Skip to main content
That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep.
Suddenly,

an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord's glory surrounded them. 

They were terrified, 

but the angel reassured them. 
"Don't be afraid!" he said.
"I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.
The Savior - yes, the Messiah, the Lord - has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!

And you will recognize him by this sign: 

You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger."
Luke 2:8-12 NLT
More angels, terrified people, & signs.
Not sure why God sent angels to see a handful of shepherds and not wake the whole town!
But Luke is sharing with us all these strands, Zechariah the Priest, Joseph of King David's line, shepherds guarding their sheep just like David did, the wise arriving with gifts for a king, Angels giving an unmissable message that the person their people were waiting for, the person who was going to rescue them all, had been born.
I wonder if the shepherds got an inkling that what God was rescuing them from was not quite what they expected as the Angel said "the sign is a baby, in a feeding trough, wrapped in old cloth"
Jesus didn't come to free them from the Roman Empire, but the Empire of sin & death, the Empire of disconnection with ourselves, with others, with creation, and with God.
Our God, who IS Love, doesn't want to be without us.
#upsidedownkingdom
#therescuemissionstarts
#youareBeloved

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation,  for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see - such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. Colossians 1:15-16 NLT OK so this is an English translation of a letter Paul wrote to a church 2,000 years ago, but does it feel like Paul is wrestling with words and ideas to try and capture all of who Jesus is, of who God is, of how does it work that the walking around Jesus was also there before the beginning of the beginning of everything we can see and