Why Angels Rejoice, Part 1 | A Christ Centered Christmas

Luke 2:8-14

A holy angel who came to say, I bring you good news. Good news. That’s a single verb in the language there. It’s translated here in our text using four words, “I bring you good news.” It’s the verb euangelizo. We transliterate that word into English as the word, evangelize. It’s the origin of that term that we call ourselves the term evangelical. The word points to the essence of that message that we have received from heaven. That message that came at Christmas time, the message that we share with the world.

In the New Testament, the very first historical examples of this verb evangelize, euangelizo, are by holy angels. They are portrayed as the first evangelists, which make them the world’s first evangelicals. They rejoice over that evangelical message, the Evangel. That Evangel is just another word for gospel, good news. As the angels come and they evangelize, as they preach that good news, as they bring that gospel, they invite mankind to join them in rejoicing, with glad tidings of great joy. The very first time the good news was given happened when an angel visited Zechariah.

You can turn back just a page or two in your Bibles to Luke chapter 1, verse 19. It’s the account where the angel came to Zechariah, the priest. That’s the first time that this euangelizo verb was used of the holy angels and Zechariah the priest was ministering before the Lord in the temple. And an angel appeared to him. It’s not a big space inside the temple. So when the angel appeared to him, standing right beside him, it was shocking. It was sudden, angel appeared to him there and informed him that he and his wife Elizabeth would give birth in their old age, to John the Baptist, the forerunner of Jesus the Christ. And when Zachariah heard the news, he actually failed to believe. He didn’t believe it, and he asked for clarification.

The angel rebuked him, and he said, verse 19, Luke 1, “I am Gabriel, and I stand in the presence of God and I was sent to speak to you, and to bring you this good news.” That is the first use of the word euangelizo, “I bring you good news.” For the good news to hiv, have its desired effect, it has to be believed. When the proclaimed gospel is combined with the response of faith, it is effectual to give life, to give salvation, and to give the joy of full understanding. The evangelism message, it must be believed before it’s apprehended, and it’s understood. And that is especially clear, as we see Gabriel make his second visit to the virgin Mary. He announced good news to her as well and she responded immediately in faith. That’s the right response.

Look at Luke 1:30 and follow along just a few verses there. Luke 1:30, “The angel said to Mary, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘How will this be since I’m a virgin?’ The angel answered her. ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.'”

Again, what Gabriel came and announced to Mary, that is the essence of the good news, this Evangel that God is sending his Son to earth, in the flesh taking on human flesh, coming through the womb of Mary and Mary gets it. Doesn’t she? She understands, down in verse 46. She sounds forth a hymn of praise that we call the Magnificat. And she says, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” She understood the import and the impact of this message. It’s salvation for her.

She has clearly believed and understood, she has entered into the sublime heights here, of angelic joy. She believed the Evangel, announced by Gabrielle and she entered into the same kind of joy that marked his glad tidings as well. And that brings us back to our text, Luke chapter 2 verses 8 and following. Luke 2:8, and we find this verb euangelizo used again, Gabriel comes to the shepherds to announce the birth of Jesus. He’s even joined at the end of that, uh verse 13, by a host of angels who are all praising God with him and they rejoice as they evangelize the shepherds.

I’m gonna read that text, once again, Luke 2:8 to 14, “In the same region, there were shepherds out in the field keeping watch over their flock by night, and an angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them and they were filled with fear. The angel said to them, ‘Fear not. For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you, you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths, and lying in a manger.’ 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 among those with whom he is pleased.'”

Throughout Scripture, we find holy angels taking great pleasure in giving good news to men, they seem of all their duties, they seem to revel in this opportunity, counting it a high and holy privilege to speak good news to men. And to evangelize, here at the birth of Christ, stands at the very pinnacle of all their angelic duties. Clearly, they are here rejoicing at the very first Christmas.

The question we want to ask and answer, why? Angels are not the recipients of salvation. There are holy angels and there are unholy angels, we call them demons. Demons are forever reprobate; they are forever damned. Holy Angels are forever in Heaven, worshipping God, praising for all of eternity. So why here are the angels rejoicing in a message that has to do with us? After all, this is our Savior, not theirs. This is our salvation from sin, not their salvation. Holy Angels are not the ones facing punishment. It’s not their souls in danger of eternal damnation. Salvation is for mankind, not for angelkind. So what do they stand to gain in the incarnation of the Son of God? Born of the Virgin Mary, sent to be the savior of men.

The short answer to that question, it’s all about joy. It’s all about rejoicing. It’s all about praise. And as we unpack the reasons for their joy, for angelic joy, we’re going to find reasons for our own joy. We’re going to see our salvation here in an entirely new light. As we look at the salvation that comes through Jesus Christ, through the eyes of angels, we’re going to go to greater depths of our appreciation for what God did for us at this very first Christmas, the meaning of it all. The more we understand, the deeper the gratitude, the greater the joy. And hopefully we’ll come away, desiring more than anything to join the angelic chorus as joyful evangelical witnesses.

