The Shepherds

Originally posted October 19, 2011

And there were shepherds living out in the fields 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 that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Luke 2:8-12

"Those were no ordinary sheep …no common flocks, huddled in sleep among the fields, the layered rocks, Near Bethlehem That Night; but those selected for the Temple sacrifice:theirs to atone for sins they had not done. How right the angels should appear to them That Night.Those were no usual shepherds there, but outcast shepherds whose unusual care of special sheep made it impossible to keep Rabbinic law, which therefore banned them. How right the angels should appear to them That Night." From - No Ordinary Night By Ruth Bell Graham, published in Footsteps of a Pilgrim

Of course there had to be shepherds. There were always sheep. They were for wool and food and Temple sacrifice. These in our passage may have been those special Temple sheep, being raised for the passover ritual. For this story, that would be appropriate, wouldn't it? It was to these lowly shepherds, who were likely not allowed in the synagogue because of not being ceremonially pure, that the birth announcement was made. They were the first to hear the good news of the newborn Savior, Who is Messiah and God! Out in this lonely, dark field, where David had also tended sheep, the sky was suddenly ablaze with angelic host, praising God and singing about the peace which is being brought to those with whom He is pleased (v. 14). God is pleased with those who receive His Son. The good news is: anyone can.

So they hurried off (positive response to good news) and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger (confirmation of good news). When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child (sharing good news), and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. Luke 2:16-18

Though frightened at first, what else would you do, but go to see? And having seen, what else would you do, but share this amazing event with any who would listen? This is another wonderful account of the grace of God, in His dealings with even the most seemingly obscure people. What beautiful symbolism with the shepherds of the sacrificial sheep being the very first to witness the newborn Lamb of God, Who would take away the sins of the world. Mary was cognizant of all these details. It goes with motherhood, and this was no ordinary mother.

But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. Luke 2:19-20

Mary's Song

This is a repost from 2011. I don't mind posting and reading this wonderful story again. I hope you will enjoy it, too, during this Christmas season. I'll continue to reshare these stories about the immaculate conception and birth of Jesus' humanity through Christmas. Somehow, I cannot resist.

And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.” Luke 1:46-55

In her great relief and joy at being with people who loved her and understood what was happening in her, Mary broke into a song of praise. This is often called "the Magnificat" from the Latin translation. It means "magnify" and is translated here, "glorify." This very young virgin knew a great deal about God and how He deals with His people. She knew of the ancient promises and of previous fulfillment throughout the history of Israel. She knew these things because they were recorded in the Old Testament scriptures, and because she had been taught these truths in her home. She knew about the promised savior, from Genesis chapter 3 all through the Old Testament. She knew He was to be born as a human baby, but seemed stunned that the one chosen to bear that precious life was to be herself, of "humble state." The KJV translated this "low estate." This word (olunthos) doesn't seem to mean "poor" or even necessarily self-effacing. Strong's Exhaustive Concordance translates the word used here as "unripe, out-of-season fig" and "out of due time." For this immaculate conception, it is my belief that Mary's youth and having just reached puberty (or had she?) was of major importance. Let me spell it out: there had been no sexual activity in Mary's life, and she knew God was "mindful" of that.

God had always provided for His Own. He had always promised a savior, through the line of David. Mary had been taught these things her whole life. Now, after 400 years of silence from God because of Israel's descent into idolatry, the time had arrived. Under the almost universal peace engineered by Rome throughout the civilized world, The Savior could be born and presented first to His people, and then to the whole world. Mary was young and tender, but she didn't just fall off the ox cart. She knew exactly what was going on here, and what great blessing God had bestowed upon His handmaiden.

Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home. Luke 1:56

Is Not This The Man…

Some of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, “Is not this the man whom they seek to kill?  And here he is, speaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Christ? John 7:25-26

During the Feast of Tabernacles the crowds were at least curious about the man Jesus, and many were quite intrigued. Apparently it was already widely known that the Jewish leadership in Jerusalem were plotting to kill Jesus.They questioned among themselves how He could continue to speak so openly without the authorities challenging His words and His person. Hmmm…maybe He really is the Christ and they know it. The Jews’ authority over the general population was being put to the test, and so far they had not pressed the issue with Jesus.

