The Prophets of Advent, December 1, 2013

The Prophets of Advent

Isaiah 40:1-5, Matthew 3:1-12

December 1, 2013

Grace Presbyterian Church

Rev. Dr. Richard E. Miller

Advent  “Happy New Year!” Did you go to any New Year’s Eve parties? And stay up till midnight to celebrate the new year? Personally, I went to bed early and let the new year come in all by itself.

No, I’m not confused in my dates for today really is the beginning of a new year - our church liturgical year that takes us through the cycles of Christ’s birth, baptism, transfiguration, suffering, death, resurrection, ascension, and ending on Christ the King Sunday. This first Sunday of the new year is also the beginning of Advent, a period of 24 days which will end on Christmas Eve.

“What,” you might ask, “is Advent?” Contrary to popular belief, Advent was not invented by merchants as an slick way to take our money prior to Christmas. Nor was it created by greeting card companies as a means of increasing sales of Christmas cards. Rather Advent was established by the Church to help Christians spiritually prepare themselves to celebrate the birth of Christ more meaningfully. The word “Advent” comes from the Latin “Adventus” and simply means "coming." Thus for centuries, believers spent their time in prayer, repenting of their sins and striving to be spiritually prepared for that day when Christ came again.

“How long ago did Advent begin?” you ask? Not as early as you might think. Since Advent is tied directly into Christmas, the question then becomes “When was Christmas first observed by the Church?”

As you know, the scriptures do not tell of people celebrating Christmas at all. Nowhere in the New Testament is there any mention of Christmas trees, sitting down to Christmas dinner, decorating front lawns, singing carols, putting lights on the houses, or giving and receiving presents. This was because very first Christians were focused on two events: the resurrection of Jesus and when Christ would return again. However, after 300 years had gone by and Christ had not returned, the day of Christ’s birth was officially celebrated December 25, 0336. And thus the days leading up to Christmas day were set aside as a time of expectant waiting.

Importance of Advent  Advent was considered so important that in A.D. 380, a church council was held in Saragossa, Spain. The council decreed that "from December 17 until the day of Epiphany which is January 6 no one is permitted to be absent from church." Imagine that. No one could be absent from morning worship. What a great idea! Do you suppose that Grace Presbyterian could get away with that? Probably not.

 Four Comings of Christ Over the centuries, the Church has identified four traditional comings of Christ to be observed during Advent as proclaimed by the prophets - the Prophets of Advent. These four are as follows:

1. The first is when Jesus came as a baby in Bethlehem.  

2. The second is when Christ comes into our hearts.  

3. The third is when Christ comes to us at the time of our earthly death.  

4. The fourth is that moment when Christ comes to earth again, known as the parousia or his second coming.

Jesus Comes as a Baby The first coming of Christ is when Jesus was born - the day when the Word of God became flesh in Bethlehem. It was the day when the shepherds went to see the baby Jesus and a day in which the angels sang in the heavens. 

It was the day which was prophesied by Isaiah when he wrote, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.” [Isaiah 7:14 NRSV]

Another prophet named Micah wrote, “But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.” [Micah 5:2 NRSV]

And the prophet Isaiah predicted the following: “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us: authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” And the fulfillment of these prophecies occurred when the baby Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

We call this first coming of Christ, Christmas. It is the time when we sing carols and read the great birth narratives of Matthew and Luke.  And it’s a day for family get-togethers, for opening presents, and for creating memories.

Christ comes into our hearts  The second coming is when Jesus comes into our hearts, that is, when we first accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior. This coming is expressed in the New Covenant prophecy found in Jeremiah 31:34ff. It says, “The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. [Jeremiah 31:31-34] Jesus fulfilled this prophecy.

Now, instead of establishing a relationship with us based on commandments written on tablets of stone, God establishes his relationship with a covenant written on our hearts.

