Luke 2:8-20
The Shepherds’ Visit
Now there were shepherds nearby living out in the field, keeping guard over their flock at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were absolutely terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! Listen carefully, for I proclaim to you good news that brings great joy to all the people: Today your Savior is born in the city of David. He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger.”
Suddenly a vast, heavenly army appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among people with whom he is pleased!”
When the angels left them and went back to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, that the Lord has made known to us.” So they hurried off and located Mary and Joseph, and found the baby lying in a manger. When they saw him, they related what they had been told about this child, and all who heard it were astonished at what the shepherds said. But Mary treasured up all these words, pondering in her heart what they might mean. So the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen; everything was just as they had been told.
~*~
We have all heard the story of Jesus birth the first Christmas and the taxation that Caesar Augustus had which had initiated that fate-filled trip to Bethlehem. But I want to tell you another side of this tale that you may never have thought of … that of The Angels’ Song.
Well over 2000 years ago now, God our Father set in motion His eternal plan for our Salvation. It was a very intricate plan that took many years of planning and preparation to complete. I believe it all began with the stars.
You see the star the Magis’ followed into Bethlehem began as stars that converged before Christ’s birth to form the ‘Christmas Star,’ or more correctly the Christmas Constellation, that announced His coming. This special constellation He placed in the skies above the Eastern Empires. Some wise men of these regions started searching heir historical archives when it was first sighted to find its significance. They learned that this new ‘star’ was a sign to tell of the birth of a new and important king for the nation of Israel … a leader that they had been waiting on for hundreds of years.
This prophecy of Israel’s new king was well known throughout Israel and all the nations where the Jews had been in exile during their dispersion. This was a part of God’s plan from the beginning, for His Salvation is not just for Israel, but for all people, everywhere.
While the Magi prepared to ‘follow the star,’ our Father was off in other parts of the globe making other preparations. One such task was to prepare Elizabeth and Zachariah for the birth of their miracle baby … a male who born to them late in life and was to announce Jesus and His ministry, preparing people for His coming.
Another was to get Mary - a young, godly woman from Nazareth in Galilee - on board to bring this special Child into the world and raise Him, training Him for the job He would carry out in His lifetime.
God also had to let Joseph know that Mary hadn’t been unfaithful to him and that they should carry out their plans to be married and raise a family. God also told Joseph that the child she would bear was His Seed, His Son, that Mary and Joseph would be raising.
That is enough of the backstory.
While God was making all the preparations throughout the universe for Jesus’ birth, I believe He gave Gabriel - one of His chief, or archangels - orders for preparing His angel army for this special occasion. In fact, Gabriel was given the job of telling Mary and Joseph of their roles in God’s plan. But Gabriel’s job was far from over with these announcements. This was just the beginning...
Gabriel also had to ensure the angel army knew their part. This is where our Christmas story really begins.
Throughout heaven, Gabriel announced a meeting of all the angels. He brought them together to tell them of the need to form a choir and to learn some special songs because they would be proclaiming the birth of The King … Jesus. Let’s sit in on the angels’ meeting.
“Hey, everyone,” Gabriel called, “gather around. There is much we need to talk about today.”
“What’s going on?”
“What’s Gabriel saying?”
“OK, gather round, everyone and listen. Our Father, God, has finally decided it is time for His great plan for the earth’s Salvation to be set into motion. And you all have an important part in this plan. You are going to tell the King’s first visitors where they can find Him. And you get to do this with God’s glory and His music. God has written special songs for you all to sing on that night to a group of shepherds on a hillside outside of King David’s hometown of Bethlehem.”
“So what do you want from us, Gabriel?” Adriel asked.
“As you have the most interest Adriel, I want you to be the choir leader,” Gabriel replied. “You will speak to the shepherds and give them God’s message while the choir sings softly in the background.”
“The rest of the choir will sing of God’s glory during and after Adriel makes this most important announcement of the birth of His Son, Jesus, in the town of Bethlehem. These shepherds are perfect representations of the vast majority of humankind. They are simple folk who work hard to support their families and love the Lord with all their hearts. So learn the songs well and prepare for the most important day of all time thus far!”
After getting the angel army choir set up for practice, Gabriel had other heavenly duties to take care of. So he left the choir in Adriel’s care and went on about his work.
Adriel took his role as leader and director so seriously that he sought an appointment with Father God to find out just how He wanted things done and what He had chosen for them to sing. I believe their meeting when just like this:
“Adriel, what brings you into my throne room?” Father God asked.
“Father God, I want to make Your announcement just as special as You had envisioned it.”
Adriel responded, “What am I supposed to say? What shall we wear? What shall we sing? How will we pull all this off in time?”
“Adriel, my son,” God replied. “You are right, this is an awesome and wonderful announcement. It must be done just right. That is precisely why I have chosen you and your angel army choir to tell the human shepherds of the birth of My Son, Jesus. They will be the first people on earth to visit Him and bring Him honor in My name.”
