Extraordinary and Ordinary
Luke 2:8-20
Rev. Brian Bill
December 21-22, 2024
How many of you have read or seen the movie called, “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever?” I listened to the audio book earlier this month and found myself laughing and crying. In this classic tale, the Herdman siblings, also known as “the worst kids in the history of world,” not only discover, but also reveal the true meaning of Christmas.
Here are a few excerpts from John Stonestreet’s review of the film…
Abandoned by their father and left unsupervised by their mother who works multiple jobs, the Herdman kids are known for wreaking havoc around town. They are notoriously, even comically, bad: “They lied and stole and smoked cigars, even the girls…and hit little kids and cussed their teachers and took the name of the Lord in vain and set fire to Fred Shoemaker’s old broken-down tool house.”
When the Herdman children learn that the local church offers free snacks at Sunday school, they show up and, to the chagrin of all, “volunteer” for the lead roles in the Christmas Pageant. They take an unusual interest in the nativity story which, to the shock of many in the church, they’ve never heard before. As they hear the biblical account of Jesus’ birth during rehearsals, they see themselves in the characters of Christmas. For example, like Mary and Joseph are turned away at the inn, they too have been rejected.
Our focus today is not on the Herdman children, but on the “herdsmen,” also known as the shepherds, who were rejected by society as well.
Have you heard the saying, “Familiarity breeds contempt?” That basically means that the more familiar we are with something, at best we get bored with it or at worst, we start resenting it. I came across a stunning quote this week from Sinclair Ferguson: “The greatest threat to Christmas isn’t secularism or consumerism but our own boredom with the most thrilling story ever told.” Let’s encounter this account as if we were hearing it for the first time because it’s the best story ever.
For centuries, people have been pleading with God to come down into our world. Listen to Psalm 144:5: “Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down!” Isaiah 64:1 records a similar plea: “Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down…” Isaiah dared to believe that something better was coming even though his culture was corrupt and everything around him seemed so dark. He longed for the Lord to somehow come down into his world to make sense out of school shootings, to bring peace to all the problems, to dispel the darkness and to extricate evil. He’s hungry to have the Holy One enter our whacked-out world in an extraordinary manner.
Here’s our main idea for today: God will move Heaven and earth to reach you.
The idiom “moving Heaven and earth” refers to someone putting all their efforts and abilities into getting something accomplished. In Haggai 2:6, God tells us that He “…will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land.”
Aren’t you glad that the Lord has shaken the heavens and come down? Two weeks ago, in our Christmas Contrast series, we looked at unbelief and wonder. Last week, we contrasted the responses of anger, apathy, and adoration. Please turn to Luke 2:8-20 where we’ll encounter another Christmas contrast, this one between the extraordinary and the ordinary when God’s holy angels appear to unholy shepherds.
Except for an occasional bleat from the sheep, the night was quiet. Luke 2:8 pictures a serene scene: “And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.” In the early pages of the Bible, shepherding was considered a noble profession, but in the first century the career of shepherding had lost its luster. Shepherds made up the lowest class of people, coming in just ahead of lepers. They were not trusted as witnesses in court because they were known as liars and thieves. Living out in the fields away from society made them outcasts. Most of them had foul mouths and were ready to fight at the drop of a hat.
Near Bethlehem, on the road to Jerusalem, was a tower known as Migdal Eder, or “the watchtower of the flock.” This was where shepherds watched sheep destined for sacrifice in the temple. It was a settled conviction among the Jews that the Messiah was to be revealed from Migdal Eder. This fulfills a prophecy from Micah 4:8: “And you, O tower of the flock, hill of the daughter of Zion, to you shall it come, the former dominion shall come, kingship for the daughter of Jerusalem.”
Let’s remember that God moves Heaven and earth to reach the marginalized, the hurting, the discouraged, the outcasts, and the heavy-hearted. The angel appears to smelly shepherds to show that salvation is for everyone.
Verse 9 says, “And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear.” An “angel of the Lord” was one of God’s top gun guys, literally meaning “a messenger from the face of God.” This angel was sent out with a specific task. Into the darkness of a silent night came the brightness of the glory of the Lord. When he appeared, God’s glory exploded all around them.
The word “glory” literally means, “Heavy in weight, important, significant, having a great reputation and splendor, brightness and beauty, worthiness and honor.” God’s glory is the sum total of the weightiness of all His attributes. It has to do with the fame of His name and represents His presence and power.
