I had an odd thought today about the Christmas story. I was listening to a song that a friend of mine has written about the shepherds who were the first to hear about Jesus the night He was born. We all know the story; we've heard the Scriptures many times before. There were some shepherds out in the fields watching their sheep the night that Jesus was born. An angel of the LORD suddenly appears in front of them, and the Scripture says they were terrified.
In our culture, and especially around Christmas time, we see angels depicted for us as a man with wings and a cute little halo hovering over his head. They usually have a very human sort of expression on their face, a nice smile. Or, what's worse, they are depicted as beautiful females with long curly hair and mouths open in song. I don't think that's anything like what the shepherds saw.
Angels are unlike anything we run across visually in this fallen world. They are unfallen creatures who stand before the living God singing and crying out praises to Him ceaselessly. They have a white-hot passion for the glory of God. They are powerful creatures. Have you ever noticed that whenever they show up in the Bible, the natural response is terror? Their very appearance is so overwhelming that the humans who see them are tempted to worship them. Let's not kid ourselves. If a messenger from the throne room of Heaven suddenly appeared in front of us in a blaze of light, we'd all fall down and drop our eyes.
We know the story. The angel first tells them not to be afraid, and tells them that the long-awaited Messiah and Savior of Israel is finally born, and he tells them where they can find Him. And it goes on to say that a multitude of God's angels suddenly appear with the first angel crying out praises to God together in one voice. Praising God for His favor and kindness toward men. He's sending one who will pay the price for their sins and reconcile them to their Creator again. I don't really know what that was like to witness that, but it must have been breathtaking.
I love the shepherds' response. The angels suddenly vanish all at once, and the normal, quiet dark of the night closes around them again. They probably stare at one another's faces, awestruck, silently asking each other, "Did you see that?!"
They immediately say to each other, "The Messiah! The One Israel has been waiting for is actually here! We've got to find Him! Let's go! Let's go now! The LORD actually told us about this! I'm not waiting another minute, we're going to Bethlehem!!"
Oh, what I would give to be able to eavesdrop in on that conversation! I can just imagine them hurriedly putting out the fire and gathering their things together. "We can leave the sheep alone for a while. Yeah, they're our livelihood but this is the Messiah we're talking about! I bet if God told us to go find Him than He'll keep an eye on our sheep for us!"
And then they go "with haste," to Bethlehem. I wonder how far it was and how many doors they had to bang on in the middle of the night. People probably thought they were crazy.
"What in the world do you want?!"
"Please, sir, was there a child born here tonight?"
"What? No! Of course not! What are you talking about?"
"It's the Messiah! He's born! He's here, somewhere! In Bethlehem! You'll never believe what happened tonight! We've seen messengers of the Lord and they told us to look for a child laying in a manger."
"Well, you won't find your child in a manger here, now if you'll excuse me--!" *slam*
"Who was that, dear? Is there trouble?"
"Oh, it's unbelievable. Those ridiculous shepherds have gone completely crazy!"
They keep searching until they find Him. It says they "spread the word," everywhere, so I guess that means they told every innkeeper what had happened, and by the next day the rumors were flying. They found Him that night, and they worshiped Him. They went back to their fields singing and praising God and talking excitedly all the way. For so many years there has been no revelation from the Lord. No prophet, no Man of God, no judge to rule the people. They've been crushed under the Roman Empire, and now, as every one in the nation is wondering in the back of their minds if God has forgotten them, all of a sudden He's here! He's come! The Savior has come, even though they probably didn't understand what kind of Savior He was going to be.
Someone once told me that the shepherds of that day and age were known for their dishonesty. They were the low-life, the riff-raff, and they weren't even allowed to testify in a court of law! These were not the nice, God-fearing people that I tend to picture them being. Not to mention they lived outside with sheep. Dirty, smelly, sketchy people.
I'd never thought of the word "sketchy" to describe them until today. Dirty, smelly, dishonest, yes. But when I thought "sketchy characters," to myself, something clicked.
God and His angels are rejoicing in Heaven. The Incarnation has actually taken place. The Prophet, Priest, and King is now on the earth on His rescue mission. It's almost as if the news is so good, He didn't want to keep it to Himself.
