The Shepherd's Encounter with Heaven's Glory
by Braden Jones, The Harbour Christian Church
If you’ve spent much time in the church scene, you’ll have heard the Christmas account from the Gospel of Luke chapter 2. It goes like this:
Luke 2:8-20 (ESV)[1]
And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. 10And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
14“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
15When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. 17And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. 18And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. 19But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. 20And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
This two-thousand-year-old text is still read and studied by Christians and churches all across the world at this time of year. Here are some reflections for us on this wonderful section of scripture regarding Angels in the night.
THE REVELATION (Luke 2:8-14)
God is a God of revelation; he reveals himself to people. From the front of your Bible to the back, you will encounter a multitude of occasions in which God reveals something – his nature, his character, his truth, his love, his glory, his grace, his plans for humanity, and more. The fact that God acts this way toward us should truly amaze us. As the Psalmist wrote, “what is man that you are mindful of him?” (Psalm 8:4). God does not owe us anything. He does not have to reveal himself to us in any way. Again, the Psalmist writes, “Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases” (Psalm 115:3). And yet, he chooses to show up in human history and reveal himself to his creation!
In Luke chapter 2, God is revealing himself in dramatic fashion. The initial vessel, or vehicle, of this revelation is “an angel of the Lord” (verse 9). Angels are heavenly beings that dwell in the presence of God and serve as his ministers and messengers (Hebrews 1:14). So, this exchange in Luke 2 is a divine encounter – a beautiful instance of heaven intersecting with earth. And it is for the most magnificent and glorious of purposes: to announce the birth of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world. This revelation of Jesus’ coming is part of the most significant story in the history of the world! Jesus’ coming reflected a monumental advance of God’s plan for the salvation of mankind, and it certainly received a great deal of fanfare and celebration. Look at the picture we’re given in Luke 2:13-14: “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!’”. The quantity of the term “multitude” is unspecified here, but we can imagine what this encapsulated. Hundreds, thousands, and millions of angels all lifting their voices in joyful praise to God. I do not personally have the capacity in my mind to picture what that would have looked and felt like – though we will experience it one day ourselves as believers, when we stand in the presence of Jesus in the hereafter! My point is that this is a massive celebration, marking a massive event, pointing to one massively important individual: Jesus Christ.
One other critically important detail to make note of is the initial recipients of this revelation: shepherds. One may be tempted to make the assumption that God would bring a revelation of this magnitude (I reiterate how this revelation presents a piece of the most important story ever told in world history!) to some sort of worldly ‘significant’ recipient. Maybe a king, a politician, a celebrity, the religious establishment, or somebody else along these lines. However, God chose to bring it first to shepherds. Shepherding in Israel during this time period was NOT a highly-esteemed profession. Shepherds were generally not wealthy, educated, or of any sort of nobility or high standing in society. It was not a pleasant job; sheep are dirty and prone to getting themselves into trouble (i.e., falling into a hole). They are also defenseless against predators, which made shepherding a dangerous job, in addition to it being a dirty one. It was a position of low esteem in the social circles of Israel. In worldly terms, shepherds were ‘nobodies’; and yet, these are the people God chose to reveal himself to first on this monumental occasion. This detail is incredibly relevant, as it describes the heart and ways of God: “God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God” (1 Corinthians 1:27-29, ESV). An important aspect of the Christmas story is seeing the warning for those who consider themselves to be wise, worthy and entitled in the world to humble themselves, and for those who are humble and lowly to take heart in how they are truly seen by God.
THE RESPONSE (Luke 2:15-20)
When God acts, we must respond. Even if our response is to shrug our shoulders and carry on with our lives as normal, this is still a response. This is a fruitless response, however, as God historically seems to have a habit of continuing to try to get our attention until we are ready to listen (think of the Biblical account of Jonah, for instance).
The shepherds in Luke chapter 2 did not need any additional prompting or prodding, however. They experienced a magnificent revelation from God, and immediately sprung into active response. Their response was two-fold:
1) They explored it
Luke 2:15 tells us that “when the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.’” They received divine revelation from God, and their first response was to say, “let’s look into this further”. They explored what it might all mean. It is an unfortunate truth that all throughout history, God has been revealing himself to humanity, trying to get our attention, and too often, people respond by doing nothing. They don’t put forth any subsequent effort to respond to God, or do any investigative work to unearth what might be happening or what God might be trying to say. They simply carry on, living their lives as though nothing happened. Not the shepherds in Luke 2, though, they explore further, inquire further, search further. And lo and behold, they find that what God said is true. Luke 2:16-20 tell us that “they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger…just as it had been told them”. They didn’t just find that God had been faithful to what he revealed to them. They didn’t just experience a spectacular sign from heaven. They found Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world and the purpose for life itself (Hebrews 2:10). The underlying principle here is true for us today as well: when God acts in trying to get our attention, and we respond by pursuing what it could all mean, what we inevitably find is Jesus. We find truth. We find what God was pointing us to all along. We find everything we need. After all, all of the promises of God find their “yes” in Jesus (2 Corinthians 1:20).
2) They expressed it
The shepherds in Luke 2 received revelation from heaven, and responded by exploring it and looking into it further. The result of their searching was to find Jesus, the King of kings. How amazing this must have been – no doubt something they could treasure and ponder amongst themselves for the rest of their lives.
Notice what the shepherds did next, though. They didn’t just experience a powerful sign from heaven and keep it to themselves. Luke 2:17 records that “they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child”, and verse 20 records that the shepherds went about “glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen”. In other words, they expressed what they saw. They told others about it. It seems perfectly natural to the shepherds that after they experienced God, they should tell others about it. We’re even told here that “all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them” (Luke 2:18). Their sharing was not in vain; through it, other people were then presented with an opportunity to respond to the revelation of God!
Matthew 28:19-20 exhorts us to go into all the world, making disciples of all nations, baptizing them and teaching them to love, serve, follow and obey Jesus. Yes, I’m slightly paraphrasing, but it’s all in view while living out the Great Commission. Who is God putting in our path that we can express the Good News of salvation? More importantly, are we being faithful to take the opportunities he gives us? Are we opening our mouths and sharing the Gospel? Are we walking alongside people to disciple them? Are we living in a manner worthy of the Gospel, which gives credence to our witness in the first place? If not – how do we expect people to hear about Jesus and subsequently receive salvation? How will the mission be carried out? If not us, then who?
In closing, I want to encourage and challenge us. We, like the shepherds of Luke chapter 2, have received revelation from God. We have responded to Jesus, the ultimate revelation from God, by placing our faith and trust in him. We have seen his glory, his goodness, and his faithfulness. We have experienced his love, mercy, grace, and salvation. We have received his precious and very great promises. We have been given the Holy Spirit. We have been made children of God. We have been brought from darkness to light, from death to life. We have been given citizenship in heaven and have been seated in heavenly places in Christ. We are looking forward to the Day of our ultimate redemption, when the Lord Jesus comes again. We, like the shepherds, have a story of good news to share with the world which desperately needs it. Let us respond to all of this by continuing to walk faithfully in relationship with Jesus, and to put our boots on the ground in helping other people come to know Jesus and grow in their walk with him.
Merry Christmas!
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[1] The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) is adapted from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. All rights reserved.
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