In our morning scripture, John the Baptist said that Jesus will baptize us with the Holy Spirit and fire. In other words, we are baptized in our hearts. Paul wrote: “if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” [Romans 10:9]  

Thus, we acknowledge Christ as Savior with our lips, and we follow him as Lord in our hearts. Belief occurs in our hearts. Commitment occurs in our hearts. Obedience occurs in our hearts. This coming of Christ into our hearts occurred first when we professed our faith in him.

However, accepting Christ isn’t just a one time experience that took place when we were confirmed. Having Jesus come into our hearts must take place each day of our lives.

The third is when Christ comes to us at the time of our earthly death Jesus said, “In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also.” [John 14:2-3] As we enter eternal life, we will know Jesus just as his disciples knew him. Paul wrote, “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died.” [1 Thessalonians 4:13-14] This fact encourages us and gives us comfort and hope whenever a loved one dies.

Lastly, Christ shall come again  Finally, just as Jesus came to earth as a baby, he will come again to earth as Lord of all. Every time we repeat the Apostles' Creed, we affirm our belief in the second coming of Christ. We say that Christ, "ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the father almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead ." "He shall come." Sometime in the future, he will come again. That is what we believe. The "quick" of course refers to those who are alive at his coming. Now a lot of people would like to know exactly when Christ will come again so they can take time to get ready, and "get their house in order" so to speak.

However, Paul clearly said, “Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” [1 Thessalonians 5:1-2]

Thus, no preparation time will be given even though many people throughout the years have predicted the exact moment when Jesus would come.

One such prediction was made by a man by the name of William Miller. In the 1840s, he was the founder of an end-times movement that was so prominent it received its own name-- Millerism. From his studies of the Bible, Miller predicted that the second coming would happen sometime between 1843 and1844. A spectacular meteor shower in 1833 gave the movement a good push forward. The build up of anticipation continued until March 21, 1844, when Miller's one year time table ran out. Some followers set another date of Oct 22, 1844. This too failed, collapsing the movement.

One follower described the days after the failed predictions, "The world made merry over the old Prophet's predicament. The taunts and jeers of the 'scoffers' were well-nigh unbearable."

The early Christians expected him to come at any moment.  One writer said that Paul’s advice “that it is best not to marry” rested in part on the conviction that “the tribulations of the end of this age are at hand, and this is no time to have to worry about a family.” (see I Corinthians 7) [William Carl Placher, “A History of Christian Theology: An Introduction,” 1983, p. 34]

However, as we know, Christ has not yet come in his great glory.  However, it doesn’t matter when he comes if we are always prepared. If we are faithful disciples in season and out, in church and out, we will be ready for Christ whenever he comes. Advent is a time in which we can become better prepared.

The In-between Time  In essence, we live in the in-between time of history - between the first coming of Christ to earth which we celebrate on Christmas day and the second coming of Christ which we will celebrate sometime in the future.

Until that future time, every moment of every day of every year should be for us a Holy Advent, a coming of Christ into our hearts.  As Phillips Brooks wrote in his familiar hymn, "O holy child of Bethlehem!  Descend to us, we pray; cast out our sin and enter in, be born in us today."  Amen.
Isaiah 40:1-5 NRSV

Comfort, O comfort my people,

   says your God.

Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,

   and cry to her

that she has served her term,

   that her penalty is paid,

that she has received from the Lord’s hand

   double for all her sins.

A voice cries out:

‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord,

   make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Every valley shall be lifted up,

   and every mountain and hill be made low;

the uneven ground shall become level,

   and the rough places a plain.

Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,

   and all people shall see it together,

   for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’

Matthew 3:1-12 NRSV

In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’ This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said,

‘The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:

“Prepare the way of the Lord,

   make his paths straight.” ’

Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea were going out to him, and all the region along the Jordan, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

 But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit worthy of repentance. Do not presume to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our ancestor”; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the axe is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

 ‘I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing-fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing-floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’

Festival of the Ingathering, November 24, 2013

 Festival of the Ingathering

Exodus 23:14-16, Colossians 3:12-17

Grace Presbyterian Church

November 24, 2013

Rev. Dr. Richard E. Miller

Giving and Thanking  What if you gave someone a gift or compliment and they didn’t say “Thank you?” Or show any signs of appreciation? They just took the gift and walked away from you? I dare say that you wouldn’t keep giving that person gifts because giving and thanking are bound together. And when the thanking stops, so do the gifts. However, the likelihood of someone not thanking is virtually nil. After all we were taught as children to say the magic words, “Please and thank you.” We were told, and sometimes forced, to always write thank you notes when we received a gift whether we liked the gift or not. Now that we’re adults, we should have this “thank you” business down pretty pat, don’t you think? However, how does one say “thank you” to God for all his blessings?

+ Write God a note at 1000 Golden Gate Boulevard, Celestial City, Heaven 77777?

+ Leave a “Thank You” note on God’s Web Page at PrayersRUs.org?

+  Call him up on our cellular hotline?

+  Or we could throw a “Thank You God” party. It’s really hard to know exactly how to say thanks to God, isn’t it? Maybe we can get some ideas if we look at how the Israelites expressed their thanksgiving to God.

Festival of the Ingathering  We heard about it in our Old Testament scripture where it said that the Israelites held three great festivals during the year, one of which was the Festival of the Ingathering. [Exodus 23:16b] This Festival was a seven day celebration in the fall of the year in which the Israelites gave thanks to God for their successful harvest of grapes, olives, wheat and barley. The celebration was always held outdoors and people slept in dwellings made of tree branches to commemorate the wanderings of their ancestors in the wilderness. During the week long celebration, they ate great communal meals. Like us, they probably ate too much.

And their Festival of the Ingathering always began and ended with a service of praise and thanksgiving.

During the festival, the people acknowledged two things: (1) their indebtedness to God for his unmerited and unexpected blessings; (2) their acknowledgment that God was the true owner of their land and the real source of their harvest. Then, at the end of the seven-day festival, they renewed their covenant relationship with God by pledging once again always to be God’s people and to follow God’s commandments.

Thanksgiving Today Since it’s not practical to set up tents for a week out in our Church Park, how can we express our deep thanks to God for all that he’s done for us?

One example we might follow is the first Thanksgiving of 1621 held in Plymouth, Massachusetts. It was a spontaneous outpouring of thanks by the Pilgrims for having survived the brutal winter of 1620-1621 in the new world. It was a winter which saw 47 of the 102 members of the new colony die. At that first Thanksgiving, they ate venison, duck, goose, seafood, eels, white bread, corn bread, leeks, watercress, wild plums and dried berries. However, no where is it mentioned that they served turkey or pumpkin pie.

Then, 168 years later in 1789, President George Washington proclaimed the first nation-wide thanksgiving celebration in America naming November 26, 1789 “as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God.”

And now we will gather this Thursday to get together with family and friends, eat more than we should, take lots of pictures, perhaps watch a football game, and create lasting memories.

Unmerited Grace of God Yet, as wonderful as all this sounds, I suggest that the primary focus of our celebration this Thursday should not be turkey or pumpkin pie. Not the football game. In fact, the primary focus should not even be our family and friends who are with us. Instead I believe our focus should be to offer thanks to God for his love, forgiveness and assurance of life after death.

Paul Paul agreed with this thought in his letter to the church at Colossae where he writes: “With gratitude in your hearts, sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to God.  And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Paul is saying that we don’t have to leave a thank you note on God’s web page. Instead all we need to do is:

1.  Sing hymns and spiritual songs of thanks to God, which we do every Sunday morning, and

2.  Make sure that every word we utter and every action we carry out are done in the name of Jesus, giving thanks to God through him.

Hard to say Thanks  Sometimes it’s hard to find a reason to give thanks for things that happen. The story is told of a minister who was offering the morning prayer. The weather outside was horrible - an ice storm had hit followed by ten inches of snow. The wind was howling and temperatures had plunged to 20 below zero. So the minister prayed, “We thank you, God, that you send us so very few Sundays such as this.”

