Luke 2:8-20 (NRSV)
Read Luke 2:8-20 on biblegateway.com
Verse 8In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Verse 9Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. Verse 10But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see-I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: Verse 11to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. Verse 12This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger." Verse 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, Verse 14"Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!" Verse 15When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us." Verse 16So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. Verse 17When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; Verse 18and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. Verse 19But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. Verse 20The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
Devotion
But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.' (Luke 2:10-11)
In the Old Testament, worshipers brought their prayers, requests and petitions to the priest in the form of a lament. After hearing a worshiper's lament, the priest consulted the Urim and Thummim. If a positive response were indicated, the priest would begin a salvation oracle with the words, "Do not be afraid . . ." When Luke depicts the announcement of the birth of Christ as beginning with these same words, we hear, along with those shepherds tending their flocks by night, the grandest salvation oracle of them all—the good news of the birth of a savior, even Jesus Christ, our Lord. This "good news" is truly the beginning of the gospel.
Prayer
Gracious God, make me like the shepherds, glorifying and praising you for all that I have seen and heard. Amen.