But we know where this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, no one will know where he comes from.” John 7:27

“On the other hand”, quibbled some, “we know too much about this man. We won’t know where the Christ comes from.” They didn’t know nearly as much about Him as they thought they did, and their doctrine concerning the identity of the Christ was also flawed. We modern believers need to pay attention to these details at the first advent of the Savior. We think we know just what to look for regarding the Second Advent, but listen to some of the things your fellow believers are saying about that. Some people are quoting teachings about eschatological details that are contrary to scripture. Others seem to ignore teachings that many believe to be necessary to the sequence of end-time events. We who identify ourselves as Christian and yet have opposing beliefs regarding the return of Christ cannot all be right. We are Christian by having received His finished work of atonement on our behalf, but the details of when and by what method He will come to fetch us home are obviously not consistent among the various denominations and sects. One thing is certain: we want to know what the Bible actually teaches about these things, and not just rock along anticipating the superstitious stories and what-ifs we’ve heard from shallow believers along the way. Our faith must remain as close to the literal interpretation of the Holy Scriptures as we can manage, because that is the source of truth to all generations; to the Jews of Jerusalem, to the people of Israel and to us modern humans of the world.

The problem these Jewish people had was that their information about the coming Messiah was mostly Second Advent prophecy about a great Messiah who would appear suddenly and overpower their enemies, taking the crown of David. They weren’t clear on His first advent. Although the prophecies are there in the Old Testament concerning His birth, earthly ministry and crucifixion, the Jews strung all that together with Second Advent scriptures, not knowing that there would be a huge time gap in these prophesied events. Indeed, not knowing that there would be two advents.This humble, matter-of-fact man demonstrated amazing power, but did not fit their preconceived heroic criteria.

The people had their information a little garbled, it seems, but they were interested in knowing more about the man Jesus and His work, and exactly what the Jews were going to do about Him.

So Jesus proclaimed, as he taught in the temple, “You know me, and you know where I come from. But I have not come of my own accord. He who sent me is true, and him you do not know. I know him, for I come from him, and he sent me.” John 7:28-29

Humanly speaking, they knew Jesus of Nazareth. But there is much, much more to know about God the Son than his earthly existence. He was here in human flesh to fulfill His Father’s plan. The Father is all truth. If they had known the Father, they would have recognized the Son. Jesus’ perfect humanity came directly from God the Father, through Immaculate Conception in a virgin’s womb. Jesus knew where He came from and Who sent Him. His audience did not. They could only see and analyze the physical.

So they were seeking to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come. Yet many of the people believed in him. They said, “When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?” John 7:30-31

The Jewish leadership continued trying to find a legitimate reason to seize Jesus, but they just didn’t have grounds to do that. God’s timing is perfect, and Jesus was perfectly in sync with God’s timing. He knew exactly how the mission of His humanity would play out, and He gauged just where the saturation point would be with the Jews.

Nothing ever has, nothing ever will take our Lord by surprise. He is omniscience. He is eternal life. He is omnipotence. Nothing and no one ever has or ever will overpower Him. All the while the Jews were scuttling about, watching, listening, spying on Him and plotting His demise, He was playing them like a string orchestra. The people were paying attention to His every move, too, and they knew no other human could ever demonstrate more power than “this man” had done.

Therefore, “many of the people believed in Him.” Verse 30 - “believed” is the Greek word pisteuo. It means saving faith. What they had seen in Him could not be denied.

The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent officers to arrest him.  Jesus then said, “I will be with you a little longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. You will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come.” The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What does he mean by saying, ‘You will seek me and you will not find me,’ and, ‘Where I am you cannot come’?” John 7:32-36

The situation was becoming uncomfortable for the Jews. They heard the crowd questioning and criticizing their judgment and their inaction. They couldn’t afford to let the people think they were indecisive. They sent the temple police to bring Him in.

Our Lord faced them down. “I’m not going to be here much longer. I’m going back to where I came from. You won’t know where I went, and it is not possible for you to go there.” They had no clue what He was talking about. They thought maybe He planned to join the Jewish people who had been scattered into gentile nations and start a movement among the Greeks.

They chattered among themselves about the statements Jesus made. They were devoid of spiritual understanding. His reference to “going” meant to depart suddenly, as in the ascension, after His death on the cross, His burial and His resurrection. Until that time came, there was nothing they could do to Him. He was completely clear on that.

The Jews were not.

