Read week 1, week 2, week 3 and week 4 from Franklin Graham’s devotional, The Greatest Rescue Mission.
Christmas Day: Victory Declared
SCRIPTURE READING: Luke 2:13–20
“And 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!’ When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.’
“And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”
WHEN THE angels appeared to the frightened shepherds, they announced the “good news of great joy that will be for all the people” (Luke 2:10). God could have announced the birth of His Son—the Savior of the world—to kings or rulers. But instead, He chose some of society’s most overlooked—lowly shepherds.
As soon as the angels left, these men got up and hurried to Bethlehem to find the baby. After seeing Him, the Bible says they “told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child” (Luke 2:17, NLT). Their experience with the newborn King motivated them to go with urgency and tell everyone they could about Him.
Good news is meant to be shared. This Christmas Day, as you thank the Lord for your salvation—for the victory Christ won for you on the cross—ask Him to give you open doors to share the Gospel with others. Don’t keep this lifesaving truth to yourself—boldly declare it! Think of your friends, neighbors, or family who don’t know Jesus Christ and start praying for them today. So many people around us are hurting and searching, and their hearts long for the peace and victory found in Christ alone.
“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:57). The shepherds did not hesitate to become evangelists of this great revelation. I pray that we would be just as faithful today to do the same.
PRAYER: Father, thank You for the wonderful gift of Jesus Christ. Empower me to share this Good News with the same urgency the shepherds did—and with as many people as I can—in the coming year.