When God made His glory known, He often did so through a thick cloud or by displaying the bright light of a fire as we see in Exodus 13:21: “And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night.” God guided and guarded His people through His presence.
I wonder if the shepherds were thinking of the cloud of glory and pillar of fire that led Israel through the wilderness. Were their minds filled with thoughts of God’s “shekinah” glory, which referred to God’s dwelling place? When the invisible God manifests His presence, He makes His glory visible in profound and powerful ways by descending to dwell among people. Could it be that God was coming down to dwell on the earth? Was He rending the heavens to reside with unholy people?
I’m sure they were rubbing their eyes and shaking in their sandals. In fact, the word “terrified” means they were alarmed and agitated. The Greek uses the word “megas” which means they were “mega afraid.”
Let’s pick it up in verses 10-11: “And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Let’s break down the key words.
• Fear not – It’s common for angels to tell humans to not be afraid.
• Behold – This word means, “to look and see what God has done and is doing.” It’s literally translated as, “be sure to see.” We might say, “Don’t miss this.”
• Good news – This is where we get the word “gospel” and “evangelize.” At its heart, Christmas is good news that must be shared with others.
• Great joy – This good news should cause exceedingly great joy. This is the word “mega” again. There is joy in the world only because Christ has come.
• For all the people – This good news is not just for one group but for the whole globe.
• For unto you - Christmas must always become personal. Specifically, the angel announced that the birth of Jesus was for them personally.
• Is born – This extraordinary baby was born in an ordinary way in a very ordinary place.
• This day – This event happened that day, at a specific time in history. This is not a fable but is rooted in time and place. Galatians 4:4: “But when the fulfillment of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under law.”
• Town of David – In order to fulfill the promise of salvation, Jesus had to be a direct descendant of King David.
• Savior – The name “Jesus” means Savior, or Deliverer. He came to save us from our sins.
• Christ – This is the Greek word for Messiah, which means, “the Anointed One.”
• Lord – Jesus is God and thus demands our total submission and full allegiance.
In verse 12, God thought it necessary to give the shepherds a two-part sign because of the extraordinary nature of the message they had just received: “And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”
• A baby will be wrapped in swaddling cloths. Strips of cloth were swaddled around newborns to hold their arms and legs still so they could sleep like they did in the womb. Interestingly, the body of Jesus would one day be wrapped in strips of cloth for His burial. The Greek word for burial cloth is the root word for “swaddling cloths.” Jesus entered the world bound and He will exit it bound. Revelation 19:13 says when He returns, He’ll be wearing a robe dipped in blood. Let’s admire the cradle but be quick to move to the cross and get ready for His return when He’s wearing a crown!
• A baby will be lying in a manger. While it was common to see swaddled babies, it would have been very unusual to find a newborn in a manger, which was a stone feeding trough. I should point out that the Bible doesn’t say Jesus was born in a manger, it says Mary “laid Him in a manger.” After a heavenly explosion of God’s glory, a wrapped-up baby in a feeding trough would certainly get their attention.
As the shepherds are trying to handle the message from this one messenger, they are taken aback again in verse 13 when the heavenly host come to these unholy outcasts: “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God…” The word “suddenly” means they came unexpectedly and filled the sky with a multitude of mighty messengers. I thought of this passage when our choir sang these words: “I hear the angels singing, Hallelujah, let the earth receive her king. I know that love has come. O what a glorious night.”
The shepherds watched as heaven opened to reveal an entire militia of messengers, hundreds and thousands of angelic warriors worshipping God and saying, “…Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” Notice that peace comes only after praising. We must put God and His glory first and then peace will come.
The word “peace” appears over 400 times in Scripture. In the Old Testament, “peace” is the word shalom, and is a state of wholeness and harmony which is intended to resonate in all relationships. When used as a greeting, shalom was a wish for outward freedom from disturbance as well as an inward sense of well-being.
The word “peace” in the New Testament means to “join together; to set at one again.” It has the idea of gluing something back together. Because it is multidimensional, it is used in at least three ways.
• Peace with God vertically.
• Peace of God internally.
• Peace with others horizontally.
We could say it like this: As you praise God you’ll want to be at peace with others. When we love God, we’ll love others. And if we’re not at peace with others, it will be impossible to praise God. 1 John 4:20: “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.”
What about you? Are you in conflict this Christmas? It’s time to give God glory by doing the hard work of being a peacemaker in your relationships.
The angels had been praising in the heavenly courts and now their adoration takes place in a different venue as they praise on earth like they have always done in Heaven. These extraordinary messengers bring good news of great joy to ordinary men. Outcast and on the outskirts of society, these unholy herdsmen were among the first to learn of the birth of the Messiah.
When we give glory to God, He gives good news to us. Jesus came for the glory of God and for the good of all people. Peace comes to those who praise Him, and grace comes to those who give Him glory. The coming of Jesus is when Heaven kissed earth as the glory of God extended grace to those out of place, and peace to those who’ve been at war with the Almighty.
The highest degree of glory to God is wrapped up in the giving of His Son. It all starts in Heaven with God’s perfect plan, and it arrives on earth where peace comes to those who personalize the message. It’s available to all but activated only for those who accept Immanuel, for those who repent, believe, and receive Him (see John 1:12).
God will move Heaven and earth to reach you.
Let’s pause and note the flow of the narrative. It begins with ordinary shepherds watching their flocks on earth when suddenly extraordinary angels are sent from Heaven with an amazing message. Once their job is finished, they return to Heaven and the shepherds respond in two ways. These responses have direct application to us today.
1. Come and see. In verse 15, after witnessing this incredible display of God moving Heaven in order to reach the shepherds on earth, they knew they had to come to Christ: “When the angels went away from them into heaven, 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.’” They discussed what they should do and were unanimous in their decision to come to Bethlehem.
Verse 16 shows their fear had been replaced with faith and their faith went to their feet: “And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.” The word “haste” means to quickly speed without delay.
One night when our girls were small, our family heard a loud noise in the neighborhood. This was followed by what appeared to be a flash of lightning. We immediately lost power, as did all the houses around us. We scrambled to find flashlights and candles. I was very curious as to what happened so one of my daughters and I jumped in the car and sped quickly in the direction of the noise and flashing light.
While we were driving down darkened streets, we noticed a bunch of people walking and driving in the same direction we were headed. I commented to my daughter, “Look at all those crazy people trying to figure out what happened.” She just rolled her eyes at me. A few minutes later, we saw flashing lights near a power pole and learned that a car had hit it, thus knocking out the transformer.
Just think what would have happened had the shepherds ignored the flash of light or delayed a few days. Friend, you must come immediately and see Christ for yourself.
The invitation to come and see is found throughout the Bible. Psalm 66:5: “Come and see what God has done, He is awesome in His deeds toward the children of man!” I’m reminded of what Philip said to Nathaniel in John 1:46 in response to his skepticism about Jesus: “Come and see.” In John 4:29, the Samaritan woman is so moved by what Jesus told her about herself that she runs to tell others and makes this invitation: “Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?”
Jesus is inviting you right now to come and see.
2. Go and tell. It’s striking that after coming and seeing, the shepherds didn’t pull up a bale of straw and make themselves comfortable. They didn’t hang around the manger because they knew they were now managers of the message. Notice the message they shared had nothing to do with worshipping the angels or singing Ave Maria to Mary.
They came to see Him and then they headed out to herald the good news about Him in verse 17: “And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.” The phrase, “made known” means to “do so in a way that people can understand.” We’re here today because they couldn’t keep quiet about the child! Let me encourage you to spread the word about our Christmas Eve services at 1:00, 3:00, and 5:00 as we investigate how Jesus is both eternal Son of David and the incarnate Son of God.
With hearts filled with gratitude, these ordinary men break out into extraordinary praise in verse 20: “And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.” They don’t just wonder about what they saw, they worship Him whom they saw. These rough shepherds went back to their jobs, but now with praise on their lips and a renewed desire to give glory to God. Because they had seen the glory of God, they are now committed to glorify Him with their lives.
The commands to come and see and to go and tell are given by the angel of the Lord to some ordinary women after the resurrection of Jesus in Matthew 28:6-7: “He is not here, for He has risen, as He said. Come, see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that He has risen from the dead.”
Recently, I read a very moving post called, “Filthy Night, Fetid Night” by Carrie McKean. This article came with a picture which showed Joseph and Mary with clothespins on their noses. Here’s an excerpt.
When I think about the night of Jesus’ birth, the first picture that comes to mind is straight from my childhood. It’s like I’m peering into a snow globe manger scene. Hallmark Channel perfect, it’s clean and serene. Everyone is in the correct place. Snow falls softly, blanketing the hillside in a carpet of quiet. All is calm. All is bright. Give it a good shake, and nothing falls out of place. The snow gently swirls, then settles over the pristine couple and silent baby once again.
But that image is quickly crowded by another. Nearly 15 years ago, my husband and I lived in a dusty Chinese village on the outskirts of Beijing…and most mornings we walked behind a flock of sheep and their shepherd on our way to work.
You could smell that shepherd’s stable before you saw it. Fetid and filthy, the sheep crowded in at the end of a day. In the summer, flies buzzed. In the winter, sludge froze solid. I would pass the sheep and their shepherd, pitying him a little. Around Christmas, I pictured my Savior born amid fresh, sweet hay in an inexplicably warm and comforting stable. The snow globe in my mind was just how I wanted to imagine Jesus’ entrance into the world. But the stable I walked past told the truth: Stables smell like dirty sheep.
I wanted to throw a snow globe against a brick wall. That clean Nativity was plastic, fraudulent, and fake. I felt angry at myself for all the ways I’d cheapened and tamed the gospel. My own faith felt fake and plastic too.
The world I saw outside my window needed a God-become-flesh in circumstances far messier than those perfect little snow globes. And here was this shepherd and his sheep, upending my picture of the Incarnation and revealing that the lack was in my seeing, not in Christ’s coming.
There’s no way around the fact that incarnation means coming to a filthy and fetid world, just like that stable in China…it’s a world with disease and mental illness. A fallen creation groans with earthquakes, floods, and fires. Sorrow, unending sorrow. It is all too dirty, and yet He came near.
Jesus is God-made-flesh who doesn’t ask us to clean up the mess before he comes. He enters into our messes, always, always with us. He put on human skin…willingly emptying himself (Phil. 2:5-8), becoming a shepherd for you and me, a bunch of dirty sheep (John 10:11). He didn’t leave us in our squalor but led us to green pastures—to healing, rescue, and restoration of our souls (Ps. 23). I love a God who sees dirty sheep and tends them himself.
Isn’t it intriguing the perfect “Lamb of God” was born in the area set aside for sheep to be sacrificed? According to Hebrews 10:10, Jesus was the final sacrifice for our sins: “…we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
King David’s descendant is the sacrificial substitute for our sins as stated in John 10:11: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” John the Baptist declared in John 1:29, He is the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” Even at His birth, Jesus is seen as Sovereign, Sacrifice, and Savior.
Let’s circle back and pick up John Stonestreet’s review of the Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever.
In the end, the Herdmans’ pageant performance is fumbly and chaotic—wise men unsure of where to go, Mary desperately clinging to her child, angels scaring the shepherds. However, their realness helps everyone see the story with fresh eyes. As the play closes and tears roll down the eldest, cigar-smoking Herdman girl’s face, who is playing the role of Mary, all are reminded of the true meaning of Christmas. In the end, everyone agrees that this was the best Christmas pageant ever.
This story confronts us with the down-to-earth reality of the Incarnation. Whether our sin resembles the harsh judgmentalism of church folk or the rebellion of the Herdman kids, the gift God gave to the world on Christmas is for all of us.
Jesus was born to the whole world, but He was also born “to you.” It is not enough to just get sentimental snow globe Christmas. I close with three questions:
• Is He “Savior” to you?
• Is He “Christ” to you?
• Is He “Lord” to you?
Recently, when we were out in Virginia, Beth and I had the privilege of worshipping next to our six-year-old grandson Ezra and our eight-year-old grandson Pip. I looked over at Beth during one song and saw tears flowing down her cheeks as she listened to Ezra belting these words out full throttle:
O come, bitter and broken
Come with fears unspoken
Come, taste of His perfect love
O come, guilty and hiding ones
There is no need to run
See what your God has done
He’s the Lamb who was given
Slain for our pardon
His promise is peace
For those who believe
Christ is born, Christ is born
Christ is born for you!
Friend, God has moved Heaven and earth to reach you! Will you come and see and then go and tell?
If you’re ready to come to Christ now, please pray this prayer with me.
“I’m in awe of you. I don’t understand how You can accept me when I don’t measure up. I confess that I am a sinner, and I want to turn from the way I’ve been living. I need You to be my Savior and so I come to You now. You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God. I desire to live under Your lordship for the rest of my life. Thank You for not only being born but for dying in my place and rising again so that I can be born again. I receive the gift of salvation and forgiveness by asking You to come into my life. Make me into the person You want me to be and help me to go and tell others. In the name of Immanuel, I ask this. Amen.”
