City Life Starter

Written by Efe Abbe

The Word

⁸ And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. ¹⁰ 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. ¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹² And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and 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 among those with whom he is pleased!”

Luke 2:8-14 ESV

⁵² he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
    and exalted those of humble estate;

Luke 1:52 ESV

Reflection

Jesus, Son of God, the Savior, Son of David has been born!

Luke continues to point us to God’s wonderful inversion of this world’s order: the first ones to hear of the birth of Jesus are unnamed shepherds.

In Jewish society, shepherds were, ceremonially and literally, outsiders (the NIV reads that they lived out in the field). Yet, before there was time, God chose His Son to be born near this field, so these shepherds would be first to hear.

Many years before, King David was also a shepherd left outside. You see, even David’s father and brothers didn’t think he was important enough to attend the special sacrifice that the Prophet Samuel had invited the entire family to (1 Samuel 16:11) – because he was tending sheep.

But, in the same way God chose David, the uninvited shepherd to anoint as king, God chose these outsider shepherds to announce the birth of His Son, the King! While Israel’s elite were asleep, these shepherds literally witnessed heaven breaking into earth, with the angels’ announcement.

Luke is making this point: The God of the universe delights in lifting and partnering with the unwanted, overlooked, and down-trodden, as He accomplishes His plans.

Application

For most of us, our daily lives can seem pretty ordinary compared to newsmakers of our era. Our ordinariness shouldn’t be despised, because God has repeatedly chosen ordinary people to partner with Him in His extraordinary purposes.

And if you are reading this and feel you are on the outside, like the shepherds were, God’s invitation and good news by the angel remains true:

“For unto you is born … a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You, who can do anything, are drawn to us at our lowest. Thank You for sending Jesus, Your Son, when we were helpless to save ourselves, amen.