I had breakfast with the shepherds today and I was so blessed by their
enthusiasm, that I thought I'd pass some along to you.... God's people
can always use a good dose of enthusiasm, amen? We'll be reading about
the Christmas story today in Luke 2:8-20. This story is old, but it is
ever new; and God's people ought to never tire of reading it, for it grants
us special glimpses into the early years of our Lord Jesus Christ...
Luke 2:8 (KJV)
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping
watch over their flock by night.
Notice the time and place the angel of the Lord appears unto the shepherds
- at night, in the field. This is certainly an interesting setting, an
unusual place and an unusual time for an angel to show up! It was also
an unusual group of people to whom the angel appeared –shepherds…. These
shepherds were "nobodies" as far as the world was concerned; just your
average, hard working, blue collar man. They didn't work in the big city,
seated behind a desk in an impressive office building making corporate
decisions all day long, they spent time watching over their flocks in
the field. They weren't dressed in tailored suits and ties and they didn't
wear the latest designer fragrances, these guys smelled like sheep! Nobody
wanted them around. They were considered outcasts. Their work kept them
in the fields and away from the temple for weeks at a time, so city-folk
viewed them as ceremonially unclean. Shepherds were so disdained they
weren't even allowed to speak in the courtroom back then. Yet an angel
from heaven was sent to speak to them! As a matter of fact, the angel
came and spoke to them on the job, right in the middle of their smelly
work while they were wearing their smelly clothes…
Luke 2:9-10 (KJV)
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord
shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said
unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy,
which shall be to all people.
Here, in a field, in the middle of the night, while the rest of the world
around them was dulled with slumber, the shepherd’s senses were razor-sharp.
They were ardently working, carrying out their nightly duty of overseeing
their flocks. Their eyes and ears were open to the possibility of an enemy
creeping in on their sheep. Hence, they were wide-awake and extremely
alert! They weren't dozing, not drifting off to sleep while leaning against
a tree, but keenly tuned in to their surroundings. There was no such possibility
of them dreaming that moment the angel of the Lord came face to face with
them! Nobody could say this was a figment of their sleepy imaginations,
for they were keeping watch. The glory of the Lord shone round about this
group of outcasts.... Isn't that just like our God, ladies? (How do you
treat people that are labeled unimportant?) What the shepherds saw that
night was very real and they were listening quite intently to what the
angel was telling them...
Two things stood out to me in the above verses that I think stood out
to the shepherds as well. First of all, the angel calmed their fears and
then said, "I bring YOU…". He let them know from the beginning that he
had a private announcement just for them! At God's instruction, the heavenly
messenger placed significance on this group of men that the world considered
"nobodies". Afterward the angel said, "…which shall be to ALL people."
Hence, we learn that nobody else had yet received this news... Others
would eventually hear, but not by the mouths of the angels. Only the lowly
shepherds were to be informed of Jesus birth in this unique manner. I
like that! I like when the Lord uses the weak things of the world to confound
the wise, don't you? That gives me hope! The Lord could have chosen the
priests or scribes to first receive the greatest announcement the world
would ever hear, but He chose anonymous shepherds....
Luke 2:11-12 (KJV)
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is
Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the
babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
Do you know what I realized as I read this passage of scripture? The strange
place to which the Lord had led Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus, that
lowly manger scene, was to be a sign to these shepherds of the validity
of the Word of God!!! While considering the stable where Mary had to give
birth to Jesus, one would think that God had forsaken them on their journey
of faith. But NOW we see that what looked like it may have been a strange
plan earlier had happened on purpose. It was designed to be a sign to
the shepherds that what God was telling them by His angel was true! Yes,
the swaddling clothes and the manger were specific signs they were to
watch for to encourage their faith in the Lord.
Matthew 11:25 (KJV)
At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of
heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and
prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.
Ladies, when the workings of God seem strange in your life, hang on! Don't
give up! In His perfect timing, the Lord will attach purpose to your difficult
circumstances and you will soon realize His designs upon your life will
likewise be signs to others of the soundness of the Word of God. As you
yield in humility to God's plan, your testimony will support that He alone
is worthy of our total faith. Your life will be a sign that He is a God
of truth! If you resist or alter God's design, you are in effect covering
the hand of the Lord in your life and hiding Him from others sight!