We’re gonna see four reasons for why the angels rejoice. Here’s the first reason, angels rejoice at the cessation of God’s wrath. Angels rejoice at the cessation of God’s wrath, or if you’d like a shorter word. Angels rejoice at the end of God’s wrath, the end of God’s wrath. You say, wrath, on Christmas. Yeah. You will never appreciate the greatness of salvation until you understand the true gravity of your danger, right? You say, fair enough. But where do you find wrath in the text? Good question.

Take a look at Luke 2:8 and 9 again. “In the same region, there were shepherds out in the field keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, the glory of the Lord shown around them, and they were filled with fear.” Fear. That’s the implication folks, that they feel, that they’re under the just condemnation and wrath of God. They weren’t afraid here because some cute cherub looking angels showed up playing harps on the fields, outside of Bethlehem. You know the kind I’m talking about right, drawn in pastel colors on Hallmark cards or fat little babies with wings attached to their backs. That is not what terrified the shepherds here.

What filled these folks with fear? We can start with the suddenness of this angelic appearance, right? That had to frighten anybody, startle anybody, that, that would have startled the shepherds here, especially on a very dark, as we just sang, a silent night. The shepherds had come in from a hard day out in the fields. They corralled their sheep into those enclosures, the sheep folds, that they’d constructed out in the fields adjacent to Bethlehem. The sheep are out of the elements, they’re sheltered from the weather, they’re protected from wild animals and thieves. And so the shepherds were finally able to relax a bit, to let their guard down, to settle in for the night.

When this angel the Lord visited, it seemed as if all the lights in the universe seem to go on at once. They’re surrounded here by a blinding Shekinah glory of the Lord, which is absolutely terrifying to them. The light itself would have been shocking to the senses, they were resting there in the dark night and their, their pupils would have been wide open to let in as much light as possible. So that this suddenness of the brightness of divine glory, their retinas would have felt even seared by that blinding light out in those fields. Probably suffered from some temporary blindness even.

The greatest fear came when they realize that this angel is inside the camp. Suddenly, without warning, shepherds here had been, it says they’re “keeping watch,” they’ve been standing guard, they’re on the lookout for threats, but suddenly standing right beside them. Way too close. There’s this terrifying presence. He didn’t approach from a distance, walking up to their camp from far away. He just appeared, so to speak, he materialized, fearsome stranger, no way to protect themselves.

The adrenaline rush alone could have caused them to lose consciousness and combined with the blazing glory of the Lord and the, the loss of their sight. Here they are in the presence of this angel. He’s right beside them. Is he friend or foe? Am I in danger? They’re overcome here. No wonder they’re filled with fear. But there’s more. It’s not simply the fact that they’re startled, blinded, frightened by an unexpected stranger. This is no ordinary stranger. This is an angel. Cause for incredible terror.

Throughout Scripture, whenever angels show up, they cause significant trauma and fear and dread for human being. When you think about angels, don’t imagine one of those precious moments looking figurines that sit on grandma’s shelf. Those are the product of sentimental imagination from biblically illiterate people. Angels in Scripture are a terrifying presence for human beings. Great fear is the common reaction when people see angels and this angel is identified as an angel of the Lord. One who is often dispatched as an angel of death. This angel of the Lord is a terrifying angel. Remember, it was the angel of the Lord, just one angel of the Lord, who killed all of Egypt’s firstborn in a single night. It was one single angel of the Lord who put the Assyrian army to flight from the city of Jerusalem.

Second Kings 19:35 says this, “That night, the angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And when the people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.” So it’s not just children, men, soldiers, children, all of them, they’re nothing to one angel. These shepherds knew that biblical history because it was the history of their own nation. They knew the nature of this visitor who entered that camp that night. They knew what angels could do. The angel of the Lord in particular. Notice those first words of the angel, “Fear not.” Fear not, had to be a special grace of God to allow these shepherds to obey that command; Fear not, to calm them, but they needed to be calm. So they could listen to the Evangel. So they could listen to what the angel had to say.

Especially important is that command, fear not. Because verse 13, tells us that it’s not just one angel that shows up. It’s a multitude of the heavenly host, they’re about to arrive. Our translations sort of hide the nature of this heavenly host, it was literally an army of angels lined up in ranks, ready for battle. The Greek word here is stratia, a military unit. So this is one massive regimen of the armies of the living God. So if they’re filled with great fear at the presence of just one angel, the appearance of the angelic army, literally would have frightened them to death. Listen, this is the typical human reaction to the presence of angelic beings. Holy angels inspire great dread.

 Notice in Scripture that oftentimes demonic presences do the opposite. Demonic presences come to calm people, angelic presence, the presence of the holy, cause great fear. They’re awesome in appearance, these angels, human beings are instinctively afraid. And it’s not just their intimidating presence as these soldiers are in a heavenly army, it’s the fact that they represent the holiness of God himself. This is an angel of the Lord, by the way, and he’s accompanied by the engulfing glory of the Lord.