Thanks in Midst of Bad Times  Sometimes bad things happen and it never occurs to us to give thanks. The following prayer was offered in the 1600s by Rev. Matthew Henry who had just been robbed:“I thank Thee first because I was never robbed before; second, because although they took my purse they did not take my life; third, because although they took my all, it was not much; and fourth because it was I who was robbed, and not I who robbed.” [Matthew Henry, minister (1662-1714)]

Cup-Turners and Cup-Bearers  This morning I suggest we all become certified, card carrying “Cup-Turners” and “Cup-Bearers.” First of all, what is a Cup Turner?  Perhaps this story will help.  While attending a banquet, a man realized that the waiters were serving coffee to everyone but him. When the waiters gave refills, again they passed him by. Finally the man stopped a waiter and asked for coffee. “Mister,” said the waiter, “if you want coffee, you’ve got to turn up your cup. We only give to those who have turned up their cups.”

Many people go their whole lives without turning up their cups to receive the blessings of God. As a result, they wonder why they don’t experience joy, happiness and blessings from God.

Maybe they are like the Alaskan said to a friend that he didn’t believe in God. When asked why, he told of the time when he was lost in the wilderness. “I was in total despair. I prayed to God to rescue me.” “Well, you’re here,” said the friend. “Doesn’t that prove that God rescued you?” “Are you kidding?” said the Alaskan. “Some trapper came along and showed me the way out.”

This morning, I suggest we consciously turn up our cups each day of our lives so that we acknowledge and receive God’s love, mercy and comfort. And then give thanks.

Cup-Bearers  Not only are we to turn our cups up so that we can receive all the blessings God pours out upon us, we also are to be Cup-Bearers. In the Bible, a cup-bearer was simply one who served a drink to another. In the King’s court, the cup-bearer was a highly trusted official who tasted the wine served to the king to make sure it not only was the best wine, but also to make sure it was not laced with poison in any way. Obviously, a cup-bearer in those days had very little job security. Our role as cup-bearers involves being the vessels by which God can pour out his blessings into the cups of those around us. What kind of blessings are we talking about?  Allow me to suggest a few.

1. Every time we forgive someone or are forgiven by someone, we are pouring a blessing into that person’s cup and saying thanks to God. Forgiveness spans the gulf of resentment and destroys the chasm of revenge. It brings peace and contentment into our lives. Reinhold Niebuhr said “Forgiveness is the final form of love.”

2.  Every time we hug our child, spouse or parent, we are pouring our love into their hearts and saying thanks to God. It is said that for one’s spiritual and physical health, you need at least three warm, safe hugs a day. More if you can get them.

3. Each time we reach out to comfort someone in distress, we are pouring God’s comfort into someone’s grieving heart.

4. Each time we feed the hungry or visit the sick, we are pouring God’s hope into their lives.

5. We are a cupbearer each time we share with others what Christ has done for us and what our personal relationship with him is. We become cup-bearers to our children, our spouses, our friends. We know that unless someone tells our children about Jesus, they never will know Christ as their Lord and Savior. Karl Barth, the great Swiss theologian, was once asked when he first knew God loved him. His reply, “That’s simple. My mother told me.”

Final Thoughts This morning I suspect that there will still be times in the future when we forget to thank God. When we never even acknowledge his gifts. Now if God were like us, he’d simply stop sending his blessings upon us. But God doesn’t play by our rules of etiquette. God just keeps showering us with strength and guidance and hope even when we ignore him.

The story is told of a Vietnamese boy who had trouble saying his “g”s. So instead of wishing someone a Happy Thanksgiving, he would say, “Happy Thanks-Living!”  By our lives of giving and living thanks, we create hundreds of reasons why others can give thanks in their living as well. Such thank-filled expressions of life strengthen our families and our communities.

So as we gather Thursday with family and friends, let’s eat the wonderful food. Let’s watch the football games. Let’s take pictures and create memories. But most importantly, let us be cup-turners, receiving God’s blessings and cup-bearers, pouring out God’s blessings on all we meet. So a Happy Thanks-Living to you all! Amen!

