Day 288, or October the 15th. Everyone's included
right from the start. Our thoughts today come
from Luke chapter 2, verses 8 and 9. 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. And now the big picture surrounding
these verses. Luke is a gospel written by a non
-Jew who is a good friend of the Apostle Paul.
It's the longest and most detailed account that
we have of the life of Christ, and without it
we would know nothing of the shepherds who worshipped
the baby Jesus, the good Samaritan, the prodigal
son, or Zacchaeus. Luke tells us right at the
beginning that he has researched the facts as
much as possible and then written everything
down in the right order. He drops in historical
names like Augustus Caesar, Tiberius Caesar,
Governor Pontius Pilate, and Governor Quirinius,
in order to root events in secular history. He
gives us two long chapters describing the birth
of Jesus. and other events surrounding it, including
the birth of John the Baptist. And now, our action
step for today. The Bethlehem hillsides are the
pastures where sheep are reared for sacrifice
in the temple in Jerusalem. What a lovely gesture
from God that the first people he tells of the
coming Messiah are the shepherds who will be
out of work when this Lamb of God arrives, because
sacrifices will no longer be necessary. Shepherds
in the days of Jesus tended to be youngsters,
mainly Gentile, with some Jewish. who didn't
keep the purification rites of the Jews and were
therefore available to stay out in the fields
to care for the sheep 24 -7. God chooses the
most unlikely people. Just look around your church
next Sunday. The devil regularly rebukes you
and me for our unsuitability to be followers
of Jesus, doesn't he? Just remind him of these
ragamuffin shepherd kids next time. and then
thank God for taking a risk with you and me.