“Archangel, Gabriel just shared that part of the mission with us. So, what songs do you want us to sing during Your announcement, Father God?”
“I have written a special piece for this event. A man named Handel will write it down for Me many years from now, but you angels will sing it to the shepherds on that special day. I call it the Hallelujah Chorus.
But I have a speech for you to give that is just as important as this piece of music. It goes like this: ‘Do not be afraid! Listen carefully, for I proclaim to you good news that brings great joy to all the people: Today your Savior is born in the city of David. He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger.’ Do you think you can learn these words in time, Adriel? They are essential and need to be just right.
“Yes, Sir! I can … I will learn them. This speech will be perfect! Thank you, Father, for trusting me and the Angel Army for this important job. I know we will do this just like You planned.”
God was never afraid of how the angels would perform. He knew they were the right creations for this job. For He knew of this assignment before time began and created them perfectly for all they would need to do throughout eternity. His words were to calm Adriel. To give him the encouragement he would need to lead the Angel Army Choir and make the announcement all creation had been waiting for.
Now filled with his new-found, godly encouragement for the tasks ahead and a sound bubble containing their music, Adriel called the choir together to go over their upcoming assignment.
“Gather ‘round, gang,” Adriel yelled, “I have the music Father God wants us to sing to the shepherds on earth. Let’s start learning it.”
The angels practiced several hours that day and every day for many months as they awaited the day they would make their announcement. Now the day has come and they were ready. As the Angel Army Choir gathered for their journey toward earth, Father God came into the hall.
“Children, gather in and quiet down please,” called Father God. “I want to have a few words with you before you fly off for your assignments. You all know of the song and the announcement you are to share with the shepherds of earth this night. Now I want you to know what this announcement is all about. Tonight in a stable near the town of Bethlehem, My son - Jesus - will be born of a virgin named Mary. He will lead a righteous life and die to return to My Kingdom Family as My children … My heirs. This announcement is for the whole world, rich and poor alike. That is why I have chosen this family of shepherds near Bethlehem to be the first to hear of Him and to see Him. They are hard working common folk, neither poor nor rich, very average among the people of earth.”
“Wow,” replied the angel choir. “Thank You, Father, for sending us to earth. We won’t let you down.”
“I know you won’t, my children.” He said. “Now go, clothed in My Glory. Sing for the people of earth.”
“And Adriel, Fear Not!” God continued, “You will speak My words with great confidence this night. You and the Angel Army Choir will bring me Great Glory with your words and deeds.”
And with those words of encouragement Adriel and the Angel Army Choir flew off toward earth and their God-given assignment to announce Jesus’ birth to the shepherds and the world. Let’s follow and see what God has set into motion.
Low in the evening sky above the hillside meadows outside of Bethlehem the Angel Army Choir and Adriel their leader halted their flight. Softly the choir starts singing the Hallelujah Chorus. Just in front of the Choir is Adriel, resplendent in God’s Glory and Light. This Light gradually grows brighter, drawing the shepherds’ attention to the sky. When the sky around Adriel was almost as bright as the noonday sun, Adriel began to speak God’s message to the shepherds.
“Don’t be afraid and listen carefully! I bring you a message from Father God. This news will bring great joy to all the people of earth! Today, in the city of Bethlehem, King David’s hometown, the Messiah - the savior of the world - has been born. His name is Jesus. To prove what I have said let me give you a sign; you will find this baby boy diapered, wrapped in a blanket and lying in a feed trough in the stables near the town below.”
When Adriel had finished his announcement, the Angel Army Choir began singing louder. Loud enough for the shepherds to clearly hear their words of honor and glory to God. After several minutes, the Angel Army Choir flew off, still singing their song. As they disappeared into the night sky, the shepherds began talking about what they had just seen and heard.
“Wow, brothers. The angels said that Messiah was born in Bethlehem,” said Jacob, the head of this shepherd family. “Didn’t the prophet Isaiah tell us of his birth long years ago?”
“Yes, he said God would give Messiah this miracle birth to prove He is our Salvation.” agreed his brother Salmon.”
“Let’s go into town and find the manger-bed where the angels said He will be sleeping,” said Jonah, the youngest shepherd.
Having decided to go see their Messiah, the shepherds left their sheep in the sheepfold with a large rock rolled up to block the entrance and walked down the hill and to the stables just outside of town. There they found the baby Jesus lying on some clean, soft hay within a feeding trough.
Bowing to their knees, these men worshiped the Christ child from hearts filled with pure love toward God. Then they left the stable area and traveled throughout Bethlehem telling all they met about Jesus and the angels’ message. Once the whole wakeful population of Bethlehem was aware of the evening’s importance, the shepherds returned to their fields and flocks on the hillside just outside of town.
And the rest, as they say, is History. Well actually, HIS Story!
So while we celebrate the birth of our messiah, let’s remember the Angel Army Choir and their marvelous announcement. And let’s share His good news with everyone, every day of the year.
