The Song of the Shepherds

Common English Bible Chapter 2

2 In those days Caesar Augustus declared that everyone throughout the empire should be enrolled in the tax lists. 2 This first enrollment occurred when Quirinius governed Syria. 3 Everyone went to their own cities to be enrolled. 4 Since Joseph belonged to David’s house and family line, he went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea. 5 He went to be enrolled together with Mary, who was promised to him in marriage and who was pregnant. 6 While they were there, the time came for Mary to have her baby. 7 She gave birth to her firstborn child, a son, wrapped him snugly, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the guestroom.

Announcement to shepherds

8 Nearby shepherds were living in the fields, guarding their sheep at night. 9 The Lord’s angel stood before them, the Lord’s glory shone around them, and they were terrified.

10 The angel said, “Don’t be afraid! Look! I bring good news to you—wonderful, joyous news for all people. 11 Your savior is born today in David’s city. He is Christ the Lord. 12 This is a sign for you: you will find a newborn baby wrapped snugly and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great assembly of the heavenly forces was with the angel praising God. They said, 14 “Glory to God in heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors.”

15 When the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened. Let’s confirm what the Lord has revealed to us.” 16 They went quickly and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. 17 When they saw this, they reported what they had been told about this child. 18 Everyone who heard it was amazed at what the shepherds told them. 19 Mary committed these things to memory and considered them carefully. 20 The shepherds returned home, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. Everything happened just as they had been told.

Bible Breakdown

Travel

AAA estimates that 109 million Americans are going to travel for this Christmas Holiday Season, all the way up till New Years.

The guess is that about 100 million of those are going to be drivers.

That means 100 million people trying to find that rest stop on Google Maps.

That means 100 million people answering the incessant “are we there yet?” question from the backseat.

That means 100 million people mortgaging their houses to be able to fill their tanks with gas.

And about 6.4 million folks are going to be flying somewhere this Christmas season.

That’s 6.4 million trips through airport security.

That’s 6.4 million people wondering how bumpy the flight could really be that they’re not going to be doing beverage service this flight.

That’s 6.4 million people hearing their captain telling them that it’s going to be about another half hour before they can get to a gate...

We know that travel is difficult.

It’s one of the hardest, and yet somehow also most enjoyable parts, of what it means to be human.

You work super hard, push through whatever difficulties it may present, because you know that on the other side of all this holiday travel there is a chance to be with someone.

You put up with the rest stops to be with family.

You put up with the gate agents to be with friends.

You put up with the lines at security to be with those you love the most.

Mary and Joesph

There is so much that I love about the Christmas story, but probably at the top is how human the story is.

Mary and Joesph are on their way to Bethlehem...

To celebrate?

To visit family?

To go to Epcot?

No…they go to pay taxes.

They travel all the way from Nazareth to Bethlehem and...

Somehow La Quinta lost their reservation.

Who’s been there?

The folks behind the desk are telling you that there’s nothing they can do for you.

Your feet are swollen and worn out from the travel.

Your left eye starts twitching because you were SURE you had this all settled before you left the house...

And just then…Mary’s water breaks.

Yikes.

So they do what so many holiday travelers are going to do this year, the absolute best they can.

The child is born, and they wrap him up and lay him down in a manger.

The symbolism by the way is not lost on the original audience of this book.

The one who would claim to be the bread of life gets started out in his earthly journey by being laid in a feeding trough?

Shepherds

You’d be forgiven if, should this be your first time hearing this story, you thought that maybe Jesus wasn’t the main character.

In fact, the word “Jesus” doesn’t show up in the text we read tonight.

Mary and Joesph’s story is condensed down to just a few lines.

And Luke has simplified the process of child birth down to the phrase “The time came for Mary to have a baby,” to which every mother in this room will respond “Uh, you left some stuff out...”

No, in fact, Luke focuses his story on what happens to a group of guys who have a particularly interesting job: Shepherds.

Shepherds were not the highest climbers of the social ladder.

They were paid very very little for their work.

They worked horrible hours.

And how to put this best…they were not the best at personal hygiene.

And yet, this is the group of people that first hear the good news of God’s showing up.

Not kings and princes and politicians.

Not rich and famous socialites.

Not the religious leaders of the day, those holding the reigns of power of anything spiritual.

Shepherds.

An experience.

These shepherds have an experience of the divine.

First one angel shows up.

Angels are simply messengers from God.

They speak what God wants them to say.

They may or may not have wings, and almost definitely don’t look like those weird chubby things they sell at Hallmark stores.

Maybe most obviously because the first thing just about any angel says is “Don’t be afraid!”

But this angel has some odd stuff to say.

Good news!

There’s a baby!

And the sign for you will be…you’re going to find a baby!

In a feeding trough!

And as if the odd news wasn’t enough, now all of a sudden there’s a great assembly, a whole choir of angels singing.

And then…they’re gone.

Can you imagine the look on the shepherd’s faces, shortly after the light show dies down and the singing stops and they’re left with one another again?

What…what was that?

Confirmation

They say “Let’s go confirm what the Lord has revealed to us!”

