Nougat 26

For many of us, the festivities are over and we’re back to our regular routines. What hasn’t ended, I hope, is our routine of spending time in God’s presence and sharing our experience with others.

Life as a shepherd is about routine, especially at night. The night watches were important if one wished to ‘keep’ one’s flock. Imagine their reaction when the appearance of an apparition thoroughly disrupted the routine. It proved to be an angel eventually, but I’m sure that their initial thoughts were not about angels and emperors. They thought it was a ghost.

So what if we’re overthinking the importance of the signs – could the sign be proof, not of the Good News, but that their encounter was with an angel and not demons or ghosts? In that case, the symbolism of the signs was for Luke’s readers. What do you think? Consider Today’s Holy Nougat.

Luke 2:8, 10-12, 15, 20 AMP

[8] In the same region, there were shepherds staying out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.

[10] But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people.

[11] For this day in the city of David, there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (the Messiah). [Micah 5:2]

[12] And this will be a sign for you [by which you will recognize Him]: you will find a Baby wrapped in [swaddling] cloths and lying in a manger.” [1 Samuel 2:34; 2 Kings 19:29; Is 7:14]

[15] When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying one to another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem, and see this [wonderful] thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.”

[20] The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as it had been told them.

Good News … With Proof 4

Siblings,

They heard, they pondered, and they saw for themselves all they needed to know about the Saviour. To do so demanded a disruption of their routine long before proof was found. Those shepherds ran the risk of losing stock, and perhaps even their jobs, by venturing out to confirm what they had heard. It paid off, but they first had to count the cost.

Self-Check

Do we count the cost before making decisions? What does our process look like?

Digging Deeper

Siblings, even the angel’s appearance to the shepherds is a sign of Good News for us. Because it assures us that God can speak to any one of us, it then places the ball in our court. We have to determine whether we are willing to hear, ponder, and then respond to God.

God’s mission and messages don’t always happen to our convenience – God doesn’t operate like that. However,

God invites us into relationship and partnership when we hear from God or God’s messenger. Then we must count the cost.

And yes, our sign has proof.

Remember that Luke wasn’t entirely an eyewitness to Y’shua’s birth. Luke 1 states that he did his research, and what we’ve received as the Third Gospel is the [corroborated] proof of that research. What he confirmed as truth is what he shared with the God lover. While we can’t literally go back to first-century Bethlehem, we can ponder what we’ve read.

Their glorifying God was not necessarily silent. And even if they kept silent in public, they must have shared with their family … that’s how Luke found that information to share. How are we responding to what we’ve heard/ read? We need to do our part.

That’s when our faithfulness becomes critical. Because we have to decide whether sharing is worth our … (let’s fill in our personal risk factor). I say ‘definitely’.

Point to Ponder

Do we trust God enough to do God’s will – despite the sacrifice?

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May all we seek be found in Christ