Most people have at least a passing familiarity with the Christmas account in Luke 2:1 - 20. We know that Mary gave birth to Jesus in a stable, since Bethlehem was overcrowded with people coming home for the census. We know that His birth was announced by swarms of angels to shepherds out in the fields.
Yeah, those shepherds...We don't usually think much about them, but the greatest news ever to be told came to these men first; they deserve a closer look.
Shepherds were the bottom of the barrel in the cultural system of their day. Smelly, generally uneducated, often lacking civilized manners, they spent their time herding some of the stupidest animals on earth. Yet their reaction to the announcement made by the angel can teach us quite a bit about how to respond to God.
First, the shepherds believed what God, through the angels, had told them. Look at Luke 2:15 - "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.'” Note that they weren't arguing over whether or not they had all seen the same thing, or if what they were told was possible, or if it were possible that the long-awaited Messiah could be born someplace like little Bethlehem. They took the angel's words as coming from God, and therefore as fact.
There's an old kids' song, part of the chorus of which says, "God said it, I believe it, that settles it; whatever the Lord says shall stand." God's primary communication with us in this present age is through His written Word; do you truly believe what He has said? All of it, every single jot and tittle, in spite of the ongoing efforts of society to turn it to irrelevancies?
Second, they took action based on what God told them. They dropped what they were doing and went "with haste" to see what God had done. God was working, and they wanted to be part of it. Nothing - not even their responsibility over the sheep - was going to stop them from bearing witness to God at work.
We are all busy people. Pulled in all sorts of directions, we often put ministry or service at the bottom of our to-do list. We say we will get more involved when our kids' soccer season is over, or when the busy season at work is done, when we have "free" time. But along with the concept of tithing the firstfruits of our wealth, shouldn't God get the firstfruits of our time and talents as well? After all, God gave each of us at least one spiritual gift, "given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." 1 Corinthians 12:7
Third, they told what they had learned from the angels, shared what God had revealed to them. It must have been a little strange for Mary and Joseph, having a group of shepherds descend on them shortly after Jesus' birth. But once the shepherds shared their account, the couple could clearly see this was yet another confirmation of the things they had been told about their child.
At the end of almost every church service, my pastor says, "I hope you read a chapter of the Bible almost every day for the rest of your life, and share what you learn with someone else." All those who are in Christ are part of a new family, a community that is interdependent. By sharing with one another what we learn, we keep one another from wandering off into false doctrines and inaccurate interpretations. As Proverbs 27:17 says, "Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another."
Last, the shepherds went on their way, rejoicing and praising God for what He had done.
A while back there was a news story about a high school football player who was penalized for unsportsmanlike behavior because, after scoring a touchdown, he stopped in the end zone to point a finger to heaven - his way of acknowledging the ability to play football, and play well, came from God alone. How often do we acknowledge that what we consider "our" accomplishments are really only due to gracious blessings from God? We continue to draw breath each day only by His mercy; everything we are and do is only possible through Him. Take the time to praise Him.
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