Monday, Dec. 17

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Luke 2:8-20

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 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.”

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest,
    and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

Imagine what would happen if one or all of the following three men walked into FBCG some Saturday night or Sunday morning:

Lovie Smith, Head Coach of the Chicago Bears; Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft and one of the wealthiest people in the world; and President Barack Obama.

Before you start thinking about suggestions you’d like to make to Coach Smith about the Bear’s offense; or complaints you’d like to register with Bill Gates about his company’s products; or policy issues you’d like to address with the President, you have to admit one thing! If one or more of those men walked into church, the whole room would tip in their direction! That is, most people would stop paying attention to what was happening on the platform or in the pulpit and would focus on who had just entered the room. And that would happen because of the perceived importance and fame of those men.

This is part of what the Bible means by the word, “glory.” The ancient Hebrew word translated as “glory” is kabod, and it carries the meaning of “weight” or “weightiness”, as in that which is significant or important.

We pay attention to people who have kabod; we honor people who have kabod; we want to be in the presence of kabod. 

Unfortunately, our culture tends to confuse celebrity with kabod, and while there certainly is an element of celebrity or fame to kabod, God’s glory also carries a sense of his holiness.

Throughout the Old Testament the glory of God is made visible through both fire and cloud:

When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai. For six days the cloud hovered over the mountain, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from within the cloud. To the Israelites the glory of the Lord looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain. Exodus 24:15-17

This is the same glory that exploded around the shepherds as they tended their flocks that night.

An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

We’ll talk more about “terror” tomorrow, but for now let’s just say the shepherds were terrified by God’s glory because, in a way, his “weightiness” was more than they could bear. In that moment they felt the whole world tilting toward the glory that shone around them. Indeed, all creation inclined toward the announcement of the angel; the glory of God was becoming visible – not in fire, not in cloud, but in, of all things, the birth of a child.

And, when you think about it, the world still tilts toward this child. We number our years from the time of his birth. We string lights on our homes and trees, knowingly or unknowingly, to recall his glory; the glory that shone with such brilliance around the shepherds so long ago. 

Do we still see the glory of this child? Do we still feel the weightiness of the babe in the manger? Do we still affirm the words of the Apostle John?

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

Behold his glory!
Pastor Brian Coffey