Wild Night: Not Cute

"But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.' " (Luke 2:10-12)

These words are almost too familiar to even understand any more. And the weird thing is most of us associate them with Linus and Charlie Brown or some cute kid with a gold tinsel halo.

But the being speaking these words to the shepherds wasn't cute, and I'm guessing he didn't have a lisp. He was so scary looking he had to command the shepherds to stop being afraid of him. He had to announce up front: "This is good news."

Try to listen past the tinsel: Great joy. Your Savior. Born today. Did he say manger?

As Jewish men, the shepherds had probably grown up believing a Christ (or "Messiah") would come to rescue Israel one day. But the idea that some baby born that night in a small town barn to a road-weary teenage girl was the Promised One would have sounded like a joke -- unless you heard it from a terrifying angel.

These words matter because they were true and because of who said them.

Think: Do you think we sometimes miss the importance of these passages because we know them too well? What is the most remarkable thing to you about these verses?

Pray: Thank God that the Christmas story is not just a story but also the Word of God for you today.

Do: Make a quick list of three times you got big news that brought you great joy.

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