Who Is This Jesus? Part IV

Angels, Shepherds, a King, and Wise men

⁸ Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. ¹⁰ Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. ¹¹ For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹² And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”
¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
       ¹⁴ “ Glory to God in the highest,
      And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

¹⁵ So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” ¹⁶ And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. ¹⁷ Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. ¹⁸ And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds. ¹⁹ But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them. Luke 2:8-20

Shepherds were social outcasts in that day. Due to the vary nature of their job, they were unclean and not allowed in the temple. It is interesting that they were the first (outsiders, not members of the family of Jesus) persons to whom God chose to reveal that His long awaited Messiah was born. I believe this has a two-fold reason. 1.) God’s kingdom is open to all, and 2.) Jesus referred to Himself as a sheep (sacrificial lamb), and He also referred to Himself as The Good Shepherd.

¹ Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ² saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” ³ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
⁵ So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
       ⁶ ‘ But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
      Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;
      For out of you shall come a Ruler
       Who will shepherd My people Israel.’”              –Matthew 2:1-6

⁹ When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. ¹¹ And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.                       –Matthew 2:9-11

I believe this is an example of how God can make Himself known to those who are “outside” of the religious knowledgeable. By this I mean those who know God where general knowledge of Him is not preached. God can and does reveal Himself to whomever He chooses. These Magi/Wise men were obviously not Jewish but yet they knew this Messiah would not just be for the Jews. These men were obviously wealthy and of influence, yet they submitted to Christ’s authority.

In stark contrast are the “chief priests and scribes.” They knew Herod and yet they willingly gave up the information knowing that he might try to destroy the Messiah.

Herod was the established ruler and had the Roman government at his disposal. Even if this baby was to one day be the King, how much of an immediate threat was he to Herod? Of course we understand that Herod’s fear came from Satan but I will save that for later.

In summary, God revealed Himself to the rich and powerful as well as the social outcasts. There are those on both sides that receive Him and reject Him. God is no respecter of persons.