"A Shepherd’s Story"
Luke 2:8-20
Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 10 Then the angel said to them,"Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger."
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
14 "Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"
15 So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, "Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us." 16 And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. 17 Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. 18 And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds. 19 But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.
NKJV
Good morning. I guess I should begin by introducing myself. My name is Matthias and I’m a shepherd by trade. I used to scratch out a living tending sheep in the land of Palestine. I’m here to tell you about the night that my understanding of God and his purposes, and my place in them, changed forever.
I’ve got to level with you. This is not the most comfortable thing for a man such myself to do. I’m not sophisticated like most of you. I’ve never had any formal education. From an early age my father trained me in the only skill he knew - shepherding. I’m not a theologian either. Certainly my parents told me the stories of our forefathers - those great men and women of faith like Abraham, Moses, David and Esther. We sang the Psalms like all good Hebrews and occasionally visited the synagogue to hear the rabbi’s teach. But that was about the extent of it.
We didn’t mingle a lot with other people. It’s not that we were antisocial. It’s just that shepherding as a profession wasn’t highly esteemed. No parent in their right mind aspired for their child to be a shepherd. It’s hard, monotonous work. You spend most of your time outdoors, exposed to the elements. Here in your country you have fenced pastures and elaborate barns to care for your livestock. That’s not the way shepherds operate. Our sheep graze in the open countryside. We have to lead them to green pastures to eat and still waters to drink, walking every step of the way.
Predators are a constant threat. It’s the shepherd’s job to protect his flock from snakes, bears, wolves and the occasional marauding lion. There have been a few occasions when I thought I was a goner fighting off those beasts.
Suffice it to say that people of my profession were looked down on. We were near the bottom of the ladder when it came to respect and social standing in the community.
Nobody ever said it, but we could always tell that most folks didn’t want us around. Part of the reason was the way we looked and smelled. If you live and work outside with livestock there’s no a lot of time to trim your beard or wash your face or clean your clothes. When you spend a lot of time with sheep you begin to smell like them. You may not know this, but sheep are filthy animals. The wool that you see ready to be sold or made into clothes has been cleaned thoroughly. A sheep in the field is as nasty as a pig. You can imagine the reaction of people in town when a few of us would stop in for supplies. They’d take our money, but we could tell they’re ready for us to leave. I guess I can’t really blame them.
What I could never understand was the mistrust the townspeople had for shepherds. Maybe it was because of our nomadic lifestyle. We moved from place to place, sort of like your modern day carnival workers. If something was stolen the shepherd was automatically the most likely suspect. This was unfair. I’m sure there were some dishonest men of my trade, but isn’t that the case in all professions? For some reason the people assumed we were all scoundrels. Even the judges thought this was true. They wouldn’t allow the testimony of a shepherd in any court case.
What hurt and angered me the most was the attitude of the religious leaders toward us. I was a part of a special group of shepherds who raised the lambs used for sacrifice in the temple at Jerusalem. We worked diligently raising those sheep. We picked out the best male lambs for the priests. They had not spots or blemishes. We never pawned off blind or crippled sheep. We figured that God deserved the best, so that’s what we gave him.
Our efforts went unrecognized by the priests and the good religious people. In fact, they often sneered at us when we brought the lambs they were going to use into the Holy City. The priests paid us and then the Temple guards drove us out as quickly as possible. I guess they didn’t want grimy shepherds cluttering up the place.
The religious people looked down on us because we didn’t attend the services and feasts as consistently as they. We wanted to, but we couldn’t. Shepherding was a 24-hour a day, 7 day a week job. It’s like they never saw the connection. We could present them perfect lambs to sacrifice, but only because we worked so hard at our jobs. Because we worked so hard we couldn’t be possibly be present at all the religious celebrations. We were also considered ceremonially unclean. The Pharisees had set us elaborate cleansing rituals for those who wanted to be admitted to participate in temple worship. Even if we had the time off we could never be clean enough for them.
The priests and the scribes and the Pharisees looked down on us. Those who considered the righteous people completely despised us. I began to wonder if perhaps God did too.
That notion forever vanished from my mind the night the angel appeared. I know this will sound crazy, but it really happened. I hope that, unlike my countrymen, you will trust in the testimony I’m about to share.
It happened late one night in early winter. I remember the season well because that’s when the rains come to our land. The barren fields of Judea become lush with vegetation for a few weeks during December and January. All of the shepherds had gathered their sheep together in a meadow just outside of Bethlehem. We assembled them into one big flock for protection and so that we could enjoy one another’s company. Some of the men would sleep while others talked, told stories or played their flutes and lyres.
A strange silence fell over the men and animals. Those who were resting simultaneously awaken from their sleep. In an instant an enormous human-like figure materialized near the sheep. His clothes were brilliant white, like snow, except brighter. Every shepherd left his post to get a better look at our strange visitor. We had our clubs and slings and swords ready, just in case he was up to no good. He was huge, but we had him outnumbered. The sheep just lay there, calm and at rest.
What happened next is difficult for me to describe even today, many years afterward. As I approached the man in white I knew he was no ordinary human being. Every hair on my body was standing on end. I was shaken, but also intrigued. Before any of us could reach our dazzling visitor something like a bright light shone all around us. It wasn’t an earthly kind of light because it wasn’t blinding to the eyes. The light was pure and intense. I could feel it penetrating my body into the joints and marrow to the very depths of my soul. I was overwhelmed by the power of this light and within it I sensed a presence. In my spirit I knew that this was the radiant glory of God. This was the fire of his presence that I’d heard about in the ancient Hebrew stories.
The experience was not as you might imagine. Those who stand in the presence of the Almighty understand his overwhelming holiness. I felt as though blisters were erupting on my soul. In those moments I recognized my own filthiness. It had nothing to do with the manure on my sandals or the sweat stains on my tunic. I was a sinner in the presence of a holy, righteous, utterly pure God. On the one hand I wanted to run and hide. I felt naked and afraid. Yet on the other I sensed the presence of eternal love and acceptance. I fell to my knees and then on my face.
My senses would have been overcome completely had not the angel spoken. The warmth of peace filled my heart as he said, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people." God had a message for us, for the whole world. He had not come to judge us, but to reveal good news.
Then the angel spoke about the purpose of his appearing. He said, "Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah the Lord." After 400 years of silence God spoke. Our people had been waiting for this moment. Generations lived and died looking forward to the coming of this Deliverer. The time was at hand and God made his announcement to us - shepherds in the field. That didn’t make sense. I concluded that he must have already informed the religious leaders in Jerusalem. They were probably already celebrating.
The angel concluded his message by saying, "This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a feeding trough." There was nothing unusual about the first part of the sign. All good mothers wrapped their babies in swaddling clothes in those days. It was the method used to keep the newborn warm and protect their limbs from injury. The snug wrap of the cloth strip made the babies feel secure, like they were still in their mother’s womb.
The second part of the sign was a puzzle. The Messiah has been born and he’s lying in a feeding trough? God’s anointed Savior is sleeping on a bed of hay and cow saliva? I didn’t understand, but I took him at his word.
As if my mind weren’t spinning already, suddenly, as far as the eye could see, a vast multitude of angels appeared. It’s kind of misleading to say they appeared. It was as if my eyes had suddenly gained the ability to see what was already there. There must have been millions of them, brilliant like lightening and various in form -- some not even human in appearance. With one voice they cried out: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." I would have gazed at them all night had they not just as quickly disappeared from my sight.
The first light of dawn was breaking when we finally came to our senses. Almost immediately it was agreed that we’d go find this Christ child. I had a pretty good idea where to find him. I figured his parents were there to register for the census decreed by his pompousness, Caesar Augustus. They probably hadn’t factored in the magnitude of the crowd in Bethlehem. They probably weren’t able to find a place to stay and spent the night in a stable. There was only one lodge in Bethlehem and it had a stable attached to it.
