Four Weeks of ADVENT

Dr Jim Brown's TruNorth Devotional
Four Weeks of ADVENT
Day 14 | THE TREMBLING SHEPHERDS | Luke 2:8-10
THE TREMBLING SHEPHERDS

Luke 2:8-10
“In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock at night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood near them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. And so the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people’”


Don’t be too tough on the shepherds.  When’s the last time YOU saw an angel?  (Seems that being fearful when seeing an angel is pretty normal in Scripture.)

So here we have the lowly shepherds… and we do mean lowly.  Being a shepherd was NOT a glamorous or noteworthy job.  Oh it was real – someone had to do it – but you wouldn’t get any high-fives if you said, “You know, my son’s a shepherd!”

But God wanted everyone to know about the birth of His Son Jesus. And so, He sent the angel of the Lord again on a mission – to announce Jesus’ birth to the lowly of the region – the shepherds.

As with Mary and Joseph, I wonder how they felt (besides being fearful).  I wonder how the discussion went after the angels left.  I wonder who decided first they must GO and see?
And then that last phrase – “…for behold, I bring you GOOD NEWS of GREAT JOY which will be for ALL the people.”

That word “ALL” is important.  And as I teach, “All means all and that’s all, all means.”
ALL people meant ALL people.  You, me, the lowly, the royalty, the rich, the poor, ALL people.

Prayer: LORD, thank You for sending Jesus for ALL of us.  We need HIM and our world – which is very messy today – REALLY needs Him today. “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done.”  Build Your kingdom Lord, Amen.