A reflection on Luke 2:8-20 for Sunday, December 11, 2022 at Mosaic Baptist Church.
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; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,
‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’ So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
Luke 2:8-20 (NRSVA)
The account of the shepherds and angels above is a standard Christmas favourite. Who hasn’t received a Christmas card depicting this scene?
Of course, these idyllic painted scenes are far more sterile, clean, and ordered than the reality of life in the fields. The job of the shepherd – especially one sleeping with the flock overnight – was anything but glamorous. This was not the task of sheep owners or even of favoured servants. No. To be a shepherd was to be one of the lowest.
And it is to these that the might of heaven appears. At first there is a single angel with a specific message: ’Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’
‘Do not be afraid…’ seems to be a standard angelic opening phrase. I suspect it offers some insight into the experience. To be met by an angel in the middle of the night is, at least initially, terrifying.
There is, however, good reason for these lowly shepherds to listen. This one brings ’good news’ that invites ’great joy’. It is an invitation for ’all people’. They are encouraged to look for a ’sign’ – a baby cradled in material strips.
The centre, or core of the telling of this story is the shepherd’s glimpse into the celebration of heaven. A ‘host’ or army turned choir fills the sky with praise:
‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’
A tiny child born in David’s city has inspired celebration in the heights of heaven and among the most marginalised. For the Celtic christians the symbol know as the Tree of Life – with its roots in the earth and canopy reaching toward the sky – depicted the reality of this connection between heaven and earth. In the visitation of angels to shepherds we see the same: heaven and earth drawn together by the creator in an offer of ’peace’.
In their song, I detect surprise and wonder at the action of God even in heaven!
And heaven has chosen well to initially entrust this message for ’all’ to these farmhands. After it is all over, the shepherds first decide to affirm the vision for themselves with a trip to nearby Bethlehem. It is a small town, so a search for the newborn may not take all that long. There they find the new parents and the child. Only then do they tell their testimony to Mary and Joseph and subsequently to all who will listen. A powerful, seemingly widespread, testimony.
And then they return to their tasks with wondering and worshipping hearts. An event that has changed everything – and changed nothing.
There is a stunning moment here in Luke’s narrative. My reading is arrested each time I come across the words: ‘But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.’ It seems to be such a personal insight – one that clearly could only come from Mary herself. It is one thing for Luke to have insight into the widespread testimony of the shepherds. It is another to offer a glimpse into the inner pondering of Mary’s heart.
It always leaves me wondering if this claim (repeated later in Luke 2:50) originates in an ’interview’ – or close relationship of some type – between Mary and Luke?
Whatever the origin, I suspect Luke is doing more than telling this as Mary’s history. He is also telling this as example. Mary ‘pondered’ this story of heaven come to earth. Mary wondered at the implications and what might unfold from this celebrated birth. Mary stored these moments and revisited these words – treasuring and revisiting them.
Luke’s account – and Mary’s testimony – surely, invites us to do the same.
After all, this story claims that God has come to earth in disarming humility uniting heaven and earth in a ‘good news’ story and a newborn baby. This is, if nothing else, a depiction of God like none before. God’s deepest desire here is not to come in power and revenge, but to live among us and be our ’Saviour’.
An unexpected God indeed!
Conversation Starters:
What do you make of the thought that even heaven is surprised and joy-filled at the ’good news’ of Jesus’ birth? What might this say about the cosmic dimension of salvation in this story?
What would it look like for you to ponder this story anew in imitation of Mary? Where would your thoughts lead you?