 
 

Exodus 23:14-16 NRSV

 Three times in the year you shall hold a festival for me. You shall observe the festival of unleavened bread; as I commanded you, you shall eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. No one shall appear before me empty-handed. You shall observe the festival of harvest, of the first fruits of your labour, of what you sow in the field. You shall observe the festival of ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labour.
 Colossians 3:12-17 NRSV

 As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

The Shepherds of Advent, December 8, 2013

The Shepherds of Advent

Second Sunday in Advent

Isaiah 11:1-10, Luke 2:1-20

December 8, 2013

Grace Presbyterian Church

Rev. Dr. Richard E. Miller

The Shepherds of Advent  This morning we’re going to look at the Shepherds of Advent. But before we start, I must share this joke with you. It has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the sermon, but I couldn’t resist.  Two shepherds were leaning on their crooks at the end of a long day and the first asks the second, "So, how’s it going?" The second one sighed and shook his head, "Not so good, I can’t pay my bills, my health isn’t good, my kids don’t respect me, and my wife is leaving me." The first shepherd replied, "Well, don’t lose any sheep over it."

Now that I have that out of the way, I’d like to look at the Shepherds of Advent from three different perspectives - The shepherds of the scriptures, Jesus as the Good Shepherd, and finally when Jesus commissioned each of us to be shepherds on his behalf.

Shepherds of the Scriptures

The shepherds we heard about in our morning scripture were the first persons to see the baby Jesus after he was born. However, they didn’t hear about Jesus with a phone call, or see it in the local newspaper. Instead, an angel of the Lord appeared to them as they were out in the fields with their flocks. Understandably, the shepherds were terrified at such an event. But the angel immediately put them at ease by saying, “‘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.”

This assurance from the angel calmed them down, and the angel went on to tell them that they could find the baby Messiah in Bethlehem. And so the shepherds went as fast as they could and saw Jesus.

Amazing Announcement  Why do you suppose the angels chose to reveal the birth of the long awaited Messiah to a group of lowly shepherds? Although shepherds were an important part of the nation’s economy, they were not considered the movers and shakers of Israel. Basically, they were rough, uneducated men who knew nothing else except how to tend sheep. It would have made more sense perhaps for the angel to tell the priests and rabbis. After all, they were the ones who were learned in the scriptures, who prayed daily in the Temple or Synagogue, and who gave to the Temple treasury. And of course, King Herod certainly expected to be notified immediately if the long-awaited Messiah arrived so that he could arrange a baby shower in his honor.

Perhaps the angel bypassed the scribes, priests, rabbis and the King because they were far too busy to recognize any angelic announcement. However, the shepherds were living under the stars and knew each one by name. They probably had all of their sheep safely in the sheepfold and were lying on their backs quietly watching the stars. And one of them might have said, “Look, there’s a shooting star!” Thus when an angel appeared to illuminate the darkness, he got the shepherds attention immediately. Looking Back Announcing the birth of the Messiah to shepherds makes sense in another way since in the Bible, Moses, Jacob and of course David, were all shepherds. In addition, many writers of scriptures speak of their relationship with God in terms of sheep and a shepherd. Ezekiel records that God was going to unite the two kingdoms so that “they shall have one shepherd.” [37:24] And in speaking of the coming Messiah, Isaiah says that “He will feed his flock like a shepherd, he will gather the lambs in his arms, he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.” [40:1] In Psalm 23, we read, “The Lord is my shepherd.” This means that he is not a shepherd, he’s not the shepherd, he is my shepherd.

Jesus as the Good Shepherd

The next Shepherd of Advent was Jesus himself. In the Gospel of John, Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. I know my own and my own know me. My sheep hear my voice. I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.” [John 10 NRSV selected]

It was logical for Jesus to assume the role as shepherd. After all, he was of the house of David, the Shepherd King. And just as a shepherd would lay down his life for his sheep, so Jesus laid down his life for us. He emphasized this point in his parable of the Lost Sheep [Matthew 18:12-14].

In that parable, he said that if a shepherd had 100 sheep and one of them wanders off, he will immediately leave the 99 and diligently seek to find the one who is lost. In like manner, when we stray, Jesus will do everything he can to find us and bring us back into his flock.

Another important responsibility of a shepherd was to protect his sheep from wild beasts and robbers. He did this with his staff, a short wooden club with a knob on the end studded with nails. At night, the shepherd would enclose his sheep in a temporary sheepfold. Often this was simply a briar bush enclosure, with a small opening for the sheep to enter. When his sheep were safely inside, the shepherd would lay down and sleep across the opening of the sheepfold. Thus no animal could go in or out without awakening the shepherd. The shepherd literally was the door of the sheepfold. Jesus said, “Very Truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. I know my own and my own know me.. And I lay down my life for the sheep. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.” {John 10 selected NRSV]

Sometimes, several shepherds herded their sheep into the same sheepfold. In the morning, one of the shepherds would simply stand outside and call. His sheep knew his voice and immediately came out to follow their shepherd to pasture and water. In like manner, when Jesus calls us, we know his voice and are to follow where he leads us.

Our Calling to be Shepherds

We are Commissioned to be Shepherds  Now we come to our role as shepherds. It’s really quite simple. The shepherds that went to see the baby Jesus are no longer living. The shepherd Jesus has ascended into heaven. That only leaves us to carry out the functions of a shepherd. Peter writes that we have been called by God to “Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them...” [1 Peter 5:2 NIV]

This echoes the sentiment expressed by Jesus after his resurrection. He appeared to his disciples on the Sea of Galilee, ate supper with them, and then had the following conversation with Peter.

‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ ¹⁶A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’ ¹⁷He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ And he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep. [John 21:15-18 NRSV]

Feed my Lambs. Tend my sheep. Feed my sheep. These are the three marching orders given to us after Jesus was resurrected. It means that we are called to be faithful shepherds to our flock - the people who are under our care or under our aura of influence. Who are the members of our flock?

To begin with, we are to be shepherds to our family - to care for them and protect them in every way. As we gather together as families this Christmas season, we are to role models for Christ.

We are to be shepherds to one another, rejoicing and weeping together. Comforting and encouraging each other.

And we are to be shepherds in every circumstance in life - with family, church, school, work and recreation. Even at shopping malls and grocery stores we can, by our words and behavior, lead people to Christ. Shepherding includes feeding the hungry, protecting the innocent, leading the lost back home, visiting the lonely, comforting the sorrowful, and teaching the Word.

When the shepherds left the baby Jesus, Luke says that “they made known what had been told them about this child..”  In like manner, we are to make known to others what has been told to us about Jesus.

Shepherds Lead  Remember, a shepherd never stood behind his flock to drive them to safety. Rather he walked ahead of his flock to lead them to pasture and still water. In like manner, we cannot push people into belief but rather lead them to Christ. This means that we join the shepherds of Jesus’ birth to become the shepherds of Jesus’ resurrection. It means that we who have heard the message of the angel are to tell and live that message to all around us for we are now the shepherds of Advent.

He Knows the Shepherd  Some years ago a famous actor was giving an after dinner speech. He asked his audience if there was any famous writing that they would like him to recite. There was a silence. Eventually an old vicar raised his hand and said: "Psalm 23 please." The actor agreed, on one condition: that the clergyman should also recite the Psalm after he had finished. The clergyman reluctantly agreed. The actor recited the 23rd Psalm and received a tumultuous applause. The clergyman then recited Psalm 23 and there was not a dry eye in the place. At the end, the actor stood up and said: "Do you know the difference between my version of the 23rd Psalm and his? I know the psalm but this man knows the Shepherd". Amen.

Isaiah 11:1-10 NRSV

A shoot shall come out from the stock of Jesse,

   and a branch shall grow out of his roots.

The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,

   the spirit of wisdom and understanding,

   the spirit of counsel and might,

   the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.

He shall not judge by what his eyes see,

   or decide by what his ears hear;

but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,

   and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;

he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,

   and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.

Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist,

   and faithfulness the belt around his loins.

The wolf shall live with the lamb,

   the leopard shall lie down with the kid,

the calf and the lion and the fatling together,

   and a little child shall lead them.

The cow and the bear shall graze,

   their young shall lie down together;

   and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp,

   and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den.

They will not hurt or destroy

   on all my holy mountain;

for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord

   as the waters cover the sea.

On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious.
Luke 2:1-20 [NRSV]

In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 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 Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and 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 heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’

When 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.’ So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

The story of the candy cane Years ago, a candy maker in Indiana wanted to make a candy that could be used as a symbol for Christ, so he made the Christmas Candy Cane. He began with stick of pure white, hard candy. White to symbolize the Virgin Birth and the sinless nature of Jesus, and hard to symbolize firmness of the promises of God. He made the candy in the form of a "J" to represent the name of Jesus. The shape at the same time represented the staff of the "Good Shepherd" with which he reaches to lift out fallen lambs who have gone astray. He used three small red stripes to show the stripes of the beating Jesus received. A large red stripe was for the blood shed by Christ on the cross. This became known as a Candy Cane - representing he wonder of Jesus and his great love that came down at Christmas and remains the ultimate force in the universe today.

Shepherd’s Duties  Although we tend to romanticize the shepherds and the part they played in the story of our Savior’s birth, their job actually was rather rigorous, especially for those who moved around from place to place. Such men were known as nomad shepherds. They owned their flocks, dwelt in tents and spent weeks and weeks in the high pastures with their sheep. Their job was to make sure their sheep had sufficient food and water, to heal them when they were sick, to rescue them when they were lost, and to protect them from wolves and robbers.  Since sheep are very helpless, the shepherd even had to lead them to food and water. But not just to any water. Sheep are frightened of running water, for if they fell in, their wool soaks up the water and they drown. The shepherd must either find still water or dam up a portion of a creek to create a quiet pool of water. This need is reflected in Psalm 23 where we read, “He leads me beside still water.” [23:2]

Lost  If sheep become lost, they cannot find their way back to the flock. In such cases, the shepherd must go and find them. He carries a rod or crook, the end of which was curved as a hook. With it, he rescued those who fell into holes and crevices. Throughout the year, shepherds would tend their sheep for weeks at a time up in the hills that surrounded the Jordan River or down on the plains that bordered the Mediterranean Sea.

Importance of Sheep  Sheep represented the chief wealth and livelihood of many families in Israel. This was partly due to the fact that much of Palestine was rocky and hilly and good for little else than raising sheep. Sheep were raised for their meat, milk and fleece. The skins were used as tent coverings, and at times sheep were even a medium of exchange. In addition sheep were used extensively as sacrifices of burnt offerings in the temple.

The Angel Appeared The announcement was made by an angel who appeared to the shepherds during the night. The shepherds were tending their sheep a short distance from Bethlehem. And most of them were asleep except for the shepherd keeping watch over their flocks. But suddenly, without warning, the intense, blinding light of the angel shone around them so brightly, it turned their darkness into daylight in an instant. They were terrified at the sight. I think we would be too if it happened to us.

Do Not Be Afraid  However, the angel knew how frightened they felt so the first words out of his mouth were, “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.” [Luke 2:10]

Then Luke writes: “Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” [Luke 2:13-14 NIV]

Spreading the News  Imagine how these shepherds must have felt! Although they were uneducated, they had heard of the prophecies of Isaiah that told of the coming of the Messiah. To hear that the prophecies of old had now been fulfilled was mind boggling to them. Once they had gotten over their fright, they hurried as fast as they could to Bethlehem to see the baby Jesus, the long awaited Messiah, lying in the manger. They then returned home, telling others what the angels had told them and that they had seen the Christ child with their own eyes. And they glorified and praised God for all they had heard and seen.