Humility and Reference

Humility and Reverence

Luke 2:8-15

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, Good will toward men.

And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Beth-lehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them. (KJV)

As Christmas draws near, we are inundated with a barrage of sudden dinners, parties, extravaganzas, cantatas, and so on. It is a cacophony of noise, brilliantly lit distractions, extravagance, light shows, musical performances, plays, and specials. All these elaborate, sensory-overloading activities are meant to celebrate Christ's birth and draw in a lost world, like a fisherman using a shiny spinner to entice a fish to bite. I have seen many videos of churches doing music concerts with Santa coming over the crowd, the Grinch messing with the minister preparing to speak, and even wrestling matches with Santa going against the Grinch. Then the Grinch wrestles a man dressed like Jesus! I'd be outraged if it weren't so sad. However, as I contemplated these things, I was reminded of the shepherds out in the field on the night of Christ's birth and the angelic appearance that changed their lives forever.

Humility

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night." I can only imagine the quiet of this unassuming night they were accustomed to. These shepherds stood watch, no doubt sharing quiet conversations as the sheep ate and slept. The light from the night sky likely illuminated their fields. There was nothing special about this night of work to them. Their concerns revolved around their homes and their work. Until "the angel of the Lord came upon them and the glory of the Lord shone around about them." Afraid, confused, surprised, overwhelmed, and blinded, these lowly men trembled before the heavenly display while the angels brought comfort and hope.

Rather than going to the kings and princes of the world to announce the birth of Christ, God commands his angels to appear before the lowliest men – shepherds. Think of that: God was satisfied announcing His Son to a handful of men in a field with sheep and blessing them with the songs from a heavenly choir typically reserved for those who dwell in His eternal presence. In due time, the elites and affluent of society would learn of Jesus and grow jealous and angry towards Him, but the time for that had not yet come. Instead, it was a time of celebration within heaven and humility for man.

We find our place with the shepherds within this tale of Christ's birth. You and I are nothing special. We lived our lives unassumingly, going about our daily routines, struggling to make sense of it all, and then the Spirit moved within our souls, and we heard, "I bring you good tidings of great joy…a savior, which is Christ the Lord." When we recognized Christ as our savior, humility filled our bodies, and even now, we serve to identify how unworthy we are. God desires a humble heart[1] so that we will listen and let Him lead. He did not want the pomp and circumstance of self-important men, but rather the humble, earnest hearts of unimportant shepherds working the fields. I am reminded of Luke 14:11, "For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." When we approach God during this Christmas season and sing our songs, let humility be our theme.

Reverence

As we read the angel's words, they declare a savior, Christ, who is born and where he is. They then begin their heavenly song, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." I used the King James Version because its wording is so familiar to us, but a more accurate translation would be "peace among those with whom he is pleased. (ESV)" Considering this, contemplate with me what's being declared.

"Glory to God in the highest" – Glory to God! He is above all others. There are none like Him[2]. This Lord sits upon a throne, high and lifted up and the train of his robe fills the temple[3]. It is this God who is "Holy, Holy, Holy…the whole earth is full of His Glory![4]"

"Peace among those with whom he is pleased" – For those whom God saved, be at peace for your Redeemer is here. This babe in a manger is the fulfillment of a promise God made not only in eternity past but repeatedly throughout history. Christ is here. His righteousness shall be yours[5]. Your sins shall be washed away[6], and you will receive unexplainable peace [7]. It has pleased God to save men[8]; this babe is the truth, way, and life[9].

Angels delivered these wonderful truths with reverence. Reverence refers to deep respect and honor. They esteemed themselves as lesser than God and maintained proper dignity and honor in the declaration of Christ's arrival. These shepherds that witnessed this heavenly choir did not interject, intervene, or interrupt this marvelous worship service, but instead silently listened and watched with awe. For us, remember the truths within the words declared by the angels and seek to share them with reverence, knowing that we are unworthy, and we honor God by directing our attention toward Him rather than ourselves.

Worship

As the angels return to heaven, the shepherds race to town and find the fulfillment of all the words of the angels within a manger. These shepherds immediately began to declare to all who would hear what happened in the fields. They witnessed an incredible display, and the people marveled as they listened to the story. Once the shepherds recounted the tale no doubt countless times, they returned to their duties glorifying and praising God for what they saw and heard.

Worship is a natural response when man encounters the divine. How can we gaze upon the glory of God without falling to our faces and worshipping Him? We must worship God in spirit and truth[10]. However, worship is about glorifying God and not ourselves. When we consider our worship, we need to consider if it's being done reverently with humility or if our worship is so loud and boisterous that it drowns out the word of God and distracts people from looking to His throne. Does our worship elevate God or man? Does our worship seek to engage emotionally or to uplift spiritually? These are questions that each must ponder on their own.

Conclusion

For those who are saved, we have encountered the divine. We have met Christ and been filled with the Holy Spirit. We cannot dictate how the world and churches celebrate Christ's birth, but we can control how we celebrate within our homes. Take time to decide whether your Christmas is filled with humility, reverence, and earnest worship of the Lord or if it's gotten weighed down with the spectacle of it all. Pray for closeness and glorify God for the peace that He granted your soul the moment he called you from the sin you dwelled in. Thank God for loving you, giving you grace, and showing you mercy; we are all unworthy of what he has done for us.

[1] Psalm 25:9

[2] Psalm 86:8

[3] Isaiah 6:1

[4] Isaiah 6:3

[5] Romans 4:22-25

[6] Titus 3:5

[7] Philippians 4:7

[8] 1 Timothy 2:3-4

[9] John 14:6

[10] John 4:23-24