Heritage and Humility
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
Luke 2:8
Abel is the first shepherd we encounter, in Genesis 4:2, though Adam must have taught him how. Abraham, some generations later, continued the legacy of the nomadic shepherding his fathers passed to him. Isaac would be a shepherd, as would Jacob, and all of his sons. Moses and David the two great leaders of the Jacob tribes would be shepherds by life and trade. The LORD himself is as a shepherd to his people.
Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
Isaiah 40:10-11
This shepherd imagery is consistent throughout the scripture to illustrate the relationship of God to His people. Psalm 23 elevates the metaphor to such powerful prose, it is perhaps the most well-known of all psalms. A common comforting lyric stretching across 3,000 years of human history, it continues to balm our battered souls to this day.
And yet, shepherds would persist among the lowest classes of civilized society. Shepherds were not even allowed in the temple. They were considered unclean because of their work with animals, handling and healing their frequent wounds and infections, killing predators, dealing with dead stock, and being a generally stinky and scruffy lot. Sleeping outdoors, maintaining minimal hygiene standards, and handling herd animals was not a recipe for distinction, among the religious class anyway. Philo, a first century Jewish sage residing in neighboring Egypt said shepherds, “are held to be mean and inglorious.” Other writings from the ancient world in nearby regions regarded them as untrustworthy, liars and thieves, and lazy. It’s debatable whether these Bethlehem shepherds were held in such low and scornful esteem, but one thing is certain, they were not regarded highly. These were humble men whether in character or position or both.
It’s a startling irony that those who bear in life the metaphor so engendered by God himself toward His people would be held so ignominiously; That the men counted worthy and chosen to be the first witnesses of the Messiah’s appearing, would not even be allowed in the temple. They would be men of deep and dignified heritage, yet a dishonored and deprecated humility.
If such lowly position would allow us righter glimpses of our Lord; If the view is most accurate from beneath, why should we scramble for higher ground and elevated echelons? If our treasure is in a manger, why do we seek the honored courts of noblemen? If it is humble status which tunes the heart to hear the graces of our Savior, should we not find diminished stations a joy rather than a curse?
If Jesus chose the majority of his own disciples from among the humble working classes, why do we scramble to escape these rankings?
It appears in the gospels, that it is the pedestrian classes of society who see Jesus, experience his presence, and understand Him best. Does your perspective and the perspective of your church(ie. selction of elders and deacons)correspond to this reality?
Why do you think the birth of the messiah was revealed to shepherds first?
