Understanding The Bible |
Who is Jesus?
Part-2
By Joan A Deering
After
Jesus was born the Gospel writer Luke told about some shepherds in a field
nearby.
[1]
“And
in the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields, and
keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood
before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly
frightened.
And
the angel said to them ‘Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a
great joy which shall be for all the people; for today in the city of Dave
(Bethlehem) there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And
this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths, and lying
in a manger.’”
[Luke 2:8-12]
Of
all the people for God to bring the news of the birth of Christ… it was to
shepherds in a field! Doing a little
research, I found that God used the analogy of Shepherds throughout scriptures.
In the Old Testament books of Ezekiel and Jeremiah there are many
references to the leaders of Israel as bad shepherds. He refers to
himself as the good shepherd who will bring back the remnant of Israel.
Jeremiah 23:5-6 refers to the end of this age when Christ, the good
shepherd, will come back.
Luke
continues:
And
suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising
God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with
whom He is pleased.’ [Luke 2:13-14]
The
shepherds had to see for themselves what had been just told to them and they
rushed to Bethlehem and saw for themselves. They told everyone they saw on the
way about it.
“And
it came about when the angels had gone away from them into heaven that the
shepherds began saying to one another, ‘Let us go straight to Bethlehem then,
and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.’ And
they came in haste and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He
lay in the manger. And when they had
seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this
Child. And all who heard it wondered
at the things which were told them by the shepherds.
But Mary treasured up all these things in her heart.
And the shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that
they have heard and seen, just as had been told them.”
[Luke 2:14-20]
How
amazing is that! The shepherds were
beyond themselves with excitement because of what had just happened. God often
uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things.
[1] All Scriptures
taken from the New American Standard Bible
2022-02-04 1210