It’s no longer Advent. We have arrived at Christmas, when we celebrate Jesus’ first coming. Merry Christmas! Whether you have read this passage a gazillion times or this is your first time, let the impact of the miracles of that glorious night touch your heart.
The angels declared, “The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!” This is a story that has God’s fingerprints all over it. The timing was perfect, placing Joseph and Mary in Bethlehem. God never said his entrance into the world would be flashy, and the humility played out perfectly. Between the angels and the shepherds, there was no need for a newspaper headline (had there been newspapers back then). What strikes you in this message?
God wisely chose Mary and Joseph to be the parents of His Son. Being Joseph was in the line of David, which fulfills God’s promise to King David all those years ago that his kingdom would last forever. Our infant King would become the one with an eternal reign. The census gave the couple reason to be in their ancestral town, to fulfill the birthplace of the Messiah.
The angels had their job, too. Angels are God’s messengers, and those appearing to the shepherds in the fields had the best news ever to share. Can you imagine what it was like to be a shepherd seeing this angelic display?
God had prepared the shepherds for this moment, too. While they were “terrified,” the shepherds didn’t let their fear stop them from leaving their flocks behind to see this miracle for themselves. Shepherds don’t do that, leave their flocks, that is. God stirred in their hearts that night. The Messiah had been born after all, and they had been waiting for this their whole life. The angels had given them the particulars of what to look for, and they were off.
What did the shepherds find? A baby, their Messiah, just as the angels had said. I can just imagine how surprised Mary and Joseph would have been when these men showed up. Shepherds weren’t the cleanest, most prestigious visitors, but their hearts were firm and devoted.
We can learn a lot from those shepherds. What did they do next? Rather than keep the news to themselves, their mouths were wide open. Scripture tells us, the shepherds “told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child.” The shepherds didn’t let the fact of their low position stop them. They didn’t hide behind excuses. They told “everyone” about Jesus’ birth.
Spend time today in gratitude to God for how He humbled Himself in this miraculous birth story. What amazing love!
Let’s pray. Father God, I celebrate with the angels at your magnificence. Your glorious love is beyond description. Thank you for how you used such a humble entrance to introduce yourself to our world. May I follow your example and look for simple ways to introduce others to your love. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
