On One Day This Christmas, Consider The Shepherds

Heart Prep

As you recall the story of Jesus’ birth, think, today, about the shepherds
who tended their flocks in the fields, who would soon see
The Lamb of God Who would take away the sin of the world.

Luke 2:8-20 “In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping
watch over their flock by night . . . .The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God
for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.“

While they were living in the fields, being who they were, and doing what they did, God singled out these shepherds to hear a message no one else heard and to see a vision no one else saw. They immediately sought the Savior and found him in a manger and worshiped Him there. Then, like many whose lives would be touched by Jesus, they couldn’t help but tell everyone they met what they had seen, what they had heard, and what had happened. How could they not go and tell others that the Messiah, the One for Whom they had been waiting, had arrived!

It is thought that these shepherds kept the lambs intended for Temple sacrifices. If so, how fitting that they would be the first ones invited to see the Lamb of God, Who would be the final sacrifice for sin.

For the rest of their lives, they would have pondered, like Mary, what took place that night. Did they praise God from the fields while watching their sheep? Did it make a difference in how they lived moment
by moment?

Life Application

How long has this night of Christmas affected how you live moment by moment?

As you live the day-to-day life God has set before you, do you think of the Savior? Do you lift your heart and voice in praise to Him?

I pray that God is as real to you tonight as He was to the shepherds watching their flocks by night.

Sing, “Go Tell It On The Mountains.”