The Shepherds Meet the Good Shepherd
(Luke 2:7-18)
1. Remember the commercials a few years ago that said, "Got Milk?" We Vasiceks are into dairy. We use lots of lowfat cottage cheese, yogurt, and obviously milk.
2. Wisconsin is "the Dairy State," although California is advertising. The land of Canaan was called a land "flowing with milk and honey." I guess it was the Wisconsin of its day.
3. When it comes to dairy animals, the world favors three sources for milk: cows, goats, and sheep. Other sources include buffalo, camel, and horse.
4. "Some of the most famous cheeses are made from sheep milk: Feta (Greece, Italy, and France), Ricotta and Pecorino Romano (Italy) and Roquefort (France)." www.sheep101.info/dairy.html
5. In first century Israel, shepherds had many duties, including that of milking sheep.
6. Although we Christians are referred to as sheep, that does not mean we are necessarily low in intelligence, as is often implied; we certainly do have our moments stupidity -- everyone does; but it really implies that we are precious to the shepherd.
7. Who were the Christmas shepherds? There is a good chance that their flock of sheep was destined for sacrifice at the Temple in Jerusalem; Bethlehem was on the route. Since sheep were sacrificed year-round, their presence cannot indicate the time of year.
8. But why did God send common shepherds to visit the baby Jesus?
Main Idea: Since mankind is made up mostly of common people, common shepherds were the first visitors to welcome the Savior of mankind.
I. The Shepherds LIVED Out in the Fields (8)
A. The LIFE of the Shepherds
1. What was it like to be a shepherd?
2. Tending, traveling, protecting, shearing, milking sheep.
3. Sheep produced milk and wool, and meat.
• Lonely. Shepherds would talk to their sheep, and their sheep therefore recognized his voice. Shepherds would often play instruments to alleviate the boredom, so they were a musical lot. They would meet friends at certain locations to enjoy fellowship and alleviate the boredom.
• Being a shepherd was dangerous, because wild animals were a real threat. They would take dogs with them, not as sheep dogs, but as protectors from wild animal attacks. Some shepherds did, in fact, die doing their job.
Although some people looked down on shepherds and thought of them as notorious violators of property boundaries, shepherding was, I believe, a respected vocation in Israel. Not classy, not the most desirable, but respected. You won’t hear that elsewhere.
B. The HERITAGE of the Shepherds
The heritage of shepherding in Israel is noteworthy.
1. Abel, Adam’s son, was a keeper of sheep!
2. Consider this: the Israelite nation started out completely as shepherds. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were shepherds.
3. Moses was a shepherd. David, Israel’s ideal king, was trained as a shepherd.
4. Jesus referred to Himself as the Good Shepherd. He was not insulting Himself.
5. Church leaders are called Shepherds, of which Pastor is a synonym.
Since mankind is made up mostly of common people, common shepherds were the first visitors to welcome the Savior of mankind
II. The Shepherds Were STARTLED by Angels (9, 13-14)
A. Although not prestigious, shepherds could be GODLY
It is tempting to try to correlate godliness with social class; but the correlations simply do not fit. Godly people come in all classes, and so does ungodliness.
B. "An" Angel -- GABRIEL?
"The angel bypassed Jerusalem, the religious center of Israel. He didn’t go to Herodium, Herod’s villa near Bethlehem. He appeared instead to a band of shepherds tending their flocks (Luke 2:8-9)." [Our Daily Bread]
C. The "Glory" SHEKINAH
The first appearance of the Shekinah since Ezekiel’s time
D. The Significance of the Term HOST
A great army of angels, perhaps an angel for every star in the universe (both called the "host of heaven").
E. The SONG of the Angels
1. Glory to God
The Shekinah is a visible form of God be glorified and worship; the angels song was an audio form of the same concept.
2. Shalom
The Jewish culture recognized the value of shalom, peace. It was worth great effort to be at peace. Jesus extended this concept in the Sermon on the Mount when he advocated walking the extra-mile and taking an extra slap. These were moderate concessions, but giving people a little extra room often works wonders.
But peace that finds its source in God’s grace is on a different plane.
Since mankind is made up mostly of common people, common shepherds were the first visitors to welcome the Savior of mankind
III. The Shepherds Were Briefed About The SAVIOR (10-12)
A. A Savior is a DELIVERER
1. The Messiah would deliver Israel from her ENEMIES
2. The Messiah would deliver Israel from her SINS
B. Christ, the Lord
1. Hebrew is MESSIAH
2. The Lord Who is the LORD
Although the Doctrine of the Trinity accurately reflects the points of Scripture about God, it can blind us to other pictures of God. In this picture, God is presented as a man who tears off his arm (God the Son) and sends it to accomplish salvation. The picture is that the Messiah is part of the godhead.
Isaiah 59:12, 16-17, 20 read:
"For our transgressions have multiplied before You, and our sins testify against us. For our transgressions are with us, and we know our iniquities… He saw that there was no man—He was amazed that there was no one interceding; so His own arm brought salvation, and His own righteousness supported Him.
"He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on His head; He put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and He wrapped Himself in zeal as in a cloak…
"The Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those in Jacob who turn from transgression. [This is] the LORD’s declaration."
This figure of speech is called Anthropapatheia or Condescension, "Ascribing human attributes to God."
Since mankind is made up mostly of common people, common shepherds were the first visitors to welcome the Savior of mankind
IV. The Shepherds Enthusiastically VISIT Yeshua (15-18)
A. They HURRIED to See Jesus
B. They EXCITEDLY Told Others
• Shepherds understood the importance of the moment
• In December 1903, after many attempts, the Wright brothers were successful in getting their "flying machine" off the ground. Thrilled, they telegraphed this message to their sister Katherine: "We have actually flown 120 feet. Will be home for Christmas."
• Katherine hurried to the editor of the local newspaper and showed him the message. He glanced at it and said, "How nice. The boys will be home for Christmas." He totally missed the big news-man had flown!
• Many people today make a similar mistake when they hear the word Christmas. They don’t think of Jesus and His miraculous birth. Instead, they think of family gatherings, festive meals, decorations, and gifts. To them, Christmas brings nostalgia and memories of childhood. [source: Our Daily Bread]
C. Do you hear what they heard? Do you see what they saw? A Savior was born.
Have you been Saved by the Savior?
