8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
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The fact that the Lord sent angels to be the first announcers of the birth of the Savior is not surprising. This event is the high point of God’s actions in the world up to this point. We would expect celestial involvement. Similarly, it will be angels that will be the first announcers of the resurrection at the end of the gospel.
What is surprising in these angelic bookends to the life of Christ is who the angels are sent to: Shepherds on the one hand, and women on the other. The significance of these being the two groups that first heard these announcements could be lost on us because our cultures are so different from first century Palestine.
Just a quick word about the women and the resurrection (since I brought it up): In that culture, women were not considered reliable witnesses. Under most circumstances, their testimony would not be accepted in courts. That God chose women to be the first human witnesses and proclaimers of the most important news in all of history demonstrates God’s repudiation of that culture’s devaluing of women, and also pointed to the truth that all of God’s people are witnesses.
But what about the shepherds? Shepherds were considered the lowliest of professions. They lived out in the fields with sheep and were considered to be little better than the animals they tended. They occupied a very low rung on the social ladder. We might have expected God to send the angels to the temple to announce the good news to the priests. Or to Herod’s palace. Or to the middle of Jerusalem, that all the people of the city would hear the angelic message.
But God chose to make this announcement, the most important new in history to that point, to ordinary people, to simple laborers. They would be the first to see and witness that God had kept His promise and sent a Savior. They would be the first to see the incarnation manifest, the Word that had become flesh. And they would be the first humans to announce the good news to others, as we will see later in this chapter.
What does this say to us? Who does our culture devalue? Who does our society consider unimportant? These are the ones God would send His angels to today. In a world where status from an earthly standpoint is so tied to wealth, or power, or beauty, or business success, or education level, or any number of other factors, we see here that the greatest status of all, loved by God, doesn’t depend on any of these things. The good news of the Savior is for “all the people,” as the angel said. And that means that it is for me.
How is God calling me to show that since God values all people, no matter what the culture things, I am to value all people? Who is God calling me to be His love today?
Lord, you remind me through the account of the shepherds, that your love is for all the people, including me. Help to live this day in the comfort and strength of your grace.
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