A story shared is glory revealed

Luke 2:8-20

⁸ That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. ⁹ Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, ¹⁰ but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. ¹¹ The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! ¹² And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”

¹³ Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,

¹⁴ “Glory to God in highest heaven,

and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

¹⁵ When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

¹⁶ They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. ¹⁷ After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. ¹⁸ All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, ¹⁹ but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. ²⁰ The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.

The Christmas story is quite well known, but I love revisiting it each year to see what gets my attention afresh. This time, verses 17-19 have grabbed me and revealed more of what God wants to do in the life of a broader community transformed by Jesus.

After an epic encounter of God’s glory and goodness, the Shepherds visit Jesus AND share what they’ve encountered. If the story was just a spectacle in the sky to flex God’s Omnipotence, you could omit v 17-19, and the awe and wonder of God would still be meaningfully shown. But these verses are included, and arguably, sharing the story with others extends the glory of God’s character into the world around them. 

Think about it: if the shepherds had just popped in, seen the baby, and popped out without mentioning the angelic encounter, their personal faith would have grown, but those around them, including Mary and Joseph, wouldn’t have. Vs 19 shows how profound of an impact it had on Mary, could you imagine if she missed out on that! Without the Shepheard testimony about the angels, the community would have missed out, and something extraordinary God did! (And it likely wouldn’t be in the Bible) 

I haven’t been bowled over by the glory of a sky full of angels (though I’d like the experience); however, God has moved powerfully in my life, and He is always going before me. My testimony may not be about the infant messiah, but it is still about how great God is and his never-failing love, his kindness and his gift of Jesus in my life. It is only appropriate to testify quickly and often. 

Written by Nick Molteno