Christmas, Part 5 - The Shepherds

GO TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAINS (LUKE 2:8-20)

The two weekends before Christmas are the busiest days of the year for the mall and the stores, for ordering and mailing, and for dining and catering. In Southern California alone, more than 20 million cards and letters and 1.5 million packages are postmarked the usual third Monday of December before Christmas (Los Angeles Times 12/18/01).

The American Express Retail Index, in its survey of consumers in 2001, projected that the average will spend about $1,564 per household for gifts, travel, entertaining, decorations and other expenses this year.

Every year consumers make December the busiest month of the year, and make Christmas the biggest party of the year, all for the wrong reasons. The first Christmas was a busy season. The Christmas shepherds were in a big hurry, too. On a quiet night in the country outside of Bethlehem, an angel appeared to shepherds who were watching their flock to tell them the good news. After hearing what the angels told them, the shepherds then made haste to Bethlehem to find and see and know baby Jesus for themselves.

What did the Christmas angel say? Why were the shepherds in such a rush? What is our thrill and task at this time of the year?

Christmas is the Unveiling of Great Pleasure
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 of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” (Lk 2:8-12)

Christmas is not all it is made be to be. A lot of people would rather skip the festivities altogether. 63% of respondents to a 1998 Dateline NBC/Prevention Magazine Holiday Stress survey said they felt pressure to do things they did not want to do during the holidays, and 64% reported feeling nervous and stressed about the entire season. The seasonal stress has a name to it: SAD for “seasonal affective disorder,” or what people used to call the “winter blues.”

Money was the biggest stress factor, of course: 72 percent worry about money at least some time during the holidays. Even though a good 15 percent always dread the holiday season, 9 percent end up having a good time anyway. Just 6 percent of participants manage to hang on to that dread right through the New Year's celebrations. Naturally holiday stress is more prevalent the farther north you go, with 1 percent to 5 percent of those living in middle to northern latitudes reporting SAD symptoms. Women, particularly young adults, account for 60 percent to 90 percent of those affected by this seasonal pattern of depression. (“Dear Data Dog,” American Demographics, Dec. 2000)

The angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds and the glory of the Lord “shone around” (peri-lampo) them (v 9), terrifying the shepherds. This Greek word for “shone around” occurs only twice in the Bible, the other time describing Paul’s experience on the road when he saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, “blazing around” him (Acts 26:13). The first New Testament evangelist, technically, was not John the Baptist (Lk 3:18), but the Christmas angel. This is the first time the verb “euaggelizo” or “evangelize” (v 10) appears in the New Testament. NIV clumsily translated the word as “I bring you good news.”

The Greek text used the word fear twice to describe how the shepherds felt at the angel’s sudden appearance: The shepherds “feared” (phobeo) a great fear (phobos megas)!” (v 9) But the angel did not come to strike great fear, but in contrast, to spread great joy or “chara megas” (v 10). Christmas is the proclamation of not just joy, but great joy, one of only two great joys associated with Christ - great joy at his birth (Luke 2:10, Matt 2:10) and great joy at his resurrection (Luke 24:52, Matt 28:8).

The great joy of Christmas is the birth of the baby Jesus, the Savior, the Christ, the Lord. He is the Christ, the Promise, the Anointed One, or the Coming Messiah, whose birth was prophesied in the Old Testament. In Micah 5:2, the promise of a ruler in Israel would come from Bethlehem. The word Lord is a recurring word in this passage (vv 9, 9, 11, 15). He is our Lord, the Lord of glory (1 Cor 2:8), Lord Almighty (2 Cor 6:18), the Lord of lords (Rev 17:14).

This great joy is for all the peoples of the world – Jews and Gentiles, shepherds and Magi (Matt 2:10), angels and men. It is cause for true celebration among the Chosen Ones and the Goyim, the rich and the poor, heaven and earth.

I love the story of the Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. The Grinch was a mean, ugly, lonely make-believe creature who hated Christmas and decided to put an end to it after enduring the merry-making villagers’ noise and nonsense for fifty three years.

On Christmas Eve, he put on a Santa Clause hat and coat, stole into the village, climbed into the chimneys and quietly took all the presents for himself while the villagers were sleeping. He took everything that would resemble Christmas, including tree, stocking, and decoration, and gloated anticipating the villagers’ reaction when they discovered that all their presents were gone on Christmas morning itself.

The next morning the Grinch woke up to the singing he had heard for over half a century at this time of the year. He looked out his window saw that he had failed to dampen the villagers’ Christmas spirit. He waited for people to the declare Christmas season a disaster or a letdown, but instead the people started singing. “Why?” the Grinch asked. Because Christmas is the celebration of what’s inside, not outside. The great joy and the real joy of Christmas is the birth of Jesus that can never be taken away. The Grinch had stolen all the presents, toys and decorations but the villagers did not miss them. They were still standing together, holding hands and singing joyfully. Happiness is fleeting, but joy is lasting. Parties do not last. The Chinese say, “There is no party under heaven that never ends.”

Christmas is the Unveiling of Glorious Praise
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” 15 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.” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. (Lk 2:13-18)

A man rushed up to a policeman yelling, “Help! Help! I’ve been robbed.” “Take it easy, Mac,” replied the policeman, taking out his notebook. “Tell me, what did the guy look like?” What guy?” said the man. “The guy who robbed you,” explained the policemen. “Give me a description.”

The exasperated man said, “There wasn’t any guy. I was robbed by an elephant.” The astonished cop exclaimed, “Okay, then give me a description of the elephant.” The man answered impatiently, “Are you kidding? It was an elephant. A big gray elephant with four legs and a trunk.”

The cop warned, “Don’t get touchy with me. Elephants have characteristics which identified them. For instance, if the elephant that robbed you had big ears, he was an African elephant. If he had smaller ears, he was an Asian elephant. So which was he – African or Asian?”

