What if no one told the Story?
Luke 2:8-20
Surveys are done on just about every subject now. One was taken with church members asking then which character in the Christmas story they most identified with. Mary? Joseph? The shepherds? The wise men? Most people who answered the question said they identified with the shepherds. That is not surprising to me.
Most of us are pretty comfortable with the Christmas story. Perhaps you have seen this picture before. It has also been used as an ornament. And it is a reminder of what the season is really all about. For too many I think it is about the number of shopping days until Christmas, maxing out the credit card and running here and there trying to get ready for Christmas. Haven’t you noticed that if you ask someone if they are all ready for Christmas their answer is always based on whether they have all of their shopping done or not. Because that is what it is about to many people. In my hometown a woman had stopped to look at the manger scene in a store window. As she stood there admiring the manger another shopper walked by and said imagine that, the church trying to horn in on Christmas! It reminds me of the little girl who misquoted John 3:16 and said “for God so loved the world that He gave His only forgotten Son.” The music this morning has reminded us that Christmas is not about shopping and racing to get everything done. It is about Jesus who came into this world to bring salvation and peace to people who desperately need both.
The shepherds were the first to hear the story. I find it to be very interesting that God gave this first announcement—an announcement people had been waiting on for several thousand years—it’s interesting to me that he chose the shepherds as the first to hear it.
v. 8. doesn’t tell us much about who they were. It simply says there were shepherds living in the fields nearby. Beyond that we know nothing else about them. The first shepherd in the Bible was a man named Abel. Cain’s brother. There are many others we also know about…Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David—all were shepherds. God calls himself a shepherd. And you and I are compared to sheep—which is not exactly a compliment by the way.
By the time we get to the first century A.D. shepherds were no longer in the same class of people. They had in a sense been demoted. Here are a few things we need to know about shepherds at this time.
• Shepherds were considered to be unclean. As a result they were not allowed to attend any religious services.
• Shepherds lived a life of isolation. They were very transient. Because their flocks needed grass and fresh water, they never stayed in one place for long.
• Shepherds were not trusted. They were suspected of stealing from others and because they often were not truthful they were not even allowed to testify in court.
So God entrusted the greatest message ever sent from heaven to a bunch of smelly, uncouth shepherds. It shouldn’t surprise us because from the beginning of time he has come to lift up those who have found themselves at the bottom of the ladder.
• He chose David to be King—a man who committed murder and adultery
• He chose Hosea who was married to a prostitute
• He shoes the apostle Paul who was also a murderer and who described himself as chief of sinners.
When Jesus came he said these words—I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners. It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. So he went to the prostitutes, the demon possessed, the lepers and also to the shepherds.
Did you know Mary, the Virgin Mary wrote a song? It is found in Luke chpt. 1 and she says that Jesus “has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good thong but has sent the rich away empty.” The apostle Paul tells us that God has a message for sinners just like you and me. Aren’t you glad? Everyone matters to Jesus.
I find in the shepherds 4 characteristics that Jesus is looking for in the people He uses.
1. They were attentive. Luke 2:8. They were so committed to their career that they never left their work. They worked the first shift, the 2nd shift; then the 3rd. This was a 24/7 deal for them. They were faithful. They were as the Bible says keeping watch. It was often the case that different flocks would come together at night and would all come into the same fold. They were surrounded by what is known as a sheep pen, a wall of rocks with one opening and one of the shepherds would literally lie across the entrance to make sure none of the sheep could get in and no trespassers; no predators could get in. For either to happen they would have to go through the shepherd.
This gives new meaning to the words Jesus spoke when He said I am the gate, whoever enters through me will be saved. So we notice here that God came to those who were attentive at the jobs they were given to do.
2. They were awed. While they were being attentive to the responsibilities they were given, they were suddenly awed by the announcement of the angels. Look at v. 9.
For over 400 years no one had heard from God. This period of time between the Old and New Testaments…none of the prophets spoke. Then suddenly out of nowhere the glory of God lights up the skies and the Bible says the shepherds were terrified. And rightfully so. But the angel said to them, do not be afraid. I bring you good news. And the shepherds went “whew!” Because they’re like you know I remember when the angels came with a message at Sodom and Gomorrah and two entire cities were burned to the ground. We can understand why they were so afraid.
Make no mistake. We would have a lot to fear of Christmas never happened. If Jesus never came we would have no confidence, no forgiveness, no forgiveness; no hope. These words “good news” is where we get our word evangelize. The Greek word here is actually the word mega. It means large, loud and powerful. This message is for all the people but I want you to notice the word “you” as well. Yes it’s for the whole world but it’ also very personal.
v. 11-12.
Then look…v.13. Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared. Host comes from the Greek word stratias which means army. We don’t know how many but this is a large group of angels filling the sky praising God and saying, “glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace to men on whom his favor rests. The army has come to announce peace. The battle is over. Now look at what the shepherds did with the message.
3. The acted on it. Look at verse 15. V. 16. They hurried off. Pretty amazing in itself because normally shepherds didn’t do anything quickly. They were used to moving slowly through the pastures. They were patient. But faith must lead to action. Faith alone is not enough. James said that “faith without works is dead.”
v. 16 they went and they saw. Immediately they went to Bethlehem. They wanted to see the baby with their own eyes. There is a bit of irony here. Unclean shepherds came to a smelly stable to see the Holy of holies lying on a bed of hay. Many believe that the shepherds had been taking care of sheep that were going to be sacrificed in the temple in Jerusalem. If that’s true it is no accident that they left them behind to run and visit the Lamb of God. So they left.
v. 17. They left and they shared. They could have pulled up a bale of straw and made themselves comfortable. Relax right there with the baby Jesus. We notice that the message they shared had nothing to do with seeing the angels or Mary or Joseph. They came to see Jesus. Look again at v. 17. The word spread means to “make known in such a way that people can understand.” We’re here today because they couldn’t keep quite.
4. They adored Jesus. V. 20 says they returned to worship Jesus. Someone has observed that many of us worship our work, we work at our play and we play at our worship. We don’t get any of it right.
I wonder what the shepherds would have done that night if the angels had not spoken. I suppose they would have stayed right where they were…..taking care of sheep. I wonder what the wise men would have done had God not spoken. They would have stayed where they were. They would not have gone out on that long journey following a star. And Mary and Joseph would still have gone to that stable but no one would have shown up for the birth of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. No one. Have you ever wondered…what of no one decided to tell the story?
• What if the wise men weren’t so wise after all and they just ignored the message?
• What if the shepherds were just too busy to respond?
• What if when Jesus was older and He called out 12 disciples…..what if they said you know, I have to make a living for my family…I can’t just drop these fishing nets and follow you! Or if Matthew said, I can’t leave my work…who’s gonna take care of people’s taxes? Or if Luke said I can leave my medical practice, who’s gonna take care of my patients?
The truth is if the shepherds had not told the story and the wise men had not shown up and the disciples had not responded, that we might not be sitting here today. We might now know the Lord, this church might not exist; the Word of God would not be preached every week. All that we have is because of Him and because some of his servants were faithful. All because they told the story. Now it’s up to you and me. What if we don’t tell the story to our children and our grandchildren? And our neighbors and our coworkers? And our friends? The truth is it just might not get told. And many people will miss knowing the Savior. It’s up to you and me.
