Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20041219.htm

CHRISTMAS INTERLUDE: GOD'S GIFTS TO THE NEEDY
Part III: God's Honorable Acceptance For The Unfairly Rejected
(Luke 2:8-20)

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

It is often very painful and difficult to experience rejection especially if it seems to be unfair and arises for religious reasons:

(1) In his book, The King James Only Controversy, James R. White reports many Christian bookstore sales clerks have been told "in no uncertain terms that the only Bible they should be carrying is the King James Version. The many others they offer are, in fact, nothing but perversions of God's Word," Ibid., p. III.

He notes that one author with the "King James Only" view claims the NIV we use in our pews helps to move the world toward the coming antichrist's religion, Ibid., p. 96! We would thus be put under an anathema by many of this book's readers, a stinging charge!

(2) Years ago as a student at the Dallas Theological Seminary, I struggled on what to believe about the Calvinist and Arminian debate on God's election and predestination. I found Samuel Fisk's book, Divine Sovereignty and Human Freedom in our seminary book store, and innocently purchased it to read as a help in my pilgrimage.

Was that a mistake! As I opened the book to read it in a classroom after a class one day, a fellow student and Calvinist saw it and approached to criticize my even reading the work!

I tried to explain I had bought it from the seminary book store, that it was thus not heretical, but that did not deter his condemnation; in front of several other students he continued to chastise me!

Well, how may we HANDLE painful UNJUST rejection, especially if it comes for RELIGIOUS reasons?!

(We turn to the sermon "Need" section . . . )



Need: "Either a friend or I have experienced unjust rejection from others, and in SOME cases, it has come for religious reasons! IS there a solution for this from GOD? IF so, HOW is it obtained?!"
  1. The Bethlehem shepherds that first Christmas were unfairly excluded from the Jerusalem temple fellowship by religious elitists:
    1. The sheep in Bethlehem's fields were used for the temple sacrifices:
      1. The Mishnah forbade the keeping of livestock in Israel's crop lands to protect them from being denuded, Herbert Danby, The Mishnah, 1974, p. 342 (Nezikin ("Damages"): Baba Kamma vii, 7). Rather, they were to be kept in foreign or wilderness lands in Israel, Ibid.
      2. Yet, as sheep were needed for the temple sacrifices, of necessity, shepherds kept sheep for the temple's use in the nearby Bethlehem fields, Edersheim, The Life & Times of Jesus the Mes., i, p. 186.
    2. Keeping these sheep required the shepherds to miss temple services, so the Rabbis excommunicated them from the temple, Ibid., p. 187.
    3. Thus, Bethlehem's shepherds were unfairly excommunicated from the temple by the religious rulers who hypocritically needed the very services for the temple worship for which they had been excluded!
  2. God GAVE the shepherds INSIGHT through heaven's angels to REVERSE their UNFAIR EXCLUSION with BLESSING, 2:8-14:
    1. God's angel appeared to the shepherds, causing them to fear they would be punished by God for their excommunication status, 2:8-9.
    2. However, the angel urged them not to fear: he had good tidings of great joy that would be for all Israel; Messiah the Lord had been born that day in Bethlehem, a truth they would herald, Luke 2:10-11.
    3. Indeed, the angel explained that even though these men were under a Rabbinic ban, they could yet personally meet the Messiah God: they would find him lying in a manger, wrapped in swaddling cloths, 2:12.
    4. This was a highly unusual setting for a newborn, T.D.N.T., v. VII, p. 231; thus, the Bethlehem shepherds who knew where all their little town's mangers were located would easily be able to find Him.
    5. The angel's announcement was then backed up by a chorus of angels that appeared to announce these gracious, encouraging words to these unfairly excommunicated men: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!" Luke 2:14 ESV.
  3. The shepherds HEEDED that insight for blessing, Luke 2:15-16:
    1. Realizing this chance to meet with the Messiah and Lord that would so wonderfully counter their unfair ban from the temple, these shepherds chose to go to Bethlehem to meet the infant Messiah, 2:15.
    2. They understandably came with great haste and found and met with the infant Messiah and God along with Joseph and Mary, Luke 2:16.
  4. For HEEDING His insight that replaced their unjust rejection with meeting the Messiah God in person, GOD wonderfully TURNED THE TABLES to HONOR these shepherds to their joy, 2:17-20:
    1. Having met in person with the infant Messiah and God, Bethlehem's unjustly temple-excluded shepherds became great heralds to the rest of the people of the birth of Israel's Messiah and Incarnate Lord, 2:17.
    2. In it all, God arranged to honor these rejected shepherds by using the teachings of the very religious elite who had excommunicated them:
      1. The Rabbinic authorities had already long taught the tradition that Messiah's birth would be heralded from the "Tower of the Flock" that was located near the road that ran between Bethlehem and Jerusalem, Ibid., Edersheim, i, p. 186 (emphasis ours).
      2. Thus, God's sending His angels to the shepherds in Bethlehem's fields, men who in turn heralded Messiah's birth FIT the pattern of Rabbinic teaching that this very announcement would come in connection with the Tower of the Flock of Bethlehem's fields!
      3. Thus, God arranged for events to occur to make the religious authorities that had excommunicated the Bethlehem shepherds end up giving them honor by way their own traditions!
    3. The shepherds understandably returned to their fields, glorifying and praising God for all they had experienced by His grace, Luke 2:20!
Application: If we have been unfairly rejected by others ESPECIALLY for RELIGIOUS reasons, (1) may we HEED God's call for INCLUSION into fellowship with His Son [as the angels did to the unjustly excommunicated shepherds] and trust in Him as Savior from sin, John 1:11-13. (2) Then, let us HEED God's insight in Scripture in life, and HE will supply a fulfilling life and ministry of honor and joy as He did for the unfairly rejected but God-heeding, Bethlehem shepherds, John 12:26.

