I particularly love the imagery of the heavenly choir appearing to a bunch of shepherds in the outlying fields on the night of Jesus’ birth. Only Luke records the event. He initially describes a single angel appearing to the shepherds, which terrifies them:
“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.” (Luke 2:9)
The angel then makes this announcement:
“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” (Luke 2:10-12)
It is remarkable that the only angelic announcement on the night of Jesus’ birth was made to a bunch of shepherds. And not just any shepherds, but shepherds who had the night watch. In Israel at that time, wealthy owners of flocks of sheep would employ men to guard the sheep from predators during the night while they, the owners, slept comfortably in their warm beds with full bellies. The night watch was a miserable, lowly paid job, only attracting people from among the lowest ranks of society. Even humble fishermen were regarded more highly than night watch shepherds. But it is to these lowly members of society that God makes his only announcement of the night. He does not send angels to the princes of Israel. He does not inform the high-born and the influential of the birth of the King of Kings into our world. The privileged and powerful are left undisturbed and sleeping blissfully unaware in their beds. Instead, God makes a beeline for the people at the very bottom of the social ladder. And he tells them that “a Saviour has been born to you” – to you, the rejects of society, to the people who have been told all their lives that they are not favoured or blessed by God as are their rulers.
But then, something even more extraordinary takes place. As if this is not enough, after the initial angel’s announcement, the heavenly choir then turns up and performs for them!
“Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and singing, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests’.” (Luke 2:13-14)
How many angels did this involve? How many heavenly beings comprised this “great company of the heavenly host”? We are not told, but Revelation 5:11 later depicts “ten thousand times ten thousand angels” surrounding the throne in heaven and worshipping God. That’s one hundred million angels. Even if only a small percentage of these angels turned up for this birthday performance, we are probably talking about thousands or even hundreds of thousands of angels. What a choral performance it must have been! The most extraordinary musical concert in human history! And this whole event was staged specifically and only for a bunch of lowly night-watch shepherds.
I can imagine these poor shepherds huddled around their campfire, shivering in the cold and trying to stay warm after having finished a meagre meal, looking longingly at the lights of Bethlehem in the distance where those who were more privileged were ensconced in the warmth of their homes. Suddenly, as they sat shivering and contemplating the long night’s watch that lay ahead of them, the field around them blazed with glorious light from above as thousands of angels filled the sky. With the barest of explanations the heavenly choir then burst into glorious song, thousands of voices singing in unimaginable perfection and harmony, in a choral recital that was unprecedented and unrivalled in all of human history.
How did these humble, lowly shepherds manage to acquire tickets to such a grand performance – a performance that was surely worthy of royalty? What made them worthy of such a privilege? The answer is nothing. And that’s the whole point. They did not deserve a seat at this concert. Their presence at this performance was unmerited, undeserved and, from their perspective, totally unexpected. They would never have dared to dream that they might be the recipients of such a heavenly recital.
This is a beautiful picture of the gospel. God’s gracious favour comes to people who are unlovely and undeserving. It is given freely to people who do not merit it but whose hearts are humble, and it bypasses the self-righteous who are conceited and full of pride:
“God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6)
God’s grace treats the arrogant pretentions of the world with disdain and completely disregards society’s definitions of greatness:
“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.” (1 Corinthians 9:27-29)
These are themes that will be developed by the New Testament writers in the decades after this extraordinary event. But on this night, the night of our Saviour’s birth, this extraordinary aspect of the gospel is encapsulated in a most unexpected and glorious choral performance given to a group of men who were, indeed, among the most “lowly things of this world and the despised things”. It is to them, and to them alone, that the announcement of Jesus’ birth is given amid a spectacular heavenly musical performance.
And not only this, but these lowly shepherds are subsequently the only ones who are specifically invited to visit the baby Jesus on the night of his birth. No kings or queens are invited. No dignitaries or high officials are on the guest list. Just some lowly, dirty shepherds, smelling of sheep and woodsmoke, fresh from the fields. If ever there was an understated event management it is this one! Yet this is precisely how God intended it to be. It was precisely how it needed to be. Because the kingdom of Christ is not like the kingdoms of this world, and its values are radically different. For “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15) and his gospel is “good news for the poor, freedom for the prisoners and liberation for the oppressed” (Luke 4:18).
It is for people like these humble shepherds that Christ came into the world. Ordinary people like you and me, without privilege or pretention. Yet it is this very lack of pretention and pride that makes them most likely to be able to receive God’s grace. Only a humble heart and a lowly spirit can receive God’s grace as a free gift – the most extraordinary gift lavished upon the most undeserving of people.
And all of this is vividly and wonderfully depicted by the scene of a newborn baby lying in an animal’s feeding trough, enveloped in the love of an unremarkable couple and worshipped by a bunch of lowly night-watch shepherds. Only God could have written a scene like that!