“The Sacrificial Lamb”

 “The Sacrificial Lamb”

 

“The Savior —yes, the Messiah, the Lord— has been born today in Bethlehem, the City of David!  And you will recognize Him by this sign:  You will find a Baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”  Luke 2:11-12

 

The King of Kings, the ONE and ONLY Son of the LIVING GOD, was NOT BORN in a FANCY, MANSION, in the BEST part of TOWN, but his LOWLY BIRTH was one of MEAGER circumstances. He was born to MARY and JOSEPH, who was not in the least bit WEALTHY.  And they had to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem to be taxed, along with a HUGE crowd of other people. And to make matters WORSE, Mary was VERY CLOSE to giving birth to her FIRST CHILD. 

 

Now, the ONLY LODGING that was available to them was a SMELLY, DIRTY, STABLE that housed the animals that belonged to the patrons of the INN of which was packed with people that were in Bethlehem to be TAXED also.  Mary was TIRED, WEAK, and in PAIN, so Joseph took the STABLE, after all they would have some privacy, probably more than they would have at the Inn.  That place was PACKED, people were even sleeping on the dirt floor. So, Joseph got Mary settled and sometime in the darkness of the night, Mary gave birth to a HEALTHY, BABY BOY!!  

 

Well, their surroundings may have been MEAGER but the ANNOUNCEMENT of the BIRTH of THE SON of GOD, was BEYOND MAGNIFICENT!  And it was delivered NOT to the Roman Government, or the RELIGIOUS LEADERS, but it was delivered by an ANGEL of the LORD to some LOWLY SHEPHERDS who were watching their sheep on a hillside near the Little Town of BETHLEHEM. The poor SHEPHERDS were TERRIFIED, but the Angel reassured them, saying to them; “Don’t be afraid! I bring you GOOD NEWS that will bring GREAT JOY to ALL people—the SAVIOR, yes, the MESSIAH, THE LORD HAS BEEN BORN today in Bethlehem, the City of David!  And you will RECOGNIZE Him by this sign”. You will find a baby WRAPPED SNUGLY in STRIPS of CLOTH, lying in a manger.”

 

Now, this DESCRIPTION of the BABY being WRAPPED SNUGLY in STRIPS of CLOTH, was familiar to the SHEPHERDS, because they were responsible for making sure that the newborn lambs had nothing wrong with them, since the SACRIFICIAL ANIMALS had to be WITHOUT SPOT or WRINKLE.  So, the shepherds would WRAP the LAMBS in the cloth to keep them from being BLEMISHED or bringing INJURY to themselves.  This is why Luke has brought out the fact that JESUS was WRAPPED SNUGLY or TIGHTLY with the cloth.  Since He was the SINLESS, LAMB OF GOD, the SUBSTITUTIONARY, SACRIFICIAL LAMB, the ONLY ONE who COULD take away the SINS of ALL MANKIND.  And by that description, the shepherds would be ABLE to RECOGNIZE the SAVIOR of the WORLD.

 

Now, how can you RECOGNIZE the SAVIOR of the WORLD, that’s EASY, by the NAIL PRINTS in His hands.  And this RECOGNITION is the WORK of the Holy Spirit, who INDWELLS the one who belongs to JESUS. They have COME to the CROSS for the FORGIVENESS of their SINS. And they RECEIVE the GIFT of SALVATION and an ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN, with ALL its BLESSINGS.

 

This is how you can be a RECIPIENT of GOD’S AMAZING GRACE.  FIRST, ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER, in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST, who is the ONLY ONE ABLE to FORGIVE and SAVE your soul. You MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART that JESUS died for YOU and that He is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for YOU before God.  You MUST CONFESS your SINS to Him and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST be WILLING to TURN AWAY FROM your SINS, and TURN TO GOD, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION and be ABLE to RECOGNIZE JESUS by the NAIL PRINTS in His Hands.  Do this NOW, while you still can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t be LEFT BEHIND!!!