The heavenly messenger is sent, and not to the king's court. Not to the Pharisees and the Scribes and the council. Not even to the High Priest of Israel. He was sent to the outcasts, the low-life, the dishonest, dirty, smelly shepherds.
That's because Jesus wasn't sent to save the self-sufficient, self-satisfied, "nice" people. He was sent to save those who know that they're bad and need help. Praise the Lord that He opens the eyes of the self-satisfied and shows them their need of Him! Else, I wouldn't be writing this now.
And here's another thought: the shepherds responded rightly. They ran to see. When they saw, they worshipped, they praised God, and then they went out and told everyone who would listen all that they had seen, whether they would believe it or not. How many of us can say that today?
I thought it was ironic that as I was shopping today, I turned off my radio playing cheery Christmas music about cozy, happy family scenes, immediately to walk into a crowded store where there were no smiles to be seen. Decorations, sure. Music, sure. Light, sure. Even a few, "Happy Holidays to ya,"---spoken in a tired voice. Everyone's tired. Everyone's rushed, everyone is zoned out. So much to do, and so little time. That's not the way Christmas is supposed to be!
I thought of the Roman Census that was decreed when Mary was almost ready to have the baby. Not a good time to attempt a long, dusty, dangerous journey. And everyone was forced to return to their city, and many of them were poor and didn't have much money for a long journey. Imagine the hassle, the inconvenience, and of course the dangers on the road. Robbers, wild animals, fatigue. You couldn't just pull off the road and grab something to eat. Everybody was stressed out, worried, fatigued then, just like---in an imperfect sort of analogy,---like everyone is today when Christmas draws near.
When they get there, none of the inns have any vacancy, and her precious little baby is born on a cold, nasty stable floor. The King of the Universe lies in a feeding trough, while the busy, unhappy, bustling world goes on like usual outside.
I couldn't help but see the connection. There's no cheer. Everyone is always so busy. And in first-world countries, everybody is grumpy at Christmas time. Or just tired out buying the latest electronics for the "not-yet-tweenagers," at home, and the coolest new toys for the little ones, and the really big gifts for the discontented teenagers with the long wish lists. I think our priorities are sadly---ridiculously---messed-up. We're so consumed with our materialism and discontent. It's awful. It grieves my heart. Some people that I know don't even have enough clothes to keep out the cold this time of year. They're busy too...busy trying to keep their children warm, trying to stretch their food and money and small resources. I think we, in L.M. Montgomery's words, "have too much Christmas." The real spirit of Christmas is in giving, not receiving. The joy of giving exceeds what we get. Yeah, I know. Sounds cliché. But ever give it a try? I mean, Christ Himself said it was more blessed to give than to receive.
Do we have room in our hearts for Christ this Christmas? Or are we too busy? Or too stressed with things that really don't matter so much? Or, like me, are we just too distracted by our own clamoring needs that we don't take the time to rest in Jesus and enjoy His deliverance over our sins?
The "riff-raff" of the shepherds puts us to shame. They praised God with breathless wonder and spread the good news to everyone.
And then there were the learned in their ivory towers, watching the skies. They knew by the stars that something huge and incredible and good was coming into their lifetime. They watched the Star appear, and they saw it rise, and they knew a King---a very great and special King---had been born. They were so convinced that they prepared kingly gifts, and took horse and rode all the way across the desert to Israel, and into Herod's throne room to seek the Child. A journey of two years or so.
These are the "pagans" outside of the fold of Israel! But they studied the skies, and they so they knew when the Great King was born, and they had faith to seek Him, though they lived countries away. When they found Him, they rejoiced and worshiped the Child. They gave Him gold, because they knew He was a Great King. They gave Him incense, because they had some measure of understanding of His Divinity. And myrrh. A spice used to embalm the dead. Symbolizing sorrow, death, and love. Somehow they knew that this Child was God and King, and yet that He would know man's sorrow, and share in his pain.
When Herod heard the Magi's news, he was disturbed, and you know about his cunning and his slaughter of the innocents.
When Herod asked the chief priests and the scribes, they could quote the Scripture glibly and tell exactly where He was to be born. But none of them went to go see and to adore the Child. They didn't bring extravagant gifts and thank God for sending them a Deliverer.
