Chill!

If you were heaven’s choir director and had just received an assignment to rehearse a song announcing the birth of the promised Messiah, the Son of God, what would you anticipate? How would you visualize that greatest of all Christmas cantatas? You would possibly see the angelic choir taking their place in one of the great concert halls, filled to capacity with well-dressed, wealthy, influential leaders. What would you think when the day finally arrived and you found out the concert would take place on a hill in a pasture outside of a little farming community in Judea? Well, at least the invitees will be holy, faith-filled, prominent citizens. But no! Now you find out that your audience, the crowd you have been preparing for so long and hard, is going to be shepherds and sheep!!

To begin with, why give the announcement to shepherds? They would become the eyewitnesses to the birth of Jesus, those who would be the first ones to proclaim the Good News that the Messiah had been born. Why not priests or kings or prophets? Shepherds were so low on the social status, only Luke mentions them. In ancient Palestine they were classified with tax collectors and dung sweepers. Shepherds were considered incompetent and untrustworthy. They experienced continual rejection from the surrounding society and lived a fundamentally unstable, unsettling life. Yet these were the ones who were to witness the angelic announcement and see the new born Son. What does that tell you about the heart and nature of God? What does it say about God’s plan to redeem and restore humanity, to establish God’s rule, defeat sin and reverse the curse?

And then there were those sheep! Ancient Egyptian culture considered sheep to be the lowest of all animals, worthless for either food or sacrifice. Sheep tended to eat too much and destroy crops. Sheep were high-maintenance animals, unable to take care of themselves. They depended on shepherds to find them water and adequate pasture. Sheep had to have a shepherd to keep them organized and moving in the right direction. If there was any sense of danger or instability, sheep tended to jump up and wander off, requiring shepherds to gather the scattered sheep. They wouldn’t cross water on their own so the shepherd had to venture into the river first to prove that it was safe. Newborn lambs were especially vulnerable, requiring constant, personal care from shepherds. Sheep were prone to sickness and disease, calling for shepherds to have an adequate knowledge of care and healing. Sheep were accident prone, meaning that shepherds needed to have the ability to mend broken bones. Because sheep were so vulnerable, they were favorite targets for robbers and wild animals; shepherds had to be willing and ready to drive off anyone attacking the flock.

So why give heaven’s glorious announcement to a group of shepherds and sheep? And what was this good news so longed for and desperately needed? “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:14). “Glory to God,” the glory of God being revealed in a stable and on that hillside. It is the highest glory, originating in the highest heaven. This is the supreme revelation of God and his glorious, eternal purpose for creation and humanity. “Peace,” the coming of God’s wholeness and fullness, the restoration of heavenly harmony and God’s righteous order. “On earth,” God’s shalom coming into human history at a specific time and place. God’s “favor,” God’s good will, good pleasure, God’s best desire and wish for all humankind, was being proclaimed. Everyone equally needed to hear that message, starting at the bottom with the lowliest, the neediest, the most despised and rejected.

The fact is, we are all God’s sheep. Everything that is true about those beautiful but vulnerable animals is true about us. When we find ourselves in an uncertain, unstable time, we tend to get nervous, to get up and begin to stumble around. Some even scatter and wander off. All we like sheep need to hear a word of comfort, a word of peace, a message of favor. In Christ, that message has come. And when we receive that message, like those shepherds long ago, we have the joy and privilege of spreading the good news to the world. “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” (Luke 2:17-18).

The second week in Advent continues our heart preparation to celebrate the coming of Christ into the world by reflecting on the message and ministry of John the Baptist. John heard heaven’s pronouncement while he was still in his mother’s womb, and he rejoiced. John then dedicated himself to being a “voice,” pointing to Jesus and inviting all who would hear to be true followers of the Messiah. Do you hear that voice? Today is your opportunity embrace the message and find true rest for your soul.