And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 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. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." 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." So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. Luke 2:8-16 (find this or any other passage at www.Biblegateway.org)
For most of my life, I held certain perceptions about Jesus, about the Bible. Some of them have remained, but quite a few have changed, as I have examined the Scriptures for myself. (We should all follow the example set by the Bereans in Acts 17:11, who examined the Scriptures every day.) One of these notions was that Jesus remained an anonymous Messiah until the day He revealed His true identity in Nazareth.
But wait...
The shepherds in today's passage experienced the most amazing thing. The angel, the glory of God, the Heavenly host...and the Babe. We have know idea how many shepherds there were, but it is probable that there were quite a few. The all would have had families, friends, and neighbors. How could they possibly have kept this experience to themselves? But we need not wonder, we know that they told others: 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
...they spread the word...as anyone would expect that they would! I would expect that some of them ran screaming, yelling, rejoicing, and telling!
OK, so they told other people...so what?
Well, I think this is huge...all who heard it were amazed... Thirty years later, when Jesus began His ministry, He was not speaking strictly to people with no idea who He was. The shepherds and those they had told who were still living, and their children and grandchildren, knew about that special night. Many knew that the centuries-long waiting for the Messiah was coming to an end. There would have been a groundswell of support for Jesus' ministry.
Who knew?
The shepherds knew.
Although this is not your first Christmas, I hope you can feel the excitement of the Messiah come to save...and that you will follow their example and spread the Word.
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Questions:
1. Did you realize that the shepherds told others?
2. Have you ever considered the long term impact that would have?
3. Will you agree to a reading of the Gospels this Christmas season? If you would like to compare the Gospel readings, I've posted a link below, and a sample comparison readings. I welcome any questions that arise from your study.
INTERESTING THOUGHTS:
Parallel reading of the Gospels
from http://www.are-you-for-real.com/easy-to-print/nt01of02-jesus-the-christ.pdf
Jesus The Christ
Introductions by the Gospel Writers
·
Mark 1:1
·
John 1:1-18
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Luke 1:1-4
The Genealogies of Jesus
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Matthew 1:1-17
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Luke 3:23b-38
The Births of Jesus and John the Baptist
·
Luke 1:5-80
·
Matthew 1:18-25a
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Luke 2:1-20
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Parallel verses Matthew 1:25b and Luke 2:21
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Luke 2:22-38
Visit of the Magi and Flight into Egypt
·
From Infancy to Manhood
·
Parallel verses Matthew 2:19-23 and Luke 2:39-40
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Luke 2:41-52
The Ministry of John the Baptist
·
Parallel verses Matthew 3:1-3, Mark 1:2-4, and Luke 3:1-6
·
Parallel verses Matthew 3:4-6 and Mark 1:5-6
·
Parallel verses Matthew 3:7-10 and Luke 3:7-14
·
Parallel verses Matthew 3:11-12, Mark 1:7-8, and Luke 3:15-18
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