Advent II: The Shepherds and The Angels

God communicates with us in many different ways. One of the most special ways is through story. We tell stories to people with whom we desire a relationship, and God's word is filled with them. The stories are true, of course, but they are still narratives and not fact sheets. As with everything else in creation, stories have structure. By looking at the different parts, we can learn more about the whole.

The Story of The Shepherds and The Angels

Hark! the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the newborn king"

       While downtown Bethlehem was packed with people, for the shepherds it was just another boring night. Somewhere a sheep bleated. Someone told an off-color joke. Everyone smelled bad. Just another miserable night for the outcasts. Until...

...An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest,

and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"

       In story, when the Herald archetype appears it signals a major change for the characters. The Herald doesn't just make an announcement, he pushes the Hero further into the adventure. Like the angel who appeared to Mary, this angel arrives with an invitation that cannot be ignored, propelling these individuals into radically new worlds. The major change these angels announce literally changes the course of history. We still use it define timelines: Before and After Christ. But more than that, this was a message of joy "for all the people." Not just some people. Not just chosen people, rich people, nice-smelling people. All the people. The reason for the joy? A (capital S) Savior. 

       The "glory of the Lord" must be a holy and awesome thing. We know that in the past, when the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle not even Moses could approach. It was simply too much for him, a man who had seen some astonishing things. Bet the guy who'd just told the off-color joke felt pretty silly. "Hope the angel didn't hear that one." 

       "Fear not." Yeah, right. 

       Imagine the craziest concert laser and pyrotechnics show you've ever seen. Now imagine that you're a first century sheep farmer, who has never seen a sparkler. The show the angels put on would put your concert to shame. To the shepherds it must have been awesome in a way we can barely grasp. God was starting the next phase in his great Story, bringing joy and hope to his beloved creation, that had not known either for so very long. It was only right that he start it off with celebration.

       But to whom did God invite this one time only special event? Shepherds. God may have been celebrating, but he does nothing without a purpose. Animal farmers aren't exactly aristocracy. But the angels had just said, "For all people." If that included low and dirty shepherds, that included kings, and it includes us. Had God started by inviting the best, how long before the invitation would have trickled down to the least? The Savior has come for all people. 

       Rather than sitting back in the glow of what they had just seen, the shepherds were fired up. They couldn't sit still.

When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us." And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.

       The message of the Herald set them in motion, out their Ordinary World in the pasture, and into the city to see the Savior of mankind for themselves. But consider this:

And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.

       They became heralds themselves. Everything they had seen was so incredible, so awesome, that they couldn't stop talking about it. These guys probably didn't get much social interaction, they were awkward and noisy when excited. They didn't have "indoor voices." Yet they were the ones God chose to start spreading the word. If God can use them, he can use us too.

And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Luke 2:20