If you remember, Caesar Augustus ordered a census instructing everyone at that time to return to their town of origin. That sent young Mary, nine months pregnant, and her betrothed husband, Joseph, on the road. They were a humble couple who were still trying to understand how Mary was picked to be the mother of Jesus, God’s Son. There was also the Bethlehem innkeeper, who undoubtedly was being run ragged with other guests at the time, and then there were some lowly shepherds. I can’t help but smile when I think of that bunch of guys on the outskirts of town. They were a motley crew, used to sleeping under a blanket of stars with the sound of bleating sheep in their ears. Really, they were the most surprising people to be involved in the foretold arrival of the Son of God that night.
Have you been feeling a little shepherd-like lately? As if you are an outsider, unnoticed by the rest of the world? To my knowledge, no one in history ever knocked on a shepherd’s door to ask for financial advice or to record their strategic plans for success. In fact, most of them never had a door to knock on! Shepherds were often the unseen. We can all feel a bit unseen at times. Daily life might leave us feeling this way, but God thinks of us much differently. That first Christmas night, God had important plans for those “unnoticed” shepherds. On a seemingly mundane night, those ordinary shepherds watched as they were surrounded by God’s glory. They witnessed a host of Angels deliver the world’s most celebrated message: “Today, a Saviour has been born!” This fantastic news would change the world.
God entrusted those unseen men, on the outskirts of town, with important news the world was dying to hear. The long-awaited Saviour of the World had arrived that night. Once hearing the news, they ran to Bethlehem to see this amazing thing that had happened. Afterwards, the shepherds did what came naturally: they shared the news! They told everyone what had happened and became witnesses to the birth of Christ.
The world needs more witnesses to share the good news of Christmas. It is a message of joy for everyone. Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world, has come! The Bible says in Isaiah 43:10, “You are my witnesses, declares the Lord.” Even if you and I may feel ordinary, there is nothing ordinary in the message we are called to witness. The Bible says all who heard the Shepherd’s news wondered at what they had been told. This Christmas, let’s cause others to wonder, let’s be like those shepherds that first Christmas and spread the reason for hope. The Saviour of the world has come, which is great news for us all.
Charlene Ramstead, Regina Beach, Lumsden, Craven, Southey Layperson
