1.     Being Christmas day I would like to speak this morning about the first Christmas, giving particular attention to the “key characters.”

2.     Of course the most important Person in the Christmas story is the Lord Jesus Christ, who came into this world in order to die on the cross for our sins.

3.     This morning we will look at some of the key characters on that very first Christmas: Caesar Augustus, Joseph & Mary, and the shepherds out in the field at night.

4.     Notice there was no Santa Claus, or Rudolph the red-noses reindeer, or Frosty the Snowman, or even the little drummer boy.

I. CAESAR AUGUSTUS

1.     This is the only reference in the Bible to the Roman emperor, Caesar Augustus. 

2.     Rome is not mentioned in the OT.  The OT speaks of the Egyptians, and the Assyrians, and the Chaldeans, and the Babylonians, and the Medes and the Persians – but Rome was not a big nation back then.

3.     Interestingly, Rome is referred to in prophecy by Daniel.  In Daniel 2, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had a dream and he dreamed of a “great image.”  Only Daniel could interpret the dream because the dream came from God.

4.     The image had a head of gold (Babylon), his breast and arms were of silver (the Medes and Persians), his belly and his thighs were brass (Greece), and his legs were iron, with the feet part of iron and part of clay (Rome).

5.     Then in Daniel 7, Daniel had a dream.  His dream corresponds with King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, but Daniel saw “four great beasts” coming up out of the sea, “diverse one from another” (7:3).

6.     The first beast was like a lion (Babylon).  The second beast was like a bear (Media-Persia).  The third beast was like a leopard (Greece).  But the fourth beast was “dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth” (7:7).

7.     This fourth beast, representing Rome, devoured all the other beasts, and broke them into pieces. This beast has not left the world stage.  Daniel saw that it had ten horns, representing the revived Roman Empire of the last days preceding the second coming of Christ.

8.     But Daniel saw all this in a dream.  Rome was not a great nation until the period separating the OT and the NT –what is often to referred to as “the 400 silent years.”

9.     But those years between Malachi and Matthew were not really silent.  There was the rise and fall of Alexander the Great (also prophesied by Daniel).  There was the rise and fall of Julius Caesar.  And there was the rise of Julius Caesar’s grandnephew, Octavius.

10. Caesar Augustus was born in Rome with the name Gaius Octavius, and is usually referred to as Octavius. His mother was the niece of Rome’s greatest general and famous ruler, Julius Caesar.

11. When Julius Caesar was assasinated in March 44 BC, Octavius was with the Roman army at Apollonia, in what is now Albania. When Caesar’s will was read it revealed that since he had no legitimate children, he had adopted his grandnephew as his son and main heir.

12. Octavius crossed over to Italy and recruited an army from among Caesar's veterans, gathering support by emphasizing his status as heir to Caesar. He was only eighteen years old at the time.

13. Ovtavius then formed an alliance with Mark Antony and Lepidus, Julius Caesar’s principal colleagues. The three formed the Second Triumvirate. (The First Triumvirate was Pompey, Juilius Caesar and Crassus.)  Two of Caesar’s assassins, Brutus and Cassius, had been in control, but now they were forced to flee from Rome.

14. Antony and Octavius organized their troops and marched against Brutus and Cassius, and at Philippi Caesar’s army was victorious. Brutus and Cassius committed suicide (42 BC).

15. Eventualy there was a falling out between Marc Antony and Octavius.  Antony married Octavius’ sister but abandoned her for the Egyptian queen, Cleopatra. Soon Octavius defeated Antony, and both Mark Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide.

16. In Luke 2:1, Octavius is referred to as “Caesar Augustus.”  The Roman Senate gave him this title.  Augustus was a title of religious rather than political authority. To the Romans, it suggested deity.

17. In 13 BC, upon the death of Lepidus, Octavius also took up the position of “pontifex maximus” (high priest of the Roman religion).

18. Luke 2:1 is the only reference in the Bible to Caesar Augustus.  He died in AD 14.  He was succeeeded by his stepson Tiberius (cf. Luke 3:1).

19. Augustus was deified soon after his death, and both his borrowed surname, Caesar, and his title Augustus became the permanent titles of the rulers of Rome for the next 400 years.  That is why we read of the title “Augustus” in Acts 25:21 and 27:1.

20.  After Octavius, the title “Caesar” was used for all the Roman emperors.  For example, in Acts 11:28 we read of “Claudius Caesar.”

21. In many languages, “caesar” became the word for emperor, such as the German Kaiser and the Russian Czar.

22. I am only giving a brief summary of the life of the great Caesar Augustus.  He accomplished much in his lifetime.  He certainly left his mark on the world.  For example, the month of August is named after him.

23. Many historians say that Augustus’ ultimate legacy was the peace and prosperity the Roman empire enjoyed for the next two centuries under the system he initiated.

24. When Christ was born, the doors of the temple Janus in Rome had been closed for ten years and would remain closed for another thirty years. This signified that Rome was at peace.

