As Caleb sat comfortable in his chair after the evening meal, his granddaughter, Naomi, suddenly approached him, hugging him. “Saba(Hebrew for grandfather), thank you for telling us all about the birth of Jesus.” As Caleb heard her words, he pulled her into his arms. “My child, I have loved telling you about our Lord, but do you think we are done? I have so much left to still tell you about the night He was born!”
Pulling her into his lap, he continued to explain to her. And as he started, the others soon began to gather. “Naomi, my child, guess who else was still up that night?” Naomi, looked at her grandfather puzzled. “Who Saba?” “Shepherds!, And they were tending their flocks in the fields right outside of Bethlehem(Luke 2:8). See, Bethlehem was the place where the sheep were raised that were used in the Temple. And the shepherds in those fields outside of Bethlehem were unlike any other shepherds, as the flocks they kept were not just any ordinary flock. In the fields outside of Bethlehem stood Migdal Eder, the Tower of the Flocks. As it was here that the lambs were born and raised that were destined for the Temple. Where every first born male lamb was set aside, checked to see if it had blemishes, and raised to be sent to Jerusalem as a holy sacrifice. The shepherds in the field that night would have raised these sheep , then taken these sheep to the same place where Abraham had once offered his son to the Lord(Genesis 22). They would watch as the sheep they raised and brought to the Temple, offered their blood so atonement might be given.”
Caleb looked at his family, and he held his grandchild. “An angel appeared to these shepherds, on that night. And as the glory of the Lord radiated all around them, the shepherds became afraid.” On hearing these words, Caleb’s son-in-law, Nathan, asked a question. “Abba, of all people, why would the Lord send an angel that night to shepherds?”
On hearing Nathan’s question, Caleb paused for a moment before he answered. “To the human eye, shepherds might have been the most unlikely of people for the Lord to send an angel to that night. They were at the bottom of the social ladder. They were uneducated, and most saw them as unskilled. The Jewish elite looked down on them and accused them of being unsavory characters, dishonest and unreliable, so much so they were not counted as a witness you could have in court. Because sheep had to be cared for seven days a week, they were despised by the Sanhedrin, and because they were unable to observe all the ceremonial laws, they were considered by all the religious leaders to be unclean.”
But saying these words, Caleb smiled as he continued. “But if we think about it, who better than shepherds for the Lord to send the angels to that night! And as we go, I promise I will tell you why!” Caleb then continued. “The angel spoke again to the shepherds that night, telling them that he had news he was sharing with them that would bring joy the world over. As that night in Bethlehem, in the city of David, the Savior had been born. And the angel told them that they would find this Child wrapped in cloth and lying in a manger.(Luke 2:10-12).”
Looking again into the eyes of his son, Nathan, Caleb again smiled. “You see my son, it was by no mistake that the Lord sent the angel to the shepherds that night! Who better to tell that the firstborn Lamb of God had been born?(Revelation 13:8). A Lamb, who would one day make the jobs of the shepherds necessary no more, as the Perfect Lamb would one day shed His blood to atone for all sin. A Lamb, that would bring to life the words they had so often heard from Jeremiah, proclaiming. ‘I will also raise up shepherds over them and they will tend them; and they will not be afraid any longer, nor be terrified, nor will any be missing, declares the Lord. Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land.’(Jeremiah 23:4-5). Shepherds, who the angel would send to Bethlehem, who would best know a Perfect Lamb when they saw one.”
Caleb then said, “Suddenly, the shepherds looked up to the sky and they saw a great multitude of angels singing praise to the Lord(Luke 2;13-14). I remember asking Luke about this, and he never told me how many angels the shepherds saw that night. But I cannot imagine how every angel in Heaven was not filling that night sky. They looked down that night as their Creator came to this world to bring mankind hope. And just as they had praised the Lord at the Creation(Job 38:7), they now praised Him at the beginning of this new creation. And as the shepherds looked into the sky, they heard the angels give all glory to God, and the angels announced that peace had come to men. The angels knew that when we seek to glorify Him, true peace will come to our hearts. They knew that when the Lord gains glory, the earth receives peace(John 14:27).”
As Caleb looked in the faces of his family, realizing they were absorbing all he had just said, he got back to the story of the shepherds. “As the angels exited just as quickly as they had arrived, the shepherds rushed out of the fields that surrounded Bethlehem, and into the town to find the place where the Child had just been born(Matthew 2:15-16). Without a second of hesitation, they found the Child exactly where the angels told Him he would be. And in doing this, these shepherds did the unthinkable. They left their sheep to find the Lamb(Matthew 18:12). Who best to first see the Perfect Lamb of God that night than the ones who knew best what an unblemished lamb looked like, and who would return to caring for the sheep!”
Caleb gained his composure again as he continued to speak. “As the shepherds made their way to the Child that night, they told everyone who would listen about all they had witnessed in the fields(Luke 2:17-20). And that night, what many thought was the most unworthy of witnesses, gave the most valued of all testimony. And all who heard, marveled at what they were hearing. But sadly, although they were fascinated, they did not respond, as Luke never told me about how the place where Jesus was born was flooded by people that night. The simple truth is, they knew the promises that the Word of God had given them, but they failed to recognize those very promises as they came to life right in front of them. But as most just wondered, and the shepherds glorified the Lord as they made their way back to their flocks, Mary took their words to heart. As she knew the Lamb she held that night, would one day be the Lamb whose blood would spill as it covered this whole world(1 John 2:2).”
As Caleb held his granddaughter tight in his arms, silence came over him from all he had just told. And as if cutting through that silence, Caleb’s son, Asher, began to speak “Abba, it all makes sense to me now, why Jesus told so many parables about sheep and shepherds. He was reminding everyone that He was that Lamb that the shepherds in Bethlehem witnessed and confirmed as perfect and unblemished that night.” As Caleb heard the words, the Holy Spirit so overcame him, that all he could do was nod in agreement. And as darkness began to cover their house, he knew he could not wait for the next night to tell them all more about the Light that came into the world that night.
Tomorrow, as Caleb gathers with his family again, I pray your family will gather around also.
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