For All the People - Word Foundations

On Jesus’ birthday, near the place where Jesus was born, “shepherds were staying out in the fields and keeping watch at night over their flock” (Luke 2:8). An angel of the Lord came to them and announced Jesus’ birth, telling the shepherds not to be afraid because he was bringing them good news that would be a source of tremendous joy for all people. On that day a baby boy had been born in Bethlehem. Who was He? He was and is Savior, Messiah, and Lord. The angel didn’t directly tell the shepherds to go and find Him, but he told them how they could identify Him. He Himself would be “the sign” (v. 12) they were to seek. He would be “wrapped snugly in cloth and lying in a feeding trough” (v. 12). After a host of angles praised God before them, the shepherds excitedly made their way to Bethlehem to see for themselves what God had revealed to them through the angel (v. 15).

A great deal of theological information is packed into the angel’s announcement of Jesus’ birth. Here we will consider the meaning and significance of the words “for all the people” (v. 10). While this phrase can be translated “for the whole nation,” the ultimate meaning is broader; but let’s think first about the nation of Israel. Here an angel was appearing to lowly, despised shepherds. Just as it defied conventional wisdom for Jesus, who was God, to be born in a stable and to be placed in a feeding trough, so it defied conventional wisdom for His birth to be announced to “insignificant” shepherds by a heavenly messenger. But all of this happened! The fact that shepherds, of all people, were the first in Israel to hear of Jesus’ birth underscores the truth that no one in Israel was excluded from God’s invitation to honor His Son and to receive all the benefits He would offer.

“I am not ashamed of the gospel,” the apostle Paul later would write, “because it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek” (Rom. 1:16). The phrase “first to the Jew” echoes a truth Jesus taught in His ministry (see Matt. 10:5-7; 15:21-26) and just before ascending back to His Father (see Acts 1:8, where Jesus named Jerusalem and Judea before other locations). But it is undeniable that ultimately, Jesus came to offer salvation “also to the Greek”—to all people everywhere (see Matt. 15:27-28; Acts 1:8, where Jesus spoke to His disciples about being His witnesses in Samaria and in other locations worldwide). Significantly, even long before Jesus began to preach and teach, God had revealed that He had His sights set not just on Israel, but on the entire world (see Isa. 49:6; Luke 2:25-32). The early church confirmed that God intended salvation to be offered to Gentiles as well as Jews (Acts 11:1-18; 13:47-49; 15:1-35).

The gospel is broad in that all people everywhere—regardless of age, race, gender, nationality, class, or economic status—are invited to repent of their sins and to trust Jesus for salvation. But sadly, not everyone will respond positively to that invitation. So in this sense the gospel is narrow: only those who come to God on His conditions will be saved and experience all the benefits of the “good news of great joy” intended “for all the people” (Luke 2:10). It is appropriate, therefore, that following the birth announcement made by the angel of the Lord, a multitude of angels joined him and declared, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to people He favors!” (v. 14). If anyone ignores or rejects God’s invitation, God cannot be blamed, for He has done everything possible to bring people to a saving knowledge of His Son (see John 3:16-20; 2 Pet. 3:9).

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations in this article are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.