Angels Why This Jubilee?

I’m guessing for some of you, this is maybe the second, or third time, or if you are Pastor Steve or Pastor Linda, the fifth or sixth time, that you have heard this gospel story read in the last 2-3 days. Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe it’s your first time. But when’s the last time that you have heard this story and thought about the Shepherds? I know Jesus is a big deal, and he is the reason for the season, but the last half of this gospel reading is dedicated to the Shepherds, so they must hold at least a little bit of significance. So why is it that we don’t know, or hear, much about these shepherds?

As Luke tells us, it is these shepherds that first hear the news about Jesus being born! God uses angels to tell these shepherds about the birth of our messiah. Doesn’t sound like a big deal, right? Actually it was a big deal.

You see, shepherds of this time weren’t exactly what we would call prestigious. In fact, they weren’t even respected for a few reasons:

First, shepherds were religious outcasts. Their line of work prevented them from participating in the feasts and holy days that made up the Jewish religious calendar. Why? Well, somebody had to watch the sheep. When everyone else was making the trip to Jerusalem to make sacrifices at the temple, or to participate in one of the annual feasts, they were out in the fields, watching over their sheep. It wasn’t really their fault, and would be no different if you were an airline pilot, a truck driver, or a nurse who worked an early morning shift, and were unable to make it to church on Sunday mornings. Back then, they were looked down on because they were unable to participate fully in the religious life of the community.

Secondly, Shepherds were borderline social outcasts. Since they were constantly on the move to find new pasture for their flocks to graze in, they were looked on with suspicion. Kind of the way people today might look at gypsies, or carnival workers. They were often accused of being thieves. If something came up missing – it must have been those shepherds. They weren’t even permitted to give testimony in a legal proceeding, because their word wasn’t considered trustworthy. Shepherds were with the sheep 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. – During the days, they led the sheep to grass and water and kept watch for predators like wolves. And at night, they actually slept in the sheep pen with the sheep to guard against theft and animal attack. Imagine what spending that much time with sheep would do to your social life!

Lastly, Shepherds were considered unclean. Because shepherds were in such close proximity to sheep’s “waste”, their culture deemed them as dirty all the time, or “unclean”.

But yet, God chose to announce the birth of Jesus to these disrespected, unimportant shepherds. Just plain ol’ people. I would think if I wanted to spread that news of Christ being born to the world, I would leak the story to the Today Show, tell Barak Obama to hold a press conference, buy a 30-second commercial during the super bowl!! Tell the pope!! Alert the media!! But to tell a couple of Sheep-herders? It just doesn’t seem affective!

So now we have the shepherds being told about the birth of Jesus and typically, when we get to this point of this well known story, it is going so gloriously well that we continue on in our nice sweet little voice:

“In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified…” but the angel said to them “do not be afraid…”

Woah. Back up a second. I don’t know about you, but if all of a sudden, I was minding my own business and going about my nightly activities… maybe cooking dinner, or working late at the office, or hanging out with my friends, or even just watching some TV, and all of a sudden, out of nowhere, an angel appeared and was standing there in front of me and took my by surprise, I don’t think I would simply say “ooh. That was terrifying” and an angel could say to me “do not be afraid” just like that. I’m thinking I would scream at the top of my lungs, maybe find a pot or a pan and start bashing the thing!!!

But somehow the angel managed to calm the shepherds and tell them about the birth of Christ – the good news that a savior….no wait….THEIR savior….had been born. And if one angel wasn’t enough to convince them that this had happened, more angels “a multitude of heavenly host” in fact appeared to them and praised God for sending Jesus!

The angels sang, “Gloria! In Excelsis Deo!” which is a Latin phrase and when translated to English it means Glory to God in the highest heaven!! A whole choir of angels was singing this!!

Wow. What a scene! By this point, I would imagine the shepherds were wide eyed, speechless, blinking quickly to make sure that they weren’t dreaming, and trying to remember how to breathe.

Could it be true? Could a Savior really have been born for us? Hearts racing, smiles emerging onto their faces, and the feeling of hope overcoming every thought. As soon as the angels were gone, the shepherds ran to Bethlehem to find out for themselves if what the angles had told them was really true!

I don’t think we’re too unlike these shepherds this night that Jesus was born. I too, miss church once in awhile. I too, own a dog of which her “waste” I have to pick up when she relieves of it outside, to which then I am considered “unclean”. I, too, need to see things for myself. When Michael Jackson died a few months ago, I didn’t believe it when I heard it from my husband. I had to go online to read about the details, I had to turn on the television and see it for myself. When my nephew Brady told me that he got a Wii for Christmas, I instantly said, “let me see”.

I, too, am looking for hope. Aren’t we all? When our economy affects us from making a mortgage payment, or a bully at school can make us feel two inches tall, or worse, make us want to end our lives, or when we or people we love are affected by the cancer, aids, addictions, and war that is prevailing in our world, we hope for greater things! We hope that God exists or cares for us. Because we are hopeless in so many situations in life, we are like the shepherds! We need hope! We need to see!!

Well guess what shepherds? The hope is here! The hope is found starting with the birth of Jesus Christ. And God chose to tell the shepherds first to show that His love does not discriminate on the basis of class, or wealth, or social standing. He could have told the great kings, or the religious leaders, or the media of Jesus’ birth first, but he chose to show the shepherds so that they would know that the hope has come and they would not be left out. God chose to tell this good news to the shepherds to show the world that He does not respect presidents and senate members more than hourly laborers, he does not value pastors and priests above volunteers and teenagers. God does not show favoritism; he does not give special treatment to one group of people over another. His love is available to all on the same basis – faith in Jesus Christ, and faith alone.

And that is why God chose to reveal the birth of his son to shepherds – the lowly and humble people of this world. But the shepherds didn’t stop there! After the shepherds ran to see Jesus for themselves, they went out and told everyone through their words and their actions about the fulfillment of hope that had been born.

And as shepherds, we can not stop at this glorious fact that Jesus was born! It can’t just be a nice story! It’s possible that we will be terrified just as the shepherds were, but through our actions, our words, and our love for our neighbors, we need to go out as the shepherds of this world and tell people what we have seen – the grace that God has given us through the birth of His Son.

Because maybe through all these things in our world – the wars, and the sufferings, and the addictions – the only way someone may be able to see God is through you! For even the shepherds had to see to believe.

In a minute, we will be singing “Angels we have heard on high”. In the second verse of this song, the question is asked, “Shepherds, why this jubilee? Why your joyous strains prolong? ? The question is being asked, “Shepherds, why this joyous celebration?” The shepherds not only went out and told others what they had seen, but they came back to celebrate and glorify and praise God for all they had heard and seen! They celebrated this joyous occasion. This jubilee. You and I have reason to celebrate this jubilee too! Jesus was born for us!! So let the joyous strains prolong! Continue on to shout throughout your life “Gloria!! In Excelsis Deo!!!” Glory to God in the highest! for sending His son Jesus Christ for every single one of us, a bunch of shepherds.

Amen