Be a Shepherd

By F. D. Adkins

To them, it probably began as any other night with the same old routine of standing out in the fields watching over their flocks. Maybe they were chit-chatting or maybe they were daydreaming about being somewhere else… anywhere else. Shepherds weren’t exactly that high up on the social ladder. But this night turned out to be anything but the same old routine.

• “And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.” Luke 2:9 KJV

Try to picture the scene. The shepherds are carrying on with their work as usual, when suddenly, an angel appears. Now, it says, “the glory of the Lord shone round about them”, so I imagine in an instant they are surrounded by a great light. And then, the angel tells these shepherds about the birth of Christ, and that they can find the baby lying in a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes.

• “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” Luke 2:11-12 KJV

But the scene doesn’t stop there. After the angel delivers this message to the shepherds, a multitude of angels appears.

• “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, good will toward men.” Luke 2:13-14 KJV

At this point, if this had happened in today’s age, we can be certain that everyone’s phones around the world would be exploding with videos and pictures because those shepherds would already have it posted on social media. However, they had no social media, no phones to call ahead to Bethlehem to ask about a baby in a manger, and no taxi or bus service to take them there. But they went anyway. They traveled into Bethlehem to find the baby, and they found him wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger just as the angel had told them.

• “And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.” Luke 2:16 KJV

What do the shepherds do next? They go and tell people.

• “And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.” Luke 2:17-18 KJV

As I studied the scripture this week on the shepherds and the Christmas story, two important points stood out to me.

First, we have the birth of a King, our Savior, in a stable, and this king is placed in a manger or a food trough for animals. Then, add in the fact that the first people the angel shares this big news with is a group of shepherds. I believe this should be a sign to us as to how God views social status and wealth and how worldly views play no part in God’s plan. God sees us for who we are. He looks at our hearts, not our money or our number of followers on social media. He has a special plan for each of us, and I believe that he views the plan for each of us with equal importance.

My second point is that the shepherds didn’t let their profession, or the way people viewed their social status stop them from spreading the good news. They went out and told people what they had heard and seen. AND GUESS WHAT? THE PEOPLE LISTENED TO THEM. “And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.”

Just as the prophecy given in Isaiah about the birth of Jesus was fulfilled,

• “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6 KJV

we can be assured that Jesus will be returning.

• “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” John 14:3 KJV

Let us pray that we can be like the shepherds in the Christmas story. Let’s go and tell the good news. Let’s not worry about rejection or ridicule. The shepherds didn’t, and the people wondered at what they told them. If we share the message, God will take care of the rest.