As I continue in my search for Christmas, this story is a strange one...one that doesn't appear very well thought out...and yet it's message changed the course of history....
For myself, Christmas in my own culture today consists mainly of two elements: 1) to make sure all children everywhere have a "Merry Christmas" and 2) that retail sales are good so we can all keep and possibly expand jobs. That to me is Christmas in a nutshell. So....is it?
I look again in the Gospel of Luke, the second chapter, and finish out the latter part of verse 10 and give attention to verse 11. After the angel declared to the shepherds he was not there to make them afraid, he then spoke and said:
A Gleaning from Luke 2: 10(b)-11
"...I bring you...Good News! In fact, the most joyful of Good News...ever! And what I am about to announce to you is for everyone!...Christmas past, Christmas present...and Christmas future! Now, here it is:
To each one of you...this very day...on this very night...in the hometown of King David, just a few miles from here...a Son is born...a Child is given you...from the God of Glory Himself, and this babe is...Your Messiah!...The Savior! He is the Anointed One, the very One all people have been watching and waiting for!"
Ok, so here is the "opening act" to God's great plan to redeem mankind...Jesus didn't come in on a great white stallion with an array of the best military trained angels the world will ever know...He did not come in "Rambo style" with Special Forces that are of the most elite, nor did He arrive as with an entourage of wealth no one has ever laid their eyes on. He came into this world in the most humblest of circumstances...and was born in a "barn" where livestock is kept...because his mother and father had no where else to go.
On top of this entrance that no one could have ever dreamed of...the announcement of His birth...came to a group of shepherds. Shepherds...they weren't quite the "elite social group" of their day. Here are some things about shepherds at the time of Christ Jesus birth:
1. They were usually a group of young guys...probably not even reached "manhood"...like King David when he was a shepherd boy.
2. Shepherds were pretty much ignored in their society, didn't get much respect...in fact in some social circles they were despised.
3. The Jewish church leaders known as Pharisees had a list of 6 professions people should avoid as a "church member" because these professions were of an unworthy status for any Law abiding and godly person...and shepherding was one of those 6 professions.
4. Shepherds were not permitted to give testimony in a Jewish court of law... they just could not be trusted.
5. Shepherds could not just walk into a synagogue any time they pleased...they were considered unclean.
6. Shepherds were not the kind of people general society liked to associate with...basically they were a young "gang of thugs" and your best bet was to avoid them.
So, here we have it...the greatest announcement of all time is about to be given...and who is here to listen and receive this great announcement?....shepherds...God lays out his plans and chooses "these guys" to relay His message.....go figure.
One interesting note, (well I thought it was interesting) is the word "Savior". In the ancient Greek language of the day, the expanded definition conveys a meaning of "One who makes our lives safe, One who is capable to deliver and preserve us, One who can cause us to "come alive", and One who we have confidence to confide in and will offer us a secure hope. It can even go further and include One who gives us a way of escape from danger.
Now, if this be a true and accurate rendering of the word "Savior", history surely points out the amount of suffering people have gone through when they gave their lives to the Anointed One, this One who saves. So...what exactly does God mean when He refers to Himself as our Savior?...which leads me back to this Christmas Story....Jesus coming and becoming One of us, born in a most humble of circumstances and this Message to be conveyed through...a group of shepherds. Hmmmm?
This proclamation by the angel given to the shepherds tells me 4 things:
1) This message the angel spoke is "the best of the best of the best"...for all of mankind.
2) God's plan for His Son's arrival is His idea, a voluntary action that declares Him as our "Immanuel"...meaning the Lord has taken on the idea of "God is with us"...in a very literal sense...becoming one of us.
3) The angel doesn't "beat around the bush" sort of speak, he makes it clear to the Shepherds of the Christ's true identity and is extremely "pumped" about it. In fact, a verse or two later all his "buds" join in on this greatest proclamation of all time. Another view on the words Savior and Lord, in those days these words were spoke often in a military connotation...the Greek being the words "soter" and "kyrios". These were titles Roman Emperors would convey to confirm the fact they had power to save or condemn, and they were to be respected as "Lord" of the known world.
I wonder how the Shepherds initially perceived this message...do you think it meant to them being freed from Roman tyranny? I know Christmas cards, paintings, and even Christmas carols give us an impression as gentle, lowly shepherds who were there shortly after His birth, smiling as a group of young men that wouldn't "harm a flea"... yet I have to wonder...what were they really like?...and what were they really thinking?
4) The angel announces "Peace"...or should I say "terms for Peace"...I will get to that later.
So, in the Christmas story as described in Saint Luke, I don't see anything in relation to retail sales...nor do I see this story as God reaching out to children...alone. Christmas seems a whole lot different...and the meaning of God's plan to come into this world...took us all by surprise. In fact, even today...we are still tryin' to figure it out.....
