PCIS Sermon for December 14

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PCIS Sermon for December 14, 2003
Title: “The Pattern of the Shepherds”
Part I by M. Sidney McCollum; Part II by Sally G. Millar

Text: Luke 2:8-20 (NRSV) (8)In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. (9)Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. (10)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: (11)to you is born this day in the city of David a savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. (12)This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” (13)And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,

(14)”Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!”

(15)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.” (16)So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. (17)When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; (18)and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. (19)But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. (20)The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Part I

Intro. Every year at this time, we hear this story. It’s a vivid, memorable story, and one that carries a number of meanings. The obvious meaning is the joyous good news that it tells—that indeed the savior is born to us and among us. Another meaning is the pattern of excited witness which takes place quite naturally.

That pattern of witness couldn’t be more simple: the shepherds heard a word of witness from the angel, and they trusted it—they trusted it enough to check it out, and when they established that it was true, they spread it around.

Focus on this pattern of witness for a moment. It seems clear that it is the pattern of our author, Luke, and one that he, wants us to adopt. He’s done it himself. Listen to his introduction to the gospel (Lk. 1:1-4) where he writes:

“(1)Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, (2)just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, (3)I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, (4)so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.”

Luke is telling the recipient that he’s carefully researched the information, so that it can be believed. The last thing he does (vs. 4), is to assure his friend of the truth of what’s been conveyed to him, and there’s something to notice here. The Greek word translated “truth” here is “aspha-leia,” and it carries the connotation of “solid.” If you change the accents just a little, you can hear the English word “asphalt,” which is the way this word comes into our language. This is where we get our word for the hard material of the road.

What he’s saying about the gospel is that it’s not only true in that it corresponds to the facts, but that it’s solid.

· It will support your full weight. (Think of when you were a kid testing the ice on the pond to see if it was thick enough to support your weight.)

· You can stand on this.

· You can build a life on it.

The Shepherds and the Angels. Consider the shepherds. Their jobs require a combination of gentleness and toughness. Gentleness, because they are called upon to care for sheep which are injured or sick. On the other hand, toughness, because they are called upon to defend the sheep from both animals and thieves. Remember David’s comments about taking on bears and lions when they attacked the sheep. From time to time, they had encounters with danger which were, “up close and personal.”

There are some jobs that can be described as “hours of boredom punctuated by seconds of stark terror,” and I suspect that a shepherd would say that about his. But on this night, the terror wasn’t caused by the attack of a thief or a wild beast, but by the appearance of an angel. In our popular culture, we think of angels as pretty women, something like Miss America with wings. But in the Bible, all the angels who are named are men. They were typically warrior-like figures who were sent to accomplish God’s will. When our text says that the shepherds—tough as they were—were terrified, that’s what we would expect.

First there comes the angel’s assurance, “Do not be afraid.” Then follow the familiar magnificent phrases: “Good News” “Great Joy” “For All the People” “A Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” And after the angel tells them how to recognize the baby. Then suddenly the sky is filled with heavenly beings praising God. They had an experience!

What an incredible privilege those shepherds had! It’s as thought they were God’s invited guests at the birth of his son! We’re not surprised that the text tells us that they went to see what they had been alerted to. Nor are we surprised that afterward that they spread the word concerning what had been told them about the child.

Do you wonder what happened to those shepherds later? Did the younger ones among them become followers of Jesus and participants in his ministry many years later? Was this a life-changing experience, or was it excitement for an evening?

Application. Few in history are privileged to live in times of historic interventions by God. Fewer still actually participate in such events. But each of us has experiences in our own lives in which we recognize the hand of God at work. Some of these experiences are dramatic deliverances from physical danger; others are more ordinary, and involve hearing a “still small voice” in a situation which might be unimpressive to others, but is unmistakable to us.

I believe that if Luke and if the shepherds were in our presence now, they would urge us to share those experiences which move us to thank God for his presence in our lives. We bring glory to God when we share what he does in our lives. We encourage others when we share what God does in our lives.

One member of our congregation has had an illness this year, and we have prayed for her strength and healing during the course of that struggle. Recently the course of treatment was terminated prematurely because of the toll it was taking on her. In the Christmas letter she sent to friends and family, she told of her sense of God’s hand in her life throughout that time of illness. What she wrote in the letter was the kind of sharing I think we are encouraged to do, so I have invited Sally Millar to share the experience with us.

Part II

In the fall of 2002, I was diagnosed with hepatitis C. My doctor thinks I contracted this from a patient 26 years ago when I was doing clinical nursing. In January, I began a 48-week course of Interferon and Ribavirin, which are the two drugs currently being used to treat hepatitis C. This treatment was very challenging. However, I learned so much about myself and about God’s presence in my life. I learned that it is often pain that draws us to want to know God. And, I can certainly say that this was true of me this past year.

There is a Bible passage that is one of my favorites and was particularly helpful this past year. It is 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” I’ll admit that it was somewhat difficult to always be joyful this year. However, “giving thanks in all circumstances” was a little easier (as was praying continually”). I wasn’t necessarily thankful for my situation. However, I could find things for which to be thankful in my particular circumstance.

I am thankful that I don’t have an illness like terminal cancer or multiple sclerosis or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

I am thankful for the wonderful friends who made sure I did not go without home-cooked meals, and who did heavy household chores for me each week.

I am thankful for a boss who saw how much I was struggling and strongly encouraged (and supported) me to take more time off from work.

I am thankful for my staff and colleagues who proved that they really don’t need me at all.

I am thankful for the clinicians at the Massachusetts General Hospital who are giving me great care.

I am thankful for family and friends who stayed in touch via postcards, phone calls, emails, and visits. I have a sister in Seattle who kept in touch with me every week. She sent postcards with thoughtful topics or words that made me laugh. She had an amazing stash of postcards from years ago (ones that had directions to mail with a one cent stamp). I was deeply touched by these postcards. I came to look forward to receiving them every week. This was a simple gesture but it made a real difference to me.

I am thankful for my cats who spent hours providing me with their version of Pet Therapy.

I am deeply touched by the number of people who prayed for me all year, including members of this congregation. I was moved by the number of people praying for me in my families congregations. I didn’t even know these people and yet they were praying for me.

And, I am especially thankful that I have gained insight as to how I might better respond to people who have debilitating illnesses or treatment. Before my illness, I was uncomfortable talking with people who had devastating illnesses. I just didn’t know what to say. This past year has taught me that how to comfort people in their time of need.

So, you see, being thankful in a circumstance is possible. I know that God has touched my life through the people He has placed around me. This became more clear to me when my niece and her fiancé asked me to participate in their wedding this past fall. I was asked to read from 1 Corinthians 13: 1-13. “Love is patient; love is kind… love never fails”. I am profoundly grateful for the love my friends and family showed me this year. It is that love that sustained me in the many difficult hours. It is this love that did not fail.

In summary, I believe that our deepest fellowship with God comes in the midst of our suffering… if we let it. Life can be difficult. Life can be a series of problems to be solved. Yes, living through and solving these problems can be a painful process, but it is this process that gives our life meaning. But once we truly believe that life can be difficult, life is difficult no longer. The take-home message for today is that we all need to continue to seek God’s guidance in our lives, to learn from what God shares with us, and to tell others of our experiences. And isn’t this the lesson we learned from the Shepherds 2000 years ago? I wish each of you a blessed Christmas, and a year full of grace and peace… one in which you are comforted in the knowledge that you are completely centered in God’s will for your life.

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