Let us not forget to seek Him. He came to us first. He came to pay our ransom, and He took all of the Father's wrath that was intended for our crimes, sins, and breaking of His laws. Let us not be too busy or too greedy to give our hearts to the One who came to save us.
Give Him your heart this Christmas.
~Cadenza
In our culture, and especially around Christmas time, we see angels depicted for us as a man with wings and a cute little halo hovering over his head. They usually have a very human sort of expression on their face, a nice smile. Or, what's worse, they are depicted as beautiful females with long curly hair and mouths open in song. I don't think that's anything like what the shepherds saw.
Angels are unlike anything we run across visually in this fallen world. They are unfallen creatures who stand before the living God singing and crying out praises to Him ceaselessly. They have a white-hot passion for the glory of God. They are powerful creatures. Have you ever noticed that whenever they show up in the Bible, the natural response is terror? Their very appearance is so overwhelming that the humans who see them are tempted to worship them. Let's not kid ourselves. If a messenger from the throne room of Heaven suddenly appeared in front of us in a blaze of light, we'd all fall down and drop our eyes.
We know the story. The angel first tells them not to be afraid, and tells them that the long-awaited Messiah and Savior of Israel is finally born, and he tells them where they can find Him. And it goes on to say that a multitude of God's angels suddenly appear with the first angel crying out praises to God together in one voice. Praising God for His favor and kindness toward men. He's sending one who will pay the price for their sins and reconcile them to their Creator again. I don't really know what that was like to witness that, but it must have been breathtaking.
I love the shepherds' response. The angels suddenly vanish all at once, and the normal, quiet dark of the night closes around them again. They probably stare at one another's faces, awestruck, silently asking each other, "Did you see that?!"
They immediately say to each other, "The Messiah! The One Israel has been waiting for is actually here! We've got to find Him! Let's go! Let's go now! The LORD actually told us about this! I'm not waiting another minute, we're going to Bethlehem!!"
Oh, what I would give to be able to eavesdrop in on that conversation! I can just imagine them hurriedly putting out the fire and gathering their things together. "We can leave the sheep alone for a while. Yeah, they're our livelihood but this is the Messiah we're talking about! I bet if God told us to go find Him than He'll keep an eye on our sheep for us!"
And then they go "with haste," to Bethlehem. I wonder how far it was and how many doors they had to bang on in the middle of the night. People probably thought they were crazy.
"What in the world do you want?!"
"Please, sir, was there a child born here tonight?"
"What? No! Of course not! What are you talking about?"
"It's the Messiah! He's born! He's here, somewhere! In Bethlehem! You'll never believe what happened tonight! We've seen messengers of the Lord and they told us to look for a child laying in a manger."
"Well, you won't find your child in a manger here, now if you'll excuse me--!" *slam*
"Who was that, dear? Is there trouble?"
"Oh, it's unbelievable. Those ridiculous shepherds have gone completely crazy!"
They keep searching until they find Him. It says they "spread the word," everywhere, so I guess that means they told every innkeeper what had happened, and by the next day the rumors were flying. They found Him that night, and they worshiped Him. They went back to their fields singing and praising God and talking excitedly all the way. For so many years there has been no revelation from the Lord. No prophet, no Man of God, no judge to rule the people. They've been crushed under the Roman Empire, and now, as every one in the nation is wondering in the back of their minds if God has forgotten them, all of a sudden He's here! He's come! The Savior has come, even though they probably didn't understand what kind of Savior He was going to be.
Someone once told me that the shepherds of that day and age were known for their dishonesty. They were the low-life, the riff-raff, and they weren't even allowed to testify in a court of law! These were not the nice, God-fearing people that I tend to picture them being. Not to mention they lived outside with sheep. Dirty, smelly, sketchy people.
I'd never thought of the word "sketchy" to describe them until today. Dirty, smelly, dishonest, yes. But when I thought "sketchy characters," to myself, something clicked.
God and His angels are rejoicing in Heaven. The Incarnation has actually taken place. The Prophet, Priest, and King is now on the earth on His rescue mission. It's almost as if the news is so good, He didn't want to keep it to Himself.
The heavenly messenger is sent, and not to the king's court. Not to the Pharisees and the Scribes and the council. Not even to the High Priest of Israel. He was sent to the outcasts, the low-life, the dishonest, dirty, smelly shepherds.
