Arrival Week 4 Luke 2:8-20

Pastoral Welcome

Welcome to worship, my name is Lewis I am one of the Pastors here at Ankeny First, I am joined by Pastor Angie, Beth, Jen, Eric, Jose, Kim, and in the back we have Dwight, Brett, Sherill , and Darcy. We are already at the week of Christmas whether it feels like it or not. We are continuing our arrival series where we stand in awe together at the ways that God has already gone before us and arrived and the ways that we too are able to arrive at this Christmas season.

Christmas this year

Brief Recap of Series - The arrival of God V. The arrival of me

Genealogy

Mary

Wise-people

It feels so strange saying that it is the forth week of advent

It doesn’t quite feel like Christmas in part because so many of the things that prepare us to remember the story of God being here among us took different forms this year

It can sometimes get lost on me just how unexpected Christmas was for all of those that were around the manger

When I think of the Christmas scene it feels like a fairly tale…but those people might not have been expecting what they received on Christmas

It can be easy to enter this season grumbling about how bad it is going to be or looking forward to next Christmas, but that is exactly where our story picks up this week...

Luke 2:8–20 NRSV

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

These shepherds become the center of the story (at least in this passage)

Think about it without them there was no Christmas Story

That is not to say that the Christmas story would not happened it is to say that it wouldn’t have been captured

They became the evangelists

Someone came before us and told us about this child and explained each of the characters of the story

As I imagine this Christmas many parents are explaining the part of the Christmas story to young ears who it may be the first time they have heard about shepherds and wisemen.

We only know about Christmas because of our shepherds

We started this series talking about the lineage of Jesus and we remember the people that first sat us down maybe it was as kids or maybe into adulthood and explained to us who this child was

And why this child has good news.

For many of us those people shared with the story and maybe even those communities shared with us the stories of Christmas

I think of specifically the Sunday school teachers...

and family members in my life that sat me down not just to tell me the story

Not just to explain each of the characters of the nativity

but to explain that this is for us good news

This is a year that feels different

It feels different because the ways that we normally experience the holidays are not the same

But there was a time in each of our lives Christmas was a foreign concept

Where someone else had to go before us and come to the conclusion themselves, and beyond that had to share that with us

That is why we know of the Christmas season

We have heard that Jesus is good news for all people because of other people that have arrived at that conclusion before us

And the first people might have been the shepherds

They were on the outskirts

We are not told their names or any part of their story we are only told their profession

The profession of shepherd was not looked upon highly

They were not known for being honorable

They were not allowed to give witness in court

Their professions meant that they chose not to be involved in the temple

God choose them to be one of the first people to see and hear about the messiah

It is not about who chooses God it is about who God has chosen

It was human choice that separated people from God

So it would be natural that it would be such that the people who made bad choice now had to choose God

But rather God chooses the people that made poor choices and brings them good news

The angels get chosen

Jesus even is the Messiah “The chosen one”

God chose Jesus to be the savior

Luke 2:14 NRSV

“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!”

God Chose the angels to bring good news

Those things aren’t surprising, but here is the plot twist God chose Shepards to be the messengers

At the beginning of the passage today we see angels being the messengers of God and at the end of the passage we see Shepards being the messengers of God

Good news to all people

broadens out from just the Israelites

broadens out from just the religious people

God does not keep a naughty and nice list, that’s someone else

God does not a list of people who are qualified to share the good news of a savior

God does not have vocations where people are unable to share the good news of Jesus

There is no in group and out group and perhaps the people that we thought we in our “out group” might be exactly who God is calling us to share the good new of Christ

But before they shared the news that they received they had to show up

The significance is not lost that they had to abandon their posts at

Arriving in Jesus presence changes us

Was it really worth the trip at all if the shepherds didn’t come back changed

Did the Christmas story really happen if we don’t live it out?

The Christmas story is as much about our arrival to Jesus as it is about Jesus’ arrival to us

God has chosen all people and all of creation to be transformed by the Messiah

To experience something that we have to tell those around us about.

God has made a choice that has given you a choice to be changed

Much like the shepherds

Benediction

This Christmas week whether you feel like an outsider or you feel this is just another Christmas allow the presence of Christ to change you simply by showing up