This is interesting on a couple of levels.

There are some out there who would suggest that faith can’t be confirmed.

That somehow you just have to believe with everything you’ve got, and that ought to be enough.

That anyone who asks for some kind of proof or confirmation or sign has a weak faith.

That’s actually not what happens in this story!

After the shepherds see the angels disappear, after an experience of the Divine, the shepherds look at each other and essentially say to God “Prove it.”

So they go!

They find things exactly how the angels suggested, with Mary and Joesph and a kid in a manger.

And what follows is some of the most beautiful stuff of life…they start swapping stories!

The shepherds talk about the first angel, and then about the whole bunch of them that showed up.

They talk about the songs that they sang.

They talked about how weird it was when all the angels left.

Mary and Joe probably talked about their travels, or the visits from the angels to let them know that this was the Christ Child, or the jerk at the Hotel Reception desk.

All of it though, all of it, starts talking about how they’ve experienced the Divine.

There’s such a beautiful line in here about Mary, who at this point was likely only a teenager.

Mary committed these things to memory and considered them carefully.

Another translation says it this way: Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.

Mary is kind of like a sponge, soaking up all these stories that everyone is telling about their experiences with the Divine

She’s asking questions.

She’s pondering.

She’s digging deep.

But she’s also treasuring it all in her heart.

These experiences are a treasure.

Headed Home

Another piece of this story that I always wish I could have seen was the Shepherds road trip home.

They’re walking back to their sheep, which by the by they totally left unattended out in that field.

And they’re walking along and they’re praising God.

Are they praying?

Are they singing out loud?

Is it loud?

Is it a ruckus?

Would the people around them assume that these low-life shepherds had just gotten drunk on their nightly watch?

Probably not a super rare occurrence!

And the text is really clear, they are praising God for the experience they’ve had of the Divine.

Everything they’ve heard, everything they’ve seen with their own eyes.

The song of the shepherds is based in what God has done for them.

With us

This is a familiar story, to be sure, but I wonder if there’s something in here for us to hear tonight as we’re gathered here.

Experiences of the Divine

It is my strong conviction that God is moving and active in the world, that each of us has experiences of the Divine on a regular basis.

There may not be angels and light shows.

It might be as simple as a kid in a manger, meek and mild.

But one of the questions that is vital for us to be asking is “What have we seen and heard God doing in our lives?”

Perhaps tonight you are sitting with family that you haven’t seen in long over a year because of the pandemic.

Perhaps tonight you are celebrating a little one’s welcome into the Kingdom of God through the waters of baptism.

Perhaps tonight you are setting foot in church for the first time in a long time, and (I hope and pray) finding a warm and welcoming place, where you are free to be yourself.

Like the shepherds, God doesn’t reveal Godself only to the elites and the powerful.

God is showing up in the lives of everyday nobodies like you and me.

We have to keep our eyes up and open so we can see God at work.

Ask the question

I absolutely love that the shepherds take the time to confirm everything they’ve heard in a divine light show in the middle of the night.

All the grandeur of the angels and their singing wasn’t enough, they need to ask the question and get answers themselves.

There are a lot of good questions out there tonight, aren’t there?

If God is loving, why do bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad ones?

If God is real, why is there so much suffering in the world?

How can God continue to allow people who are judgemental and angry and bitter to represent him?

How could God possibly love me given everything that I’ve been through and done?

You know what, those are good questions.

And shame on any church that would tell you they’re not.

Ask good questions.

Do so in an environment and community that is open to God’s work in the world.

And look, I’m confident enough to encourage you to that because every time I’ve asked the question, God shows up.

There’s always a baby in a manger at the end of those questions.

So ask away.

And if you need a home and a community to do that, you know that you are always welcome here!

The traveler.

You know, lots of folks are going to travel this season to be with somebody, and they’ll put up with a lot to do it.

And that’s the joy of Christmas I think.

God put up with a lot to show up, to travel to us, to be with us.

Almost every religion I’ve studied in my life (and that’s an embarrassingly high number) is all about how we as humans get to the Divine.

Some religions say you have to do all the right things if you want to get to God

Other religions say you have to say all the right things if you want to have any hope.

Some religions are all about how you pray.

Some religions are all about how you organize your life.

Some religions are even about how you vote and live in this country, as if doing that the right way will get you closer to God.

No offense to any of those religions, but the Christmas story tells us it’s not like that.

The Christmas story says that God loves us enough to show up himself.

The Christmas story says it’s not about what you are willing to do to get to God, it’s what God is willing to do to get to you.

The Christmas story says that the most powerful being in all of the universe decided to show up as a baby, just so we could understand him better.

And he did it all to share a simple message:

God loves you.

Glory to God, and peace on earth among us all.

Merry Christmas

And so let me say to you all here Merry Christmas.

By that I mean that God wants to be with you.

By that I mean that God loves you, exactly and precisely as you are.

By that I mean that your questions are valid and your presence is welcomed in this space.

By that I mean I hope to join with you in the song of the shepherds, rejoicing at all that God has done in your life and mine.

Joy to the World! The Lord is Come!

Merry Christmas my friends.