solomon;
beloved, rejected, and exalted
like Joseph;
and yet far more…
The Heavens declare His glory…
and the firmament shows
His handiwork.
He who is, who was, and who always will be;
The first and the last
He is the Alpha and Omega
the Aleph and the Tau
the A and the Z;
He is the ego eimi,
the אהיה אהיה אשר
the “I AM that I AM”
The voice of the burning bush
the Captain of the Lord’s Host
the conqueror of Jericho
He is our Kinsman-Redeemer
and He is our Avenger of Blood;
and He is our City of Refuge;
He was crucified on a cross of wood;
Yet He made the hill
on which it stood.
By Him were all things made
that were made;
without Him was not anything made
that was made;
By Him are all things held together!
In Him dwells
the fullness of the Godhead bodily;
The very God of very God.
He became
the first fruits of them that slept.
He is our Performing High Priest;
Our Personal Prophet;
Our Reigning King.
He is enduringly strong;
entirely sincere;
eternally steadfast;
He is imperially powerful;
immortally graceful;
impartially merciful;
He stands alone in Himself:
He’s unique,
pre-eminent,
supreme,
unparalleled:
He’s the Loftiest idea
& in Literature;
He’s the highest Personality
in Philosophy;
He’s the Fundamental Doctrine
of Theology;
He’s the Supreme Problem
in “higher criticism”!
He’s the Son of God!
There is no means of measuring
his limitless love:
It was written in blood,
on that wooden cross
erected in Judea
2,000 years ago.
He was born of a woman
so that we could be born of God;
He humbled Himself
so that we could be lifted up;
He became a servant
so that we could be made joint-heirs;
He suffered rejection
so that we could become His friends;
He denied Himself
so that we could freely receive all things;
He gave Himself
so that He could bless us in every way.
He
is Available to the tempted and the tried;
Blesses the young;
Cleanses the lepers;
Defends the feeble;
Delivers the captives;
Discharges the debtors;
Forgives the sinners;
Franchises the meek;
Guards the besieged;
Heals the sick;
Provides strength to the weak;
Regards the aged;
Rewards the diligent;
Serves the unfortunate;
Sympathizes and He saves!
His Offices are many;
His Reign is righteous;
His Promises are certain;
His Goodness is limitless;
His Light is matchless;
His Love never changes;
His Grace is sufficient;
His Mercy is everlasting;
His Word is enough;
His Yoke is easy and
His Burden is light!
He’s indescribable;
He’s incomprehensible;
He’s irresistible;
He’s invincible!
The Heaven of heavens
cannot contain Him;
Man cannot explain Him
The Pharisees couldn’t stand Him
but soon learned
that they couldn’t stop Him;
They railroaded Him
through 6 illegal trials,
and yet
The witnesses couldn’t agree against Him
and the personal representative
of the ruler of the world,
couldn’t find any fault with Him;
Herod couldn’t kill Him
death couldn’t handle Him
the grave couldn’t hold Him!
He has always been and always will be;
He had no predecessor and
will have no successor;
His name is above every name;
That at the name of Yeshua Ha Machiach
Every knee shall bow
Every tongue shall confess
That Jesus Christ is Lord!
His is the kingdom,
and the power,
and the glory…
for ever, and ever.
Hallelujah! …and Amen!
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