Think about it this way... Suppose Mary did not like the fact that Jesus
had to be born in a manger. Suppose she wanted something better for her
child and went out and charged a beautiful cradle and some fancy baby
clothes for Jesus. Then suppose she stayed at the local Bed & Breakfast
that night paying good money for a room that was already reserved for
someone else so they could be warm and comfortable. Where would the signs
be for the shepherds if she resisted God's hand upon her life that night??
At the angel's instruction, the shepherds would search for the Savior
knowing they had found Him, by the signs of the swaddling clothes and
the manger. If Mary had piously refused these lowly provisions, they would
not be able to locate the Savior! Thus, their faith in God's Word would
be hindered...
2 Cor. 4:3 (KJV)
But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost..
I wonder how many signs of faith the Lord has desired to place in our
lives for the sake of drawing others to Him, yet we have resisted His
plan and kept those signs from being clearly seen? Ladies, God wants to
work through us to lead outcasts to His feet, but how willing are we to
accept swaddling clothes and mangers in our lives?? We want something
more glorious and elaborate than such common items, something prettier
and fancier and more impressive for our children and us. "Don't give us
swaddling clothes and mangers, Lord, anything but those unappealing, old
things!" Understand ladies, that as we resist showing signs of humility
and dependency upon the Lord in our lives, we block the pathway to the
Savior for people that God loves and cares about...
Matthew 25:45 (KJV)
Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as
ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
I wonder how many times the Lord has wanted to place uncertainties, difficulties,
strange providences, surprises etc. into our lives and instead we have
taken matters into our own hands and thereby prevented any signs of faith
in God to be viewed by folk that so desperately need to find the Savior!
Is He nowhere to be found, even in the life of the Christian today?! In
your pride, have you been resisting swaddling clothes and mangers in your
life? Have you refused to die to your own desires in order to carry out
God’s? If you have, you have hidden your Savior from someone's searching
eyes....
Luke 2:13-14 (KJV)
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,
good will toward men.
After the angel of the Lord shared with these shepherds the unique birth
announcement of the Savior, the Bible says there joined him a MULTITUDE
of the heavenly host praising God! Those shepherds, those "nobodies" got
a glimpse of heaven the moment they heard about Jesus! They had an opportunity
that you and I won't have till we get to heaven! Our ears have not yet
heard a multitude of angels praising God and saying "Glory!" Imagine such
a magnificent experience happening to you right there in the dark of night,
in the middle of that smelly field of sheep, in your little corner of
the world! And yet, when we share the good news of Jesus Christ with others,
they too, can get a glimpse of heaven. They will understand that the possibility
of spending eternity with the Savior is theirs as well as anybody else’s!
It doesn't matter how smelly or dirty their sin has caused them to be,
they can have the same opportunity as did the lowly shepherds!
2 Peter 3:9 (KJV)
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness;
but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but
that all should come to repentance.
Yes, God selected humble, hard-working men to be the first witnesses that
His Son had come into the world... I know you're not a man, but are you
humble and hard-working?? Can God depend upon you to share the news of
the birth of the Savior with others? Will you go to a "nobody" that might
be a bit smelly from sin and bring them the news that God has sent a Savior
to meet their greatest need? Are you faithful with this good news, these
glad tidings of great joy? Are there humble signs of swaddling clothes
and mangers in your life so that when the world searches for the Savior
they can find Him through you? Humility clarifies our dependence upon
God. Do you appear as one who is fully reliant upon the Lord or are you
showing greater signs of self-sufficiency? How clear is it that you are
even a Christian?? Telling others about Christ is a solemn obligation
as well as a great privilege, and we who are believers must be faithful
with God's message! Next lesson we will look at what the shepherds did
with the good news after it was given to them. But for now, explore your
heart and see what YOU are doing with it!
God Bless,
Pam
Isaiah 60:1&2
Copyright 2000 Pamela A. Iannello
Revised 2003
