Shepherds Become Witnesses
Before Jesus was born, God hand-picked everyone that would be involved in the overall Gospel story. God chose Abraham, Moses, and David to create, liberate, and lead the nation where he would be born. He picked Peter, James, John, and others to disciple and pour into during his ministry. He selected apostles like Paul, Timothy, and Barnabus to share the good news and plant churches after he ascended.
The people involved in Jesus’s birth are no exception. God specifically chose Mary, who became brave to carry the Son of God, and Joseph, who became faithful to raise him.
And for his own glory, God involved a certain group of shepherds to become witnesses of Jesus.
Luke 2:8-12 (NIV)
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Shepherds were the “average Joe” workers of the day. Luke said that this specific group of shepherds lived out in their fields. Tending these sheep meant that they needed to be ready at all times to fight off a predator or track down a lost sheep.
Even with multiple shepherds, we can imagine that this kind of work was draining and that these shepherds were more than weary on this particular night.
The shepherds didn’t receive an angelic “heads up” that they were going to be involved with Jesus’s birth like Mary and Joseph, so when the angel appears in verse 9, they were rightly terrified.
Imagine being exhausted while working in the dead of night. It was dark due to the lack of modern electricity. Then suddenly a heavenly being showed up with the brightness of “the glory of the Lord”. Anyone would be terrified, or caught off guard at the very least.
They were inconvenienced with the appearance of this angel.
We can infer that these shepherds were the first outsiders to hear about Jesus’s birth. The angel even told them what they needed to look for: a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.
More than being an inconvenience, this sign served as a litmus test, meaning if they found the baby, then everything else the angel said was true:
The Messiah had finally come.
Luke 2:15-18 (NIV)
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.
After the angel left, the shepherds had to make a choice: go find the baby or go back to the flock.
Luke said they didn’t waste any time to go find the baby, which means they probably didn’t make any arrangements for their sheep. They didn’t care about wolves or wandering sheep.
Jesus was more important.
One can only imagine what Mary and Joseph must have thought when a bunch of shepherds showed up to see their baby.
Jesus matched the description the angel gave them: wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.
This baby was the Messiah.
God not only brought the shepherds physically to Jesus, but also spiritually. They acted on faith to find him, and their belief grew because of it.
This experience for the shepherds was so monumental in their lives that they couldn’t possibly have kept it to themselves. The shepherds left and told anyone and everyone who would listen about everything that happened that night.
Not only that, but people listened and were impressed with their story.
The shepherds became witnesses—the first witnesses.
They didn’t know that they were waiting for Jesus to come, but once they did, the shepherds immediately joined in what God was doing.
God could have easily chosen someone more royal, wealthy, or educated to become the first witnesses, but those qualifications weren’t important to him. He was more interested in the faith and obedience that the shepherds had.
Perhaps people were more willing to listen to the shepherds because of one important thing they knew about them:
Shepherds would only leave their sheep behind for something life changing.
If God can use someone as common as a shepherd to tell people about Jesus, then he can definitely use us.
Like the shepherds, many of us are waiting for an encounter with Jesus but may not realize it. Our moments to find Jesus this Christmas will not be heralded with an Angelic chorus. Instead, our encounter may look more ordinary.
A fellow shopper might be short on money for groceries. A coworker might be struggling with several deadlines and needs help. A neighbor might be celebrating Christmas alone again this year.
There are many desperately wanting hope this time of year, and that’s a need that only Jesus can fulfill. He may have already chosen you to become a witness to that person.
But when that “moment” does come, what decision are you going to make?
Stay with the flock?
Or go find Jesus?
Becoming generous
weekly family activity - Waiting
Each week of this Advent season your family has an opportunity to grow in its generosity.
Waiting can be tough, but we can often use the time that someone is waiting as an opportunity to bless them. As a practical application, pay the bill of the person behind you in the drive-thru this week. We don’t often get to see the results of our generosity, but a small act of kindness can turn someone’s day around. Think about others you see waiting. How might you be a blessing to them?
To follow along with this study, mark your calendars for Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays in these weeks leading up to Christmas. Each post will be hosted here. If what you’re learning is meaningful to you, click one of the share buttons at the top of these posts to invite more people on this journey of becoming.
We also invite you to spend Sunday mornings with us to hear what the pastors have to share with us during this season. Services start at 9:30 and 11:15am each week. See you there!
Weekly Reading - Dec 16-20
Monday Luke 2:1-20
Tuesday Isaiah 52:7-9
Wednesday Matthew 2:1-23
Thursday Acts 5:27-32
Friday John 3:1-21