Who Wants to Be A Shepherd?

Gospel	Luke 2:15-20

The shepherds hurried to Bethlehem and found the baby lying in the manger

Now when the angels had gone from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.’ So they hurried away and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw the child they repeated what they had been told about him, and everyone who heard it was astonished at what the shepherds had to say. As for Mary, she treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen; it was exactly as they had been told.

Lost and Alone...

It wasn't cool to be a shepherd at the time Jesus was born.  Those that listed this occupation on their resume were looked down upon. Why?  To be a shepherd meant that you had to spend a lot of time "abiding in the field."  When one abides in the field tending their flocks by night, one cannot be in the temple or the synagogue praying. But as we can see they were men of faith, they heard and they believed.  But they were seen as chronically unclean and non-observant.  So you have to ask why in heaven's name were they chosen to hear "news of great joy for the whole world, that a savior has been born to you, it is Christ the Lord."  Imagine being a lowly shepherd and hearing an angel tell you these things, they must have been out of their minds with joy. They probably also wondered why they had been told this.  After all, it is not like they could go on to the street corner and announce this to all passers-by.  They would not be believed because they had the smell of their sheep about them and there was a danger that they would be hauled before the court and charged with one crime or another and religious crimes brought nasty penalties.  So why did these simple men of the earth hear of the coming of the savior first?  Why didn't God send an angel to the high priest and the governor?  Why not appear on the pinnacle of the temple with the heavenly host and announcing it to the well-dressed, well-educated, and well-sanitized members of society?  I think I know.  The savior was to be for everyone, from the highest to the lowest and God was advertising the fact that He showed no partiality and that He would be ministering to all.  The announcement came to the shepherds because they were simple men.  They would see and hear and not demand to understand.  They would revel in the joyful news whereas the gentry of the land would demand proof, demand miracles, demand demonstrations of the Savior.  They would also have one heck of a time believing that the Messiah, the savior of Israel was at that very moment laying in a dirty cave in a manger.  This, to their thinking, was not how the Messiah would come.  But the shepherds whose lot in life was hard would see the justice in a Messiah learning about the world from a low starting point.  They would understand and they would believe. They remembered that David, the greatest king that Israel ever had started life as an unregarded shepherd boy and they knew where he ended up. 

This Could Be You!

I do not know what you do for a living nor how much you are paid or how much esteem your position brings you. On this day when we commemorate the birth of the Holy Child, bring yourself back to earth. Step out of the mist of grandeur that we show to our peers to keep our place in the temporal scheme of things.  Look boldly at the world around you and accept that no matter what, you are nothing more than a shepherd boy and believe in the wonder of God coming to earth and living among us.  As an old contemporary Christian song once said, "Where others saw a shepherd boy, God saw a king." 

A Merry and Blessed Christmas to all of you.