That's because Jesus wasn't sent to save the self-sufficient, self-satisfied, "nice" people. He was sent to save those who know that they're bad and need help. Praise the Lord that He opens the eyes of the self-satisfied and shows them their need of Him! Else, I wouldn't be writing this now.
And here's another thought: the shepherds responded rightly. They ran to see. When they saw, they worshipped, they praised God, and then they went out and told everyone who would listen all that they had seen, whether they would believe it or not. How many of us can say that today?
I thought it was ironic that as I was shopping today, I turned off my radio playing cheery Christmas music about cozy, happy family scenes, immediately to walk into a crowded store where there were no smiles to be seen. Decorations, sure. Music, sure. Light, sure. Even a few, "Happy Holidays to ya,"---spoken in a tired voice. Everyone's tired. Everyone's rushed, everyone is zoned out. So much to do, and so little time. That's not the way Christmas is supposed to be!
I thought of the Roman Census that was decreed when Mary was almost ready to have the baby. Not a good time to attempt a long, dusty, dangerous journey. And everyone was forced to return to their city, and many of them were poor and didn't have much money for a long journey. Imagine the hassle, the inconvenience, and of course the dangers on the road. Robbers, wild animals, fatigue. You couldn't just pull off the road and grab something to eat. Everybody was stressed out, worried, fatigued then, just like---in an imperfect sort of analogy,---like everyone is today when Christmas draws near.
When they get there, none of the inns have any vacancy, and her precious little baby is born on a cold, nasty stable floor. The King of the Universe lies in a feeding trough, while the busy, unhappy, bustling world goes on like usual outside.
I couldn't help but see the connection. There's no cheer. Everyone is always so busy. And in first-world countries, everybody is grumpy at Christmas time. Or just tired out buying the latest electronics for the "not-yet-tweenagers," at home, and the coolest new toys for the little ones, and the really big gifts for the discontented teenagers with the long wish lists. I think our priorities are sadly---ridiculously---messed-up. We're so consumed with our materialism and discontent. It's awful. It grieves my heart. Some people that I know don't even have enough clothes to keep out the cold this time of year. They're busy too...busy trying to keep their children warm, trying to stretch their food and money and small resources. I think we, in L.M. Montgomery's words, "have too much Christmas." The real spirit of Christmas is in giving, not receiving. The joy of giving exceeds what we get. Yeah, I know. Sounds cliché. But ever give it a try? I mean, Christ Himself said it was more blessed to give than to receive.
Do we have room in our hearts for Christ this Christmas? Or are we too busy? Or too stressed with things that really don't matter so much? Or, like me, are we just too distracted by our own clamoring needs that we don't take the time to rest in Jesus and enjoy His deliverance over our sins?
The "riff-raff" of the shepherds puts us to shame. They praised God with breathless wonder and spread the good news to everyone.
And then there were the learned in their ivory towers, watching the skies. They knew by the stars that something huge and incredible and good was coming into their lifetime. They watched the Star appear, and they saw it rise, and they knew a King---a very great and special King---had been born. They were so convinced that they prepared kingly gifts, and took horse and rode all the way across the desert to Israel, and into Herod's throne room to seek the Child. A journey of two years or so.
These are the "pagans" outside of the fold of Israel! But they studied the skies, and they so they knew when the Great King was born, and they had faith to seek Him, though they lived countries away. When they found Him, they rejoiced and worshiped the Child. They gave Him gold, because they knew He was a Great King. They gave Him incense, because they had some measure of understanding of His Divinity. And myrrh. A spice used to embalm the dead. Symbolizing sorrow, death, and love. Somehow they knew that this Child was God and King, and yet that He would know man's sorrow, and share in his pain.
When Herod heard the Magi's news, he was disturbed, and you know about his cunning and his slaughter of the innocents.
When Herod asked the chief priests and the scribes, they could quote the Scripture glibly and tell exactly where He was to be born. But none of them went to go see and to adore the Child. They didn't bring extravagant gifts and thank God for sending them a Deliverer.
Let us not forget to seek Him. He came to us first. He came to pay our ransom, and He took all of the Father's wrath that was intended for our crimes, sins, and breaking of His laws. Let us not be too busy or too greedy to give our hearts to the One who came to save us.
Give Him your heart this Christmas.
~Cadenza
