The Great Shepherd Comes To Earth

The Great Shepherd Comes To Earth

“So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth ... to Bethlehem ... He went there to register with Mary ... who was expecting a child. While they were there ... she gave birth to her firstborn, a son, wrapped Him in clothes and placed Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were shepherds living out in the field nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 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 of great joy that will be for all the people.’” Luke 2:4-10 NIV

December dawns on cities full of lights and tinsel. Living rooms and kitchens are filled with family and food. Red and green lace everything. For many it’s the most enjoyable time of the year. Whose mind is not filled with warmth and excitement at the mention of Christmas? Yet, what has this to do with God becoming man?

Santas fill the shopping centers. Christmas cards stuff our mailboxes. We give presents to those we love, and some we hardly know. What does this have to do with the Incarnation?

In our churches we prepare songs and skits to reenact the story of the manger. Children learn memory verses. We play games. Attendance swells as many more come to celebrate. Do we know what we are celebrating? Are stories of angels and shepherds really important? Is our celebration really rooted in the eternal plan of God?

The Incarnation of Christ is a moment of the deepest spiritual and historical significance, because, as we learn in Hebrews 1:1, it is through Jesus that God now speaks to us. What does He say to us through the Christmas story?

Why was there no room in the inn? Why were the shepherds the first to lay eyes upon the baby Jesus? These questions unfold the great paradox of Advent. Shepherds were lowly people, too insignificant even to be used as witnesses in a court of law. They were regarded as unclean, just like the outcasts and sinners for whom Jesus came. Yet, they were the first to receive the good news. It was for them that God came.

When the innkeeper turned Joseph and Mary away, he unwittingly excluded the Son of God from his inn. By refusing to serve a family in need, he missed out on one of the most incredible moments in history. Thus Jesus not only first appeared to those without significant societal value, he was born in a lowly place as well. Scripture teaches that Christmas is about God coming to the weak and the lowly. Does our celebration reflect this?

The story told in Luke 2 recounts a birth in the cold dirt, out of sight of the world. Yet, looking at the way most of us spend the Christmas season, one would think it was a story of God coming to join a boisterous, cozy party in an inn filled with family, friends, eggnog and mistletoe.

If we believe the story we will change our traditions. The celebration of Advent should drive us to the lowly, suffering, poor and sinful. Look beyond yourself; they are all around you. Christmas is about bringing joy to those who do not have it, not about huddling together to enjoy ourselves. Has the true story of Christmas changed your heart? Do you believe?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Esther Kibor and her husband Jacob serve at a Bible college in Kenya where she teaches and leads the department of ministry and missions, and he is the president.

NOTE: This article is reprinted by permission from “Hope For A Despairing World,” CISF (Christian International Scholarship Foundation), Lake Forest, Illinois, 2003.