“How should I know?” cried the distressed victim. “He had a stocking pulled over his face.” (Adapted, George Jessel, Toastmaster General’s Favorite Jokes (Secaucus: Castle Books, 1973), pp. 94-95.)

The shepherds were ecstatic they were included in the infant’s welcoming pronouncement, festivity and committee by the angels of the Lord. God has left clear clues, straight line tracks, a direct map to the infant for the shepherds, for all the people of the world - and for you and I - to find him. The shepherds were given such privileged information (Luke 2:15), they had seen such a heavenly sight (Luke 2:17, 20), they were told such joyous news (Luke 2:17), and they had heard such glorious singing (Luke 2:20).

Further, the angel clearly evangelized everything to them in two short verses (2:10-11), or the 5 W’s and 1 H’s: what to announce - “great joy”; who it was for - “for all the people”; when the event happened - “today;” where it was located - “in the town of David”; why - “a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord;” and how -”you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” The angel’s revelation and accompanying remarks were complete for all ages.

When the shepherds finally saw the child for themselves, they returned to the country, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told to them. Previously the shepherds were poor, cold, tired and frightened, taking over the graveyard shift and working at night, but now they were rich, joyous, energized and inspired, basically taking over the angels’ work and working non-stop to spread the word concerning what had been told them about the child. The Christmas angel who was joined by a host of angels in a slew of choruses to praise God had left, but the praises did not stop. The shepherds now shouted for joy, sang in unison, gave glory, honor and praise to God that the plan for the redemption of mankind had come at the right time.

The rotten world, with its bitter suffering and bleak future, was a thing of the past. God came down from His glory. The Word became flesh and dwelt among men (Jn 1:14) – full of grace and truth. The time had fully come for God to send his Son, born of a woman, born under the curse of the law (Gal 3:13), to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons (Gal 4:4-5). God's secret wisdom has been revealed, a wisdom that was hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began (1 Cor 2:7).

The shepherds were the first believers of the gospel. They decided to check out the baby by night. They believed the words of the Christmas angel, left the country for the city of Bethlehem, hurrying in the middle of the night to look for the baby in a manger. The word “tell” is an inescapable key word in this passage. The angels told the shepherd (2:17), and the shepherds told others (2:18) what they were told (2:20). Praise the Lord, the greatest event in history was shared with shepherds who passed the good news to others. God did not come down in a palace, surrounded with servants, shrouded in secrecy.

Christmas is the Unveiling of Gracious Peace
The angels said, “Peace on earth to men on whom his favor rests.”

The year 2001 is supposed to be a significant year for commemorating world peace. One hundred years ago, the United Nations began awarding prize money in memory of Alfred Nobel to individuals or groups that have done the most to promote peace between nations. The Nobel Peace Prize, worth about a million US dollars, is the most coveted international prize.

Nobel was the Swedish industrialist who invented dynamite and held more than 350 patents, which made him very rich. At his death in 1895, the bachelor left a sizable fortune to a foundation dedicated to recognizing excellence in science, medicine, literature, and peace efforts.

However, no individual or group, not even the United Nations, can do anything to bring lasting peace. 250 wars have been fought in the 20th century alone and more than 110 million people, including 63 million civilians, died in the conflicts, according to figures from the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. Geir Lundestad, director of the Nobel Institute, said, “If the criterion for success is the Nobel Peace Prize’s ability to put an end to wars, then the prize is certainly a failure. And it will remain a failure.” The twentieth century was the bloodiest century in the history of mankind, and the new century is not getting any better.

World peace, personal peace and or relational peace are precarious and are hanging by a thread. God’s peace is different. If you notice, NIV does not use the phrase “goodwill to men” anymore. The word goodwill or “eu-dokia” in the Greek text is a combination of two words, “eu-” as in eulogy or saying good things and “dokia” or thinking. So goodwill means thinking good or having a good mindset. The whole translation means peace on earth and a good mindset to men. That’s the gift of Christmas – the gift of a peaceful mind.

God’s gift of peace of mind is not a feeling or a drug, a legislation of the court or a treaty of nations, a surplus of money or an absence of war. It is not an extra piece of cake, a set of formulas or a recitation of chants. It is a peaceful mindset knowing God’s unchanging gift of salvation; it is not tied to external factors or changing circumstances. Peace in the modern world is overrated and suspicious. Personal peace can be easily shattered by an emergency call, a traffic accident, or a crime scene, but God’s peace is secured by Jesus, the Prince of Peace. Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)

The Americans were taught a difficult age-old lesson on September 11: Power cannot buy peace of mind. Being on top is a blessing and a curse. The Chinese said, “Big trees invite winds.” This Christmas, our nerves are frayed more than ever. We will not experience peace of mind until we receive and embrace the gift of peace in Christ Jesus, which is priceless. By our own efforts we fail. Others disappoint us. Only the most powerful - the Omnipotent God, only the most knowledgeable - the Omniscient God, and only the most attending - the Omnipresent God - can give us peace.

The message of Christmas is simple. When you look outside of Christ, you will find unending misery. Look to Christ and you will find abiding peace.

Conclusion: Do you have the peace of God, which transcends all understanding? Do you desire God’s peace to guard your hearts and your minds? (Phil 4:7) Do you have Jesus in your heart and the peace that the world can’t give and the world can’t take it away? Christmas does not mean eating, shopping, or traveling. Make haste and don’t hesitate. Pursue, discover and experience Christ for yourself. Are you a quiet, passive and ignorant observer, listener and believer? The Christmas angel appeared to make believers, eyewitnesses and evangelists out of unsuspecting shepherds. Do you tell others what you know and believe, and what you have seen and heard?