With the Christmas season upon us, I want to meditate on the glory of God accompanying Jesus’ birth. The angels announce His glory as they declare heaven’s proclamation of peace to earth:
And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” (Luke 2:13–14, NASB)
What does this have to do with worship or God’s glory? The angels announce God’s highest glory coincides with this event – nothing second best about it. The Lord shares His greatest glory by sending His Son to earth. Let’s pull this verse apart phrase by phrase to understand its significance.
We learned in a previous devotional that Jesus perfectly models all the attributes of God. We see the glory of God as we observe the Jesus – grace, mercy, wisdom, power, humility, holiness, etc. The Lord demonstrates these attributes better than the static ark or the temple. He is both incorruptible & dynamic. He has no sin. He can adapt to the shifting demands of a chaotic society with a constant message of love, forgiveness and joy.
Consider the importance of angels coming in peace to those on earth during His first coming. Heaven invades earth. Jesus descends from the glories of heaven to the humility of the manger. The people of earth will need this promise of peace because they will reject the king of God’s kingdom. Peace indicates that He won’t destroy the earth when the people crucify Him.
Like all good alien invasion stories, God wants us to know that He “comes in peace.” He doesn’t say, “Take me to your leader” because He is the leader – the King of earth.
You have probably already considered these phrases of the angels’ announcement, but have you thought about the significance of their “in the highest” phrase? Perhaps you considered it just a throw-away line – just hyperbole without substance. Turns out that this phrase is very important. We only find it here and in the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ Palm Sunday entrance to Jerusalem:
The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting,
“Hosanna to the Son of David;
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord;
Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:9, NASB)Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David;
Hosanna in the highest! (Mark 11:10, NASB)shouting: “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord;
Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” (Luke 19:38, NASB)
Why would the phrase be used again here (“glory in the highest” in Luke’s version)? The angels near Bethlehem announce the coming of God’s representative. The people in Jerusalem acknowledge Jesus’ relationship to God. It took over thirty years, but the people (for a moment in time) finally understood.
The people add a new word (in Matthew and Mark) to their praise which we don’t find in the angels’ praise: hosanna means propitious. It is a desire for good luck or success. A declaration for favorable or benevolent outcomes. They acknowledge His position and claim to support Him and encourage successful completion of His goals.
They acknowledge Him as king directly (in Luke) or indirectly by referring to Him as the “son of David” (in Matthew and Mark). As David’s heir they are encouraging Him to take up leadership over Israel. By connecting Him to God, they people recognize His divine authority to rule.
The angels proclaim, “peace on earth” and the crowd reciprocates with, “peace in heaven.” This means that they desire peace with heaven and will not fight against Jesus. Luke does a great job at connecting these two events with common language and shared thoughts.
Does God really share His glory? Yes. Does He share with mankind? Absolutely! God shares His glory by giving Jesus to the world. Jesus is the glory of God and God sent Him to earth to become one of us, to teach us how to live better lives and to rule over us. This is the “highest” glory God can prepare for Himself. He shares His best glory with us.