There’s gonna come a day when human beings are at home, and at rest in the presence of the holy, at home and at rest in the presence of the holy angelic host, the holy glory of God, the holy presence of God himself. One day, when we are without sin completely, we’re going to be before the presence of holiness, and be completely at ease. But not this day. Not yet. This fearful reaction of the shepherds is evidence of the enmity that exists between sinful humanity and the holy God.

These angels represent Holy God, and sinful man are rightly fearful. These shepherds feared death at the hand of the angelic visitor, and that is fitting, because they are in a condition of sin, which makes them enemies of God. Sinful men at enmity with God, they are also at enmity with the angel of the Lord, they’re at enmity with the entire multitude of the heavenly host. And when you are alone, out in the middle of a field, outside of Bethlehem, and they appear to you, folks, be afraid, very afraid. That is a bad place to be.

Herein lies the true message of Christmas. One of the reasons that the angels rejoice, because angels are often sent from heaven to execute judgment on sinful people. In fact, when you read the book of Revelation, you find angels all through the book of Revelation. And you know what, sometimes their task is? Judgment. They are blowing trumpets calling for judgment on the earth. They’re pouring out bowls of divine wrath upon the earth. It’s not a pretty picture. It’s terrifying. But here, rather than coming to mankind for war, they come to announce peace. They come to announce an end of enmity with God, a cessation of the wrath of God, that’s coming. Great joy for the angels to make that announcement.

I have friends who spent years in Iraq and Afghanistan, fighting wars against Islamic soldiers and my friends were very good at their jobs, very effective at hunting down terrorists. And though they like any soldier, though, they found great satisfaction in fulfilling their mission. Some of the greatest joy they found in their military service was not in hunting down terrorists, but in helping the indigenous population.

One friend sent me some photos and prominent among those photos of him out there, was of him providing medical aid to some Afghani children. There was a huge smile across his face. It’s like that for angelic warriors too. Who are joyful at the opportunity to deliver good news, not just good news, but the best news the world has ever heard. Rather than coming to execute death sentences for yet more sinful men, they rejoice in telling sinful men, fear not. Fear not, because the day has come for a cessation of hostility, an end to the enmity between God and men and ends the wrath of God, for your sin. That’s one reason the angels rejoice. But it points to even deeper reasons for their joy.

Let’s look at a second reason for angelic joy. Number two, angels rejoice at the revelation of God’s Son. They rejoice at the revelation of God’s Son. Look at Luke 2:10 to 12. “The angel said to them,” these shepherds, “’Fear not. For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.'” They had great fear. And now he’s pronouncing great joy. Love the contrast there. Why? “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign for you, you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths, and lying in a manger.”

Notice the entire focus of this Evangel. This good news is centered on the significance of a baby born in Bethlehem. This is a Christ centered message. And like Gabriel, all the holy angels stand in the presence of God. And they have all known the pre-incarnate glory of the Son of God. And so for them, to come to humanity, to share with men, the true identity of this one whom they have loved and worshipped and adored, this is the very height of their joy.

They are sharing with us, a friend, a king, a God who they love. Can you identify with that? Do you know and love and worship and adore Jesus Christ in such a way that just sharing the truth about him with others? Is that enough to bring joy to your soul? No matter what the outcome is, if it earns you praise or persecution. Do you take joy in just proclaiming his name? They did. That was the target, that was the object of their message. And they love to proclaim him, to glorify him to make him known. If that’s you, then you’re in the very company of the angels of heaven.

I want to show you six facts that they deliver here in this Christmas message, this message that the angel rejoices to share with the shepherds and it’s all about Jesus Christ. Look at it there in verse 11. First, God’s son was born, God’s son was born. This is an unparalleled, unprecedented, non-repeatable event. This is the incomprehensible, unexplainable paradox of the incarnation of the Son of God. It is that the invisible God has made himself visible in Jesus Christ. How does that work? Invisible, being visible. Does that not make the invisible now visible and no longer invisible? No. That’s the mystery of the Trinity, right?

He has already existed as the eternal God, the second person of the Trinity, since before time began. As it says in John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God, the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. And all things were made through him without him was not anything made that has been made.” That is, if it’s in the category of made, of created, it’s not him. He is the Creator. Yet here he enters his own creation, in the form of a little baby boy. He came into the world like every other man or woman since Adam and Eve, he came through the womb, which makes him fully human.

Why is that important? Because this Savior, who is Christ the Lord needed to be not only fully God, so he could have the eternal, infinite nature to absorb all the full infinite wrath of God, but he also had to be fully man, fully man to fully represent us in our sinfulness. He’s the one sent to reconcile God to man, which he does by uniting man to God in his own person.

First of all, receiving all of our just punishment, but second of all, transferring to us all of his perfect righteousness. It’s a glorious mystery. Really is beyond our full comprehension, to understand this, but it is the message of Christmas that we believe, we find salvation, we find great joy.