Oh What a Night! - Luke 2

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

Today's story reveals God often shows up in the everyday, mundane parts of life.  These shepherds were working the night shift.  You can only imagine how dark it was that starry night. This explains why when the angel of the Lord shone brightly before them, the shepherds were terrified.  Light shines brightest in the darkness and I can only imagine what a magnificent sight it was for these lowly shepherds.  

So it makes sense that the first words the angel spoke were, "Do not be afraid."  Once the angel tries to calm them down he brings his message to these unlikely candidates. The message was, "I bring you Good News that will cause great joy for all people."  I am sure the shepherds were more intrigued than ever.  

And their curiousity leads them to leave their flock and fields (not a small thing) and go to Bethlehem to check out what the "Lord" has told them about.  Note two things.  One, they assume the message is from "the Lord".  Second, they realize Bethlehem is the city of David, where the promised Messiah would be born.  They may not have been theologians, but they knew enough to know this could be big, really big.  

What can we learn from this story?  One, God uses ordinary people like you and I to be a part of His extraordinary story.  The shepherds were going about their usual business when God invaded their world through an angel.  Second, the shepherds responded.  They heard the Good News and then did something about it.  People often hear the Good News of the gospel and then don't respond.  They never go and check out the Christ-child, God in human form.  Finally, we learn what their response was in verse 17, "When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them."

If you live in this country more than likely you have heard the Good News about Jesus multiple times?  What have you done about it?  Have you checked out the claims of the Christian faith?  Someone has said about the Good News of the gospel, "It is evidence that demands a verdict!"  God coming down to the earth in human form really? The least you should investigate the possibility of it being true. I mean what if it is and you did nothing about it.  And when you find that indeed God has come into this world as a little baby. And you come to believe he lived, died and was resurrected, your natural response will be to share it with as many people as possible. 

I wonder what happened to the shepherd's after this starry night?  My bet is their lives were forever changed!