A Strange Story

I want to tell you about 2 stories that seem strange, but are absolutely, 100% true. Both stories had numerous eyewitness accounts and have been documented numerous times. The first that I want to tell you about happened on Christmas Eve in 1914 during World War I. Watch this video.

This story seems too good to be true, but it did happen. About 100,000 soldiers participated in an impromptu truce that Christmas. Most of these truces ended later on Christmas day, but some continued until the New Year. Not all the stories from that night are as heartwarming. In a couple areas while soldiers on both sides attempted to engage each other in truce they were shot and killed by the opposing sides.

But for the most part, on Christmas Eve 1914, thousands of soldiers set aside their weapons and the war so that they could take photos, play soccer, sing songs, and eat together.

Most accounts suggest the truce began with carol singing from the trenches on Christmas Eve. Pvt. Albert Moren of the Second Queens Regiment wrote, “First the Germans would sing one of their carols and then we would sing one of ours, until when we started up ‘O Come, All Ye Faithful’ the Germans immediately joined in singing the same hymn to the Latin words Adeste Fideles. And I thought, well, this is really a most extraordinary thing ­– two nations both singing the same carol in the middle of a war.”

The next morning, in some places, German soldiers emerged from their trenches, calling out “Merry Christmas” in English. Allied soldiers came out warily to greet them. In others, Germans held up signs reading “You no shoot, we no shoot.” Over the course of the day, troops exchanged gifts of cigarettes, food, buttons and hats. The Christmas truce also allowed both sides to finally bury their dead comrades, whose bodies had lain for weeks on “no man’s land,” the ground between opposing trenches. – Silent Night: The Story of the World War I Christmas Truce of 1914, TIME, December 24, 2014

As incredible as the story of Christmas Eve 1914 may be, it only took place because of an event that happened more than 2000 years ago. An event so spectacular that the angels called for peace on earth. This strange story comes from Luke 2.

In the same region, shepherds were staying out in the fields and keeping watch at night over their flock. 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, “Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: Today a Savior, who is Messiah the Lord, was born for you in the city of David. This will be the sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in cloth and lying in a feeding trough.” Luke 2:8-12

Strange Characters

To understand why I call the birth of Jesus a strange event we only need to start with the main characters in this part of the story. The night that the Messiah finally came; the night that God came to earth in human flesh, God Incarnate, in the form of a baby; the night that the King of kings was born; that very night, the first people to be told about this miracle were the shepherds.

Typically, when a king was born, you would announce it to the wealthy members of the royal court first. Then you might have a herald go throughout the region announcing this in the cities and towns. But that is not what happened the night that Jesus was born. The angels went first to a group of shepherds that were tending their flock.

Shepherds were as blue collar as you can get. They were often dirty and smelled bad. They slept outside, on the ground, with sheep. Shepherds had to watch the sheep 24 hours a day because sheep are some of the most helpless animals alive. They have no natural defense. And every predator enjoyed fresh lamb chops. That is why they had to build sheepfolds, a pen where they would place the sheep at night, and then some of the shepherds would keep watch at night to prevent any harm coming to the sheep.

It is strange that shepherds would be the first to be told, but then the prophets did say that Jesus would be a spotless lamb that would be sacrificed for our sins. Jesus is also called the Good Shepherd. God has called those that believe in Him as His sheep. Pastors are called shepherds of the church. It may seem strange, but it does seem to be fitting that shepherds would be the first to be told about the birth of the Lamb of God.

Strange Location

The second strange thing about this story is that the shepherds were told they would find the Messiah lying in a feeding trough. There is a lot of controversy about what a feeding trough looked like exactly. Most people have used the traditional wooden manger to represent a feeding trough. Some historians and theologians are trying to tell us that a manger would have been made of stone because it was used to feed and water animals. Logic would tell us that both would have been used because stone is not easily transported and not all animals, such as sheep, would be feed in the same location. We don’t know for certain what His bed looked like, but I think that a wooden manger [show photo] would be more fitting for the Lamb of God.

Suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to people He favors!

When the angels had left them and returned to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go straight to Bethlehem and see what has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”

They hurried off and found both Mary and Joseph, and the baby who was lying in the feeding trough. After seeing them, they reported the message they were told about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary was treasuring up all these things in her heart and meditating on them. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had seen and heard, just as they had been told. (Luke 2:13-20)

Strange Actions

The final strange aspect of this story that I want us to see is that the shepherds left their post in the middle of the night to go find Jesus. How did they keep their sheep safe? I guess it’s possible that they all agreed that one poor junior shepherd would remain behind to keep an eye on the sheep. Perhaps they woke all the sheep and took them with them into town so they could all go see Jesus. We don’t know, because the Bible doesn’t tell us.

It appears that they abandoned their watch because something much more important was taking place. It seems that they forsook all to find Jesus. After they found Jesus, they did something even more amazing…they told everyone they could about the message from God and about the newborn Messiah. These shepherds were the first to proclaim the Good News about the birth of Jesus to others. That is the job that God has given to the shepherds of His church. It is the job that God has given to each of us. To tell others about Jesus.

After the shepherds told others about Jesus, it says that they “returned glorifying and praising God for all they had seen and heard.” There is nothing strange about this. In fact, this is the most normal part of this story because it is the natural result of an encounter with God. Anytime we see God at work, anytime we hear about the work of God, we should be driven with a desire to want to praise God.

That is why we gather each Sunday to worship God. As followers of Jesus, as believers, as Christians, we should have a desire to want to praise God for all that He has done. If you don’t have that desire you need to double check your spiritual condition. The Good News about God sending His Son to die for us so that we could have forgiveness of our sins and eternal life, should be a story that compels us to worship God. It should lead us to worship with abandon.

The strangest thing about this story is that it isn’t really strange at all. God told shepherds that the Good Shepherd had come to bring salvation to the world. The shepherds were humble men that recognized God’s miraculous power and glory. If God had told kings that the King of kings had been born, they would have taken actions to kill him. King Herod tried to do this after learning about Jesus from the wise men. If God had told the priests that a new High Priest had been born, they would have reacted with jealousy and tried to have him killed. The Pharisees and Sadducees did exactly this when they petitioned Pontius Pilate to have Jesus crucified. The kings and priests did not want to give up their power and control to submit to Jesus.

What about us? Are we willing to submit to Jesus as the Good Shepherd, the King of kings, the great High Priest?