Luke 2:1-14 (15-20)
1 In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 All went to their own towns to be registered. 4 Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. 5 He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. 7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. 8 In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 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: 11 to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger." 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, 14 "Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!" 15 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." 16 So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. 17 When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. 19 But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
Have you ever read a book, and then, after you’ve read it, someone makes a movie about it? You liked the book, so you decide to see the movie. You pay the unholy price for an evening ticket, forego the pricey popcorn and gallon bucket of soda, and find your way into the middle of the dark theatre. You sit through two hours of what you had hoped would be a cinematic masterpiece, only to say to yourself, “That wasn’t anything at all like what I thought it would be!” Don’t you just hate that?
You know, I wonder if the biblical authors and their original audiences would feel the same way if they had a chance to witness some of our theatrical interpretations of Scripture. How would John feel about Mel Gibson’s portrayal of Jesus? How would Moses critique Charlton Hesston’s performance in The Ten Commandments? Or for that matter, how would any of those ancient New Testament writers feel about that peculiar musical Jesus Christ Superstar?! It is hard to say, but I do think that perhaps Luke would take some objection to the ways we dramatically interpret this portion of his nativity narrative.
I can just see him now, seated somewhere about the middle of any given sanctuary about this time of year. Perhaps the children’s ministry is performing some sort of nativity play, complete with an angry innkeeper, a live goat, and Sister’s Sue’s grandbaby starring in the lead role of our Lord and Savior. Luke is trying hard to sit still in the pew, twitching with anxiety as he watches his intellectual property being bent to the breaking point. Just as he seems to be settling down, he loses it when the shepherds make their appearance (never mind his confusion at the appearance of the magi); you can almost hear him leaping from his seat and shouting “You’ve got it all wrong! Bathrobes and bed sheets do not a shepherd make!”
You know, he just might be right. After all, he did write it! But even if our interpretation is a bit romanticized, what exactly might we be missing? I mean, these shepherds really don’t play that big of a role, do they? The answer is in what Luke tells us (and maybe even what he doesn’t tell us).
Notice the way Luke describes these shepherds, or rather, the way he doesn’t describe them. He simply calls them shepherds. There is no narrative embellishment regarding the way they look, the way they act, their number or their ages. Luke simply says in verse 8, “In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.” While there are many good arguments regarding the symbolism attached to these shepherds (i.e., the Davidic link to Bethlehem shepherds, the importance of shepherds in the Israelite community, etc.), it is likely that they are simply a personification of those to whom Luke dedicates the focus of his entire gospel—the marginalized.
Throughout Luke’s gospel we see an emphasis on Jesus’ teachings regarding the poor, women, Gentiles, and sinners. One could argue that Luke’s Jesus has a preferential option for the poor and downcast (one may even argue from the entire Bible that God has such a preferential option, and I happen to think God does). Therefore, it is likely these rather enigmatic shepherds are meant to stand as a sort of symbol for everyone who would have read or heard Luke’s gospel.
That is exactly the role of the shepherds; they act as a sort of placeholder in Luke’s gospel, setting up his audience from the very beginning. They are a symbol for all the people to whom the gospel is given. In fact, it is even reflected in the language of the angel in v. 10: "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for ALL the people.” This good news is not for only a select few, but for all people; it is not the sole property of the shepherds—it is for all people. With the inclusion of the shepherds, Luke has invited us all to take part in the birth of the King of kings. Therefore, we ought to invite all people to the manger, to the cradle which holds the light of the world and the hope for all humankind. Christmas, the birth of Christ, is for ALL the people.
There is something further to learn from these shepherds. Luke includes them as a symbol for all people, yet he doesn’t just leave them in the fields, watching their flocks. No, the shepherds head towards Bethlehem, towards the feed box which holds the Bread of Life. In verse 15 they say, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” They are moved and motivated by curiosity to seek out the sign about which they have been told. We’re not told how far they had to go or how long it took them. Luke just simply tells us in verse 16 “So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.” They found Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, but what does that even mean?
The angel told them in verses 11 and 12 “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." This family, this baby, was the Savior. What a powerful statement! And what emotions these shepherds must have had when they came upon this humble scene in Bethlehem! There, there in that feed box (such a strange place for an infant) lay the Son of God, the Messiah, the Savior! Luke goes on to tell us that “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.” Now don’t be mistaken by the translation of these verses. The shepherds did not run out to tell everyone about the birth of Jesus. No, they told everyone who was there what the angels had told them. I mean, they had to explain themselves; how many people do you know who go around at night looking for strange babies sleeping in barns?! They had to find him, and when they did, they told everyone there why they were there in the first place. Everyone was amazed: “Hey Joe, get a load of this: these shepherds were just sittin’ out in a field when an angel showed up with a choir and told them we’d be here! Isn’t that something?!”
Weren’t you that way the first time you really heard who Jesus was—amazed? Weren’t you like these shepherds, who, after they heard this wonderful news, sought out Christ? And when you found him, did you not tell everyone around you how wonderful it was? It was like the feeling you had as a child on Christmas morning, seeing the wonderful gifts waiting for you under the tree: you tore through the paper, excited about what was inside, and once you unwrapped it, you ran around the living room to show everyone what you had just received, only to set it aside for the next gift, or to play with it for a while before losing it in the back of your closet.
Finding Christ is like that to some folks, you know? But how I wish it wasn’t! You see, these shepherds were so caught up in the initial wonder of what they had found, so caught up in this Christmas morning feeling, yet Luke tells us in verse 20 that “The shepherds returned [home].” I can’t even begin to count the number of times I have seen a child receive a gift in excitement and anticipation, only to find it lying somewhere in a forgotten pile some minutes later. They are so thrilled that they have received a gift from someone and so happy that they have received something so special, yet it does not take long for the new to wear off and for complacency to find its way back to its place in the heart.
Surely these shepherds weren’t like this. Surely Luke meant to tell us that they ran throughout the town like an ancient Paul Revere shouting the arrival of Salvation: “The Messiah is coming! The Messiah is here! He’s here, and he’s in a manger in Bethlehem!” No. No, all we are told is that they returned home; they returned to the way things were. Could Luke not have simply mentioned at least one of them in the latter portions of the gospel, perhaps as a bystander during the Sermon on the Plane (Luke’s version of Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount), or perhaps he could have given them a recurring role in his second volume Acts and had them brush shoulders with one of the apostles, have one of the make a dramatic appearance at Pentecost or something. Unfortunately, there’s not even a pseudo-tradition of these shepherds, not even a made up story tracing its roots back to an old shepherd story. They just simply disappeared. They’re never heard from again.
Are you like that? Have you received the good news, felt the overwhelming joy of salvation, yet, after the new wore off, did you return to the way things were? Let me challenge you, as you leave this place this Christmas morning, as you go out from here to dinners with friends and family, as you return to exchanging gifts, watching Christmas movies, drinking cider and hot chocolate, don’t let things simply return to the way things were before you heard the good news. Don’t let the feelings, the emotions, and the reality of the birth of Christ be stored away with the old Christmas ornaments. Embrace the fullness of what the birth of Christ means: hope, peace, joy, and love. Christmas is not a time to simply rekindle those seasonal feelings and convictions. Christmas is the jumping off point; it is literally the birth of good news. This Christmas, pick up where those shepherds left off; don’t simply return to the way things were before the season, but allow the love of God to change the very way you live your life. Let Christ be born in your heart in such a way that you will not want to simply “return,” but in such a way that you will seek daily to live those words from the angel, that you will seek to one whose very life says to everyone, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people.” May you be one who gives the gift of God’s love to all people, every, single day, by your words and works of hope, peace, joy, and love. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment