The angel said to the shepherds, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
And the shepherds said, “Let’s go see.”
On the night Jesus was born, angels sent some Bethlehem shepherds on a Christmas hunt! They are searching for one thing. A Savior. The Christ. Whatever that might mean for them. And when they find the baby lying in a manger, they will have found what they are looking for.
We’ve seen enough images of the nativity to know that the shepherds eventually ended with Mary and Joseph and their baby boy. Apparently with some of their sheep in tow! Who knows how many inquiries they had to make and how many doors in Bethlehem they had to knock on before they got there! But they made it.
And what did they actually find? And what were they looking for?
Better question for us tonight – what are YOU looking for? And what will you find?
Let’s assume the shepherds understood what the angels said and what titles like Savior and Christ meant. Shepherds were poorly educated and illiterate and religious and social outsiders, so that’s making a pretty big assumption. But let’s give them the benefit of the doubt. That they understood that the angels were delivering a message from God and that the good news that night had something to do with what God was doing. Perhaps they even believed that God was somehow revealing himself to them. They certainly demonstrated an eagerness in discovering what they might find in Bethlehem. “Let’s go see!” they said.
And if they believed that what they might find had something to do with God, what kind of God did they find? What kind of good news would this this God have for them? Who or what was born for them that night?
Let’s start with what the shepherds did NOT find.
They did not find a warrior God who would rise up and fight all their enemies. That God was born of human hostility and revenge. What they found in the manger was small and weak.
They did not find a God who could be manipulated for political expediency. That God was manufactured by those seeking power and influence. What they found in the manger appeared helpless and unimportant.
They did not find a God who would stand over them in judgment or scorn. That God was created out of fear and the need to control others. What they found in the manger was innocent and untainted by human hatred.
They did not find a granter of wishes. That God was invented by those seeking prosperity and wealth. What they found in the manger was poor and humble.
They did not find a God who was strange and distant. That God arose from generations of distrust and despair. What they found in the manger was one of them. He was vulnerable and ordinary just like they were. They could have reached down to hold him. Perhaps they did!
Since Jesus was born, broken humanity has crafted God in its own image to suit its own self-centered, destructive purposes. But that’s not the God that was born this night. That’s not what the shepherds found. That’s not what you will find.
They found a light that no darkness can overcome. That light shines for you.
They saw a word that pierced the silence with love. That love, that word, whispers to you.
They saw one in solidarity with them willing to share the human experience. That one lives among us.
They found one who will be their refuge, who will bring them comfort, who will welcome them with open arms, who will speak good news, who will give them life. All of that is for you.
They found what they had been promised: A Savior. The Chosen One. For them. For you. For us.
This is the not just a Christmas search. This is the search of a lifetime. We’ve reached enough dead ends. We’ve knocked on enough doors. We’ve believed and repeated enough lies. We have felt enough disappointment and hurt and fear. Jesus, the baby born for us, the man who lived and died for us is here for us. Lying in a manger. Hanging on a cross. Risen from the dead.
Is this what you are looking for?
Let’s go see.
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