Amazed!

              After the Shepherds were visited by the Angels on the night Jesus was born, they immediately went to Bethlehem to see the baby in person.  That visit didn’t end their adventure for the evening.  Next, the Scripture says, “They spread the word concerning what had been told to them about this child” (Luke 2: 17 NIV84).  They weren’t just silent witnesses to the birth of the Messiah; they were the first to testify to the fulfillment of prophecy and the miracle in the stable. 

            Shepherds weren’t always thought of in the best light.  Being around animals all day, they probably smelled a lot like the animals, and their clothing probably wasn’t the best.  Still, God chose them to receive the message that all of humanity had been awaiting since that day in the Garden when Adam and Eve took that fateful bite.  While these may not have been educated men, much like many of the disciples that Jesus later chose, they knew enough to know that this news was too good to keep to themselves, so they told everyone what they had seen and heard.

            Other than a statement that “all who heard it were amazed” (Luke 2: 18 NIV84), we don’t know how the people responded.  Were they “amazed” that the Messiah had been born?  Were they amazed that God would speak to lowly shepherds?  Were they “amazed” that a group of grown men could come up with such an outlandish story?  We don’t know the answer to those questions any more than we know the response of the Jewish leaders.  Scripture doesn’t tell us.  All we know for sure is that the Shepherds were amazed, and nothing was going to stop them from telling everyone they saw.

            How “amazed” are you when you read the Christmas story?  Do we ever stop to reflect on how outlandish the thought that God would send His only Son as a baby to cross the great divide that sin had created?  Are we amazed by the fact that our King did not come on a horse with an entourage of soldiers but instead came as a baby lying in a manger? 

            More importantly, are we “amazed” enough to tell everyone the Good News?  I doubt that the Shepherds fully understood the importance of the events of that night, but now, we’ve heard the “rest of the story.”  How much more eager should we be to tell everyone we know that the Messiah has come? 

            As we begin this Christmas season, may we each seek a new appreciation, and even amazement, for the gift that God gave us so many years ago.  Then, like the Shepherds, may we tell everyone what has been told to us about this Child.

Luke 2: 8 – 18