Scared Shirtless

Read Luke 2:8-14

Celebrity rock climber Alex Honnold is a big fan of getting truly scared every now and then.  When’s the last time you were scared? Truly terrified? Ever? On that night, the shepherds were.  

The angel fills the sky.  What can only be described as the glory of the Lord is shining everywhere.  And the shepherds are, yes… terrified.  Imagine you living this moment. You're the director. The Steven Spielberg, The Ron Howard, the Quentin Tarantino directing the movie.  Well, maybe not Quentin Tarantino. How 'bout the Coen brothers?  That'd be fun. What does the scene look like? 

The announcement focuses on Jesus, and these titles of "Christ" and "Lord" are no nicknames.  They’re no mere accolades.  No honorifics. Jesus' titles reveal his divine authority and his power: to heal addictions, to repair relationships, to resolve shame, to forgive, to transform.    

This is the only place in the synoptic gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke that the words Saviour, Christ, and Lord appear together.  For the first time in history, the Savior, the Christ, and the Lord are identified in one person, this baby in a feeding trough.   What's in a name? 

As Saviour, Christ is the deliverer, the one who saves. 

“Today, in ‘the town of David, the Saviour has been born. 

God appeared to shepherds, and so you can have no doubt his strong arm is long enough to reach you, and(!) everyone else, too.  

As the Christ, Jesus is announced as "The Anointed King," born in the city of David.  The angel is recalling the prophetic roots of Bethlehem.  He is the King. 

 He's Christ the Lord!” 

Priests and kings were typically anointed with oil to signify their unique, divine role.  A priest would be an anointed one. Israel looked forward, however, to the coming of "The Anointed One" the one prophet, priest and king who would be the messiah. 

Jesus as Christ is the chosen, divinely sent, royal Deliverer. God is engaged in the world, even now, and he has acted in history to secure for himself a people. 

As Lord, he is the master, and its usage throughout the New Testament is an unequivocal claim to Jesus' divine authority.  The One who created you knows you best, and you can trust him to know what he’s doing.  As you trust his rule, you’ll avoid a lot of problems (though it creates a few of its own), and find a love that can calm your heart in a world gone wonky.   

This is love for God: to obey his commands.  And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world.

~ 1 John 5:3-4

His titles reveal his claim over us and his power to transform lives. “Christ the Lord” means Christ the priority.  And when Christ is the first priority, everything else seems to fall into place. 

       

As we look briefly at each of these titles of Jesus: Saviour/deliverer; the anointed Christ; Lord and therefore master; which one is the hardest for you?  Which one comforts you most?