25. When Rome was at war those doors were thrown open.  They called this peace, the “Pax Romana.” 

26. But to me the most fascinating thing about Caesar Augustus was the decree he sent out “that all the world should be taxed” (Luke 2:1).

27. The great commentator, Matthew Henry, wrote this about the birth of Christ: “He was born in the days of Augustus Caesar, when the Roman empire extended itself further than ever before or since, including Parthia one way, and Britain another way; so that it was then called…the empire of the whole earth; and here that empire is called all the world (2:1), for there was scarcely any part of the civilized world, but what was dependent upon it.”

28. What is wonderful about Augustus’ decree is that he was helping to fulfill an OT prophecy, recorded hundreds of years before his birth (cf. Micah 5:2).

29. Caesar Augustus may have been a great ruler, but God was in control, and God used Caesar Augustus’ decree to move Joseph and Mary from Nazareth to Bethlehem to fulfill Micah’s prophecy.

30. Caesar Augustus thought he was the most important man in the world.  He just had to give the word and thousands of his soldiers were mobilized.  Millions of people moved at his beck and call.

31. But Augustus did not know that the most important person in the world was in the womb of Mary, i.e., Jesus Christ the Son of God (cf. Luke 2:5; 1:31, 32).

II. CYRENIUS (2:2).

1.     “Cyrenius was governor of Syria” (2:2).  He was not really a key character in our story, but I would like to say a few words about him.

2.     For years, historians said, “This can’t be true. Cyrenius was governor of Syria from 6-10 AD, but Jesus was born before that.  Therefore, there must be a mistake in the Bible.”

3.     But there are no mistakes in the Bible.  Cyrenius was governor of Syria from 6-10 AD; that is true.  But historians now know that Cyrenius was governor of Syria twice.

4.     His first term was from 4 BC -- 1 AD, which makes Luke’s account historically accurate because our Lord was born during His first term as governor of Syria, not his second.

III. JOSEPH (2:4)

1.     Joseph does not say one word in the Bible.  One preacher said, “He is the silent servant who acts rather than speaks.”

2.     Joseph is not mentioned much in the Bible.   After the birth of our Lord, he drops out of sight.  Most Bible teachers think he died young and Mary remained a widow.  That is probably why, from the cross, our Lord said to Mary, “Woman, behold thy son!” (John 19:26).

3.     And then to John, “Behold thy mother!” (John 19:27).

4.     Matthew 1:19 tells us that Joseph was a “just (righteous) man.”

5.     Concerning Jesus, Luke 2:40 says, “And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.”

6.     Luke 2:52 says, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.”

7.     These Scriptures remind us that Jesus was not only very God, but also very man, and Joseph was responsible for Jesus’ development in every way – physically, mentally, socially, and spiritually.

8.     Joseph knew that our Lord was only on loan to him for a special task.  But actually, all children are on loan from God.  And some day we will all have to give an account to God for how we have reared our children.  God will judge us for this so let us be faithful.

IV. MARY (2:5, 6)

1.     Of all the women in Israel, God chose Mary to be the mother of our Lord. Mary was chosen because she was godly and devout.

2.     For example, Mary was submissive to the will of God (1:38).

3.     Mary knew the Word of God.  In her “Magnificat” Mary alludes to several OT books, such as Exodus, I Samuel, the Psalms, Isaiah, and Micah.

4.     Most importantly, Mary recognized that she was a sinner saved by grace (1:46, 47).

5.     Mary said, “Behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed” (1:48).  Mary would not be the one who conferred blessings, but rather she is the one who would be blessed.

6.     The Doxology is correct: “Praise God from whom all blessings flow.”

V. SHEPHERDS (2:8)

1.     Our Christmas story would not be complete without mentioning the shepherds (2:8-20).

2.      Shepherds were held in low esteem by people of that day, but it was to these humble shepherds that the divine proclamation came (2:8ff).

3.      Shepherds were considered outcasts in Israel.  Their work made them ceremonially unclean and kept them away from the temple weeks at a time.  But God in His matchless grace reached out to these shepherds.

4.      Why did God grant such a wonderful privilege to these lowly shepherds?

·        The people of Bethlehem were too busy with other things.  Like the busy holiday shoppers today, they had no time for the Messiah. But the shepherds had time for Jesus (2:15, 16).

·        The shepherds not only rushed off to Bethlehem, they told others also (2:17, 18).  Are you doing that?

·        The shepherds had time for Jesus.  The innkeeper in Bethlehem had no room for Jesus, and no time for Jesus – but the shepherds did.

·        The chief priests and the scribes (Matt. 2:1-6) showed little interest in visiting the baby Jesus, but the shepherds “came with haste” (2:16).

CONCLUSION:

1.     We could talk of the angels, and the wise men from the east.  We could talk of wicked King Herod, but our time has run out.

2.     The most important personage in our Christmas story is the Christ of Christmas.

3.     Do you know Him?