For myself, Christmas in my own culture today consists mainly of two elements: 1) to make sure all children everywhere have a "Merry Christmas" and 2) that retail sales are good so we can all keep and possibly expand jobs. That to me is Christmas in a nutshell. So....is it?
I look again in the Gospel of Luke, the second chapter, and finish out the latter part of verse 10 and give attention to verse 11. After the angel declared to the shepherds he was not there to make them afraid, he then spoke and said:
A Gleaning from Luke 2: 10(b)-11
"...I bring you...Good News! In fact, the most joyful of Good News...ever! And what I am about to announce to you is for everyone!...Christmas past, Christmas present...and Christmas future! Now, here it is:
To each one of you...this very day...on this very night...in the hometown of King David, just a few miles from here...a Son is born...a Child is given you...from the God of Glory Himself, and this babe is...Your Messiah!...The Savior! He is the Anointed One, the very One all people have been watching and waiting for!"
Ok, so here is the "opening act" to God's great plan to redeem mankind...Jesus didn't come in on a great white stallion with an array of the best military trained angels the world will ever know...He did not come in "Rambo style" with Special Forces that are of the most elite, nor did He arrive as with an entourage of wealth no one has ever laid their eyes on. He came into this world in the most humblest of circumstances...and was born in a "barn" where livestock is kept...because his mother and father had no where else to go.
On top of this entrance that no one could have ever dreamed of...the announcement of His birth...came to a group of shepherds. Shepherds...they weren't quite the "elite social group" of their day. Here are some things about shepherds at the time of Christ Jesus birth:
1. They were usually a group of young guys...probably not even reached "manhood"...like King David when he was a shepherd boy.
2. Shepherds were pretty much ignored in their society, didn't get much respect...in fact in some social circles they were despised.
3. The Jewish church leaders known as Pharisees had a list of 6 professions people should avoid as a "church member" because these professions were of an unworthy status for any Law abiding and godly person...and shepherding was one of those 6 professions.
4. Shepherds were not permitted to give testimony in a Jewish court of law... they just could not be trusted.
5. Shepherds could not just walk into a synagogue any time they pleased...they were considered unclean.
6. Shepherds were not the kind of people general society liked to associate with...basically they were a young "gang of thugs" and your best bet was to avoid them.
So, here we have it...the greatest announcement of all time is about to be given...and who is here to listen and receive this great announcement?....shepherds...God lays out his plans and chooses "these guys" to relay His message.....go figure.
One interesting note, (well I thought it was interesting) is the word "Savior". In the ancient Greek language of the day, the expanded definition conveys a meaning of "One who makes our lives safe, One who is capable to deliver and preserve us, One who can cause us to "come alive", and One who we have confidence to confide in and will offer us a secure hope. It can even go further and include One who gives us a way of escape from danger.
Now, if this be a true and accurate rendering of the word "Savior", history surely points out the amount of suffering people have gone through when they gave their lives to the Anointed One, this One who saves. So...what exactly does God mean when He refers to Himself as our Savior?...which leads me back to this Christmas Story....Jesus coming and becoming One of us, born in a most humble of circumstances and this Message to be conveyed through...a group of shepherds. Hmmmm?
This proclamation by the angel given to the shepherds tells me 4 things:
1) This message the angel spoke is "the best of the best of the best"...for all of mankind.
2) God's plan for His Son's arrival is His idea, a voluntary action that declares Him as our "Immanuel"...meaning the Lord has taken on the idea of "God is with us"...in a very literal sense...becoming one of us.
3) The angel doesn't "beat around the bush" sort of speak, he makes it clear to the Shepherds of the Christ's true identity and is extremely "pumped" about it. In fact, a verse or two later all his "buds" join in on this greatest proclamation of all time. Another view on the words Savior and Lord, in those days these words were spoke often in a military connotation...the Greek being the words "soter" and "kyrios". These were titles Roman Emperors would convey to confirm the fact they had power to save or condemn, and they were to be respected as "Lord" of the known world.
I wonder how the Shepherds initially perceived this message...do you think it meant to them being freed from Roman tyranny? I know Christmas cards, paintings, and even Christmas carols give us an impression as gentle, lowly shepherds who were there shortly after His birth, smiling as a group of young men that wouldn't "harm a flea"... yet I have to wonder...what were they really like?...and what were they really thinking?
4) The angel announces "Peace"...or should I say "terms for Peace"...I will get to that later.
So, in the Christmas story as described in Saint Luke, I don't see anything in relation to retail sales...nor do I see this story as God reaching out to children...alone. Christmas seems a whole lot different...and the meaning of God's plan to come into this world...took us all by surprise. In fact, even today...we are still tryin' to figure it out.....
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