1 While shepherds watched their flocks by night,
all seated on the ground,
an angel of the Lord came down,
and glory shone around.
2 “Fear not,” said he for mighty dread
had seized their troubled mind
“glad tidings of great joy I bring
to you and all mankind.
3 “To you, in David’s town, this day
is born of David’s line
a Savior, who is Christ the Lord;
and this shall be the sign:
4 “The heavenly babe you there shall find
to human view displayed,
all simply wrapped in swaddling clothes
and in a manger laid.”
5 Thus spoke the angel. Suddenly
appeared a shining throng
of angels praising God, who thus
addressed their joyful song:
6 “All glory be to God on high,
and to the earth be peace;
to those on whom his favor rests
goodwill shall never cease.”
The author of the hymn today was Nahum Tate. He lived his life in poverty, he even died in a place where he had taken refuge from his creditors. He could relate to the shepherds because he lived their life. Living your life in poverty speaks to some of us; but living an ordinary life speaks to many of us. Not poor, but also not rich.
In October’s Christianity Today magazine, there was a feature article titled: “God of the Second Shift.” One of the quotes came from Josue “Mombo” De Leon—pastor of a bilingual working-class congregation called Westside Church International. He said: “For us, working isn’t about thriving.” It’s about surviving.”
He continued: “You start with the premise that you have a job and that you feel a lack of purpose…But, that doesn’t resonate with us. How are you supposed to find purpose and flourish when you don’t even have opportunities?”
Christmas brought the shepherds those opportunities.
Look at Luke 2:8
Out in the field
8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 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. (Lk 2:8-9, ESV)
The angels brought to these shepherds the opportunity of a lifetime! They were chosen to hear the announcement of the new born king.
What this tells us is that Jesus came For All People! Great joy was available for all people—rich and poor; black and white; male and female—all people.
Verse 10:
10 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. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and 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 among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:10-14, ESV)
We are all equal at feet of Jesus. And we all are to bring Glory to God. Worship is the great unifier. When we worship—if we truly worship all of the divisions go away. That’s what makes the birth of Christ so wonderful! Thanks what makes Christmas wonderful that, at least for a moment, we can put aside our differences and focus on worshiping God saying:
14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:14, ESV)
It is interesting that as they worship, then they could not help themselves to go and see!
Look at verse 15:
15 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.” 16 And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. (Luke 2:15-16, ESV)
When we are in true worship, we have no choice but to “go and see!” We need to go and see what God is doing in the church. This isn’t an encouragement to church-hop…jumping to the newest and greatest service available. But it is an encouragement to (1) find a church where God is being glorified and (2) stay connected and being a part of what God is doing in the church. We need to go and see what God is doing.
But, when they say what God was doing they left to tell others.
17 And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. 18 And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. (Lk 2:8-18 ESV)
When they saw the sites and began to return to their fields they told others Seth Godin said “By definition, remarkable things get remarked upon.” When you see something remarkable, you want to tell others. When you God moving, you want to “go and see” and “go and tell!”
It reminds me of another song about shepherds that read:
1 While shepherds kept their watching
o’er silent flocks by night,
behold, throughout the heavens
there shone a holy light.
[Refrain] Go, tell it on the mountain,
over the hills and everywhere;
go, tell it on the mountain
that Jesus Christ is born.
In many ways, we are like the shepherds. Not terribly rich and powerful. We have job. But it is who we know that makes the difference. We have a story to tell. A remarkable story to tell. As you begin this morning, I encourage you to tell your story.
—–
Photo by Yosef Pregadio on Unsplash