"But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people." (Luke 2:10)
I was thinking about the shepherds spoken of in Luke 2. Who were they?
They were poor; uneducated; not thought much of by society! They were people of no great social standing; they had no influence economically nor politically. Being a shepherd in New Testament times did not have great prestige attached to it. Shepherds were looked down upon in the same was tax-collectors and dung-sweepers. Apparently there are early writings that record “Nobody should feel obligated to rescue a shepherd who had fallen into a pit”.
So, we get an idea of how despised shepherds were in Jesus ‘day. However, it was to these lowly humble shepherds that the God of Heaven and Earth chose to reveal the good news about the Christ!
It was these despised, dejected and rejected shepherds that hastened to go and see God in a box, and once they had, they proclaimed to everyone what they had been told about this child!
The living God of the Bible, is no respecter of persons. In the midst of the ordinary and the common – He reveals himself to each of us this Christmas.
You see, it makes no difference what others may think of you, or what you may think of yourself. What really counts today is what God thinks of you. And, friend, He must think pretty highly of you and me, He must really love us undeserving humans, if he bothered to stoop down in kindness to our level to save us from our sins.
That’s what the box in Bethlehem spoke of – a Saviour who has come for all people, from all walks of life.
Pause and reflect:
· Place yourself in the shoes of the shepherds – how do think they would have felt about being the recipients of such awesome news?
· How do you feel about being reminded of this awesome news again this Christmas?
PRAYER:
Thank you Saviour, Messiah, Lord,
For coming to and for all,
Loving the unlovable, undeserving and unworthy
Extending to each one, Salvation’s call.