If Anyone Wills

After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him. Now the Jews' Feast of Booths was at hand. So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” For not even his brothers believed in him. Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil.  You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.” After saying this, he remained in Galilee. John 7:1-9

After His discourse on His body and His blood as spiritual nourishment for believers, many of the hangers-on left Jesus’ company. His perfect human flesh, untainted by sin, represents God’s perfect righteousness (+R) and His blood represents the Father’s Justice by Jesus’ atoning death for all human sins. They didn’t get the concept, as He knew they wouldn’t, so He was now down to just His closest disciples, most of whom would remain loyal to Him and His mission despite their limited human understanding. He stayed around home for about six months, in Galilee. There was no need just now to keep provoking the Jews, who were His enemies and were plotting His demise. There was an upcoming feast everyone was expected to attend, and Jesus’ half-brothers sarcastically challenged Him to make a public appearance there, and perform “works.” The brothers did not believe in His deity, and they apparently had some issues with their perfect elder brother. Rather than supporting Him, they seemed interested in subjecting Him to public criticism. “Go to Judea, Brother. Show them your stuff. They want to make you king.”

Jesus’ response: “you worldlings can go to the feast and enjoy yourselves. You are not under attack from the world, but because of my testimony against the world's evils I am under attack, and the time for the confrontation is not yet.” So He didn’t accompany His brothers to the feast.

There were seven Jewish feasts each year. Each one had two applications to Israel - historical and prophetic. This was the Feast of Booths, or Tabernacles:  the last and great harvest home festival of the Jewish year. It foreshadows Israel’s kingdom rest after regathering and spiritual conversion. It is commemorative of redemption out of Egypt, and prophetic of the restoration of the kingdom over Israel. It recalls historical blessing and prophesies future fulfillment, when Jesus Christ will Tabernacle on the earth with His restored people, Israel. It occurred at mid-October.

But after his brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly but in private. The Jews were looking for him at the feast, and saying, “Where is he?”  And there was much muttering about him among the people. While some said, “He is a good man,” others said, “No, he is leading the people astray.”  Yet for fear of the Jews no one spoke openly of him. John 7:10-13

Jesus went alone to the feast, and the Jews were watching for Him in the crowds. There was a general undercurrent of talk and expectation about Him, with differing opinions of His character and His work, but they kept it quiet. Open discussion of Jesus was politically incorrect.

About the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and began teaching. The Jews therefore marveled, saying, “How is it that this man has learning, when he has never studied?” So Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. John 7:14-16

He didn’t attend Rabbi School, so where did He learn to teach like this? We (The Jews) haven’t authorized this doctrine. They didn’t, but the Father who sent the Son did. It is the Father’s teaching.

And now, a special promise to anyone who really wants to know true doctrine:

If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority. John 7:17

Do you want to practice religion or do you want to know God’s teaching? It is a matter of your own volition. You must be willing to do God’s will. If you are simply seeking to prove your own point, or verify a religious tenet, you will not recognize God’s teaching. God shows His truth to those who are willing to believe Him, no matter what their religion says, or what their superstitious grandma has always told them. Throughout the centuries, people have gone through life quoting holy sounding one-liners, pious platitudes and do-good self-help cliches` which cannot be substantiated by scripture. The worst ones are the incomplete or misquoted scriptures, which leave out important words and phrases, and which completely obscure the actual meaning of the Word of God. Such 'quotes' twist God’s Word into magic hocus-pocus, some feel-good fantasy, or blatant legalism. “Yea, hath God said?” There are professing Christians who, when cornered on a Biblical principle, have to admit they do not read the Bible and would have no clue where to look for a particular teaching.

By the way: this is another good reason for you to own an Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible; not just to check the original languages, but to see if a given word or phrase is even in the Bible, and if it is, in what context it appears. For instance: "God helps those who help themselves....Repent of your sins....Invite Jesus...we're all God's children..." So just check those references and decide; do you want to keep spouting human viewpoint, or are you willing to do God's will?

Willingness to do God’s will clears away the cobwebs and brings God’s Word into our understanding, so that we can know the source of the teaching. It is the Holy Spirit’s ministry to those who are willing to believe. No spiritual truth will ever contradict God’s written Word. If your “truth” is from some other source, it is a lie. When one knows God’s written Word and accurately quotes God’s written Word, those who hear will likely wonder how he learned that stuff. That was the reaction when Jesus spoke.

The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood. Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why do you seek to kill me?” The crowd answered, “You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you?”  Jesus answered them, “I did one work, and you all marvel at it. Moses gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because on the Sabbath I made a man's whole body well?  Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment. John 7:18-24

Jesus came into humanity, representing His Father and bringing salvation. He wasn’t seeking His own glory, but carrying out the will of the One who sent Him. He spoke too authoritatively and knew too much about that crowd for their comfort. He must have a demon!

He exposed their hypocrisy by reminding them that in order to keep the Law of Moses, they would perform circumcisions on the Sabbath, yet they condemned Jesus for healing a man’s whole body on the Sabbath. How does that make sense? That is not righteous judgment. That is phony religion.