Even You!
An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a savior has been born to you. (Luke 2:9-11, NIV)
Yesterday, I noted that shepherds in Palestine during the time of Jesus were looked down upon as untrustworthy. They were also considered unclean. Like tax collectors, they were labeled “sinners” and banned from both synagogue and temple.
Many rabbis in Jesus’ day expressed amazement that God was described as a shepherd in Psalm 23. In the hardness of their hearts, they had lost sight of the fact that the greatest king in Israel’s history had been a shepherd. In fact, it was David, who not only wrote this Psalm but was the king through whose lineage messiah would come.
It should come as no surprise, then, that the shepherds were the first to hear the announcement of the birth of the Savior. Neither should it surprise us that the first words of the angel to these men were, “Do not be afraid,” and “I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.”
All people. Even you dirty, despised, unclean shepherds! “For unto you is born this day, a savior.” Not just for the priests serving in the temple. Not exclusively for the good synagogue-going Jews, but for you, considered outcasts among God and his people!
God is the God of the outcasts. Oh, how we need to shout that message from the rooftops today! Instead of demonizing others in the name of Jesus, we need to open our arms and hearts wide, proclaiming the message of the gospel, “peace on earth, goodwill toward mankind.”
In Christ,
Dan
‘Tis the season to rejoice in God’s inclusive grace.
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