Lesson: By HEEDING God's INSIGHT, the UNFAIRLY EXCLUDED shepherds saw GOD OVERRIDE their UNFAIR EXCOMMUNICATION status by arranging for them PERSONALLY to MEET WITH MESSIAH and GOD and to HERALD Messiah's birth, and THAT at the EXPENSE of the AUTHORITIES that had unjustly excluded them from the temple! This led to the shepherds expressing GREAT JOY and PRAISE to God!

Conclusion: (To illustrate the sermon lesson . . . )

 As He vindicated the Bethlehem shepherds by the WRITINGS of those who had wrongly banned them, God has given US vindication via WRITINGS today upheld by our rejecters:

(1) The translators of the 1611 King James Bible wrote in their Preface these words: "Therefore, as S. Augustine saith, that variety of Translations is profitable for the finding out of the sense of the Scriptures . . . so diversity of signification and sense in the margin, where the text is not so clear, must needs do good, yea is necessary as we are persuaded.'" (J. R. White, The King James Only Contr., p. 76.

The KJV translators held the same view I have taught you -- that we should rely on several versions! Thus, to our vindication, the "King James Only" promoters have an historically unfounded stance!

(2) Then, on the Calvinistic charge that we err in not adopting the view God sovereignly chose some to believe, note the following:

(a) J. M. Kik, Assist. Ed. of Christianity Today wrote in his Foreword to B. B. Warfield's 1974 reprint of his 1959 work, Calvin and Augustine, p. v, that Warfield, a scholar who is highly regarded by Calvinists, was eminently qualified to write on Calvin and Augustine.

(b) Well, Warfield there noted Augustine who gave Calvin his view of predestination had come to hold God gave man salvation faith "'especially by'" reading 1 Cor. 4:7 (Ibid., p. 378); Paul there wrote, "What do you have that you did not receive?" Yet, as that context does not address salvation faith, but gifts of service, Augustine used his presuppositions to see salvation faith as a gift in that verse!

(c) Where such presuppositions had to originate were from Platonism as we can verify from Warfield's words on Augustine's writings as follows: "The task he had set himself was to construct a Christian philosophy out of Platonic materials." (Ibid., p. 375)

(d) As Platonism is pantheistic where man is only an extension of God (Walker, Hist. of the Christ. Church, 1959 ed., p. 98, 163f), Augustine's Platonism led him to think God authors man's faith.

(e) Calvin used Augustine's view of faith's origin, so, to our vindication, Calvinism's view of faith's authorship is paganistic!

So, as He VINDICATED the Bethlehem shepherds who in turn rejoiced and heralded God's truth, may we TODAY rejoice in God's VINDICATION and joyfully herald His truth!