Several of us were about to run when the voice of reason rang out from one of the shepherds. He simply asked, "What about the sheep?" We puzzled over this for a moment, but then one of the older shepherds came up with the solution. He reminded us that if God had taken the time to announce this glorious event, surely he’d watch out for our sheep so that we could see the Messiah. That was good enough for me and a number of others. Actually I could have cared less about the sheep at that point. Unbelievably, some of the shepherds were far more concerned over their sheep than visiting the Savior. A handful decided to stay. To my knowledge they never even attempted to see the child. They seemed totally unaffected by the angels and their message.
Those of us who made the journey to Bethlehem that morning found everything just as the messenger said. There was the baby, wrapped up snug and warm, sleeping peacefully in the feeding trough. My suspicions were right. The baby’s parents, Joseph and Mary, had made an 80-mile trip on foot from Nazareth. Neither their relatives nor the lodge had room. They made do with the stable. The new mother, who couldn’t have been more than sixteen, told me the baby’s name was Jesus. A common name, but it means "God saves."
I was perplexed to learn that none of the religious leaders had visited. Jerusalem was only six miles away. Where were the priests and the scribes and the Pharisees - the good religious folks? I found out later that none of them ever showed up. When the child was a toddler some heathens from the East arrived to honor our Messiah, but not one Jewish leader welcomed him. Did God not reveal this event to our religious leaders?
A small crowd from the lodge did come and investigate when they heard Jesus crying from the stable. As Mary nursed him we explained to everyone the vision and the message God gave us. They were all amazed. Some believed and praised God on the spot. Others looked skeptical. They drew near to us as if listening, but then left unconvinced. No doubt they were sniffing for the smell of the wineskins on us.
We huddled around the baby for just a little while. When it was clear that child and mother wanted to sleep we returned to our sheep. In one night everything had changed. My doubts were replaced with faith and my frustration with joy. I returned to my labor with a peace that I was loved by God and had a part in his purposes.
Even after all these years, the question still surfaces in my mind: why? Why did God reveal himself to me? Why did he announce the birth of his Son to a band of grubby shepherds and not the religious elite?
It seems to me that we were just part of a bigger pattern that night.
Why was the Messiah born in a cattle stall and not a palace like the son of a Caesar.
Why did Mary give birth to the Savior in a little town like Bethlehem and not the holy city, Jerusalem?
Why did God choose the Jewish people for the lineage of his Son? The Romans had more military power. The Greeks were renowned for their wisdom. The Egyptians took the prize for art.
The only answer I could come up with was this: God reveals himself to those who are humble enough to receive him. Something those angels said sticks out in my mind. They chanted: "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." The angels promised peace with the birth of that Child, but it wasn’t the kind of peace that means cessation from war and conflict. If that’s the case, then God failed miserably and history bears it out.
No, the kind of peace that angel was talking about was a peace with God. Forgiveness and a right relationship with the Almighty were what he was talking about. Peace within ourselves was also a part of the promise. When God calls us innocent there’s no place for guilt. There’s also a peace in knowing that no matter what dark valley you have to walk through God is still there, like s shepherd with his sheep. He’s there even when we can’t see him and he’s leading us in the path of his purpose. That’s real peace and it comes to those whom God favors. He favors those who are humble enough to receive him.
God favors those who see their need for him by providing for them. He favors those who seek him by letting them find him. He favors those who take him at his word by saving them.
I’m starting to sound like one of the rabbis now. Like I said before, I’m no theologian. I’m uneducated. In the eyes of the world I’m nobody at all. But not to God. When he saw fit to send his one and only Son to earth he announced it to me, a shepherd. I’m living proof that you don’t have to be special for God to reveal himself to. You just have to be humble enough to receive him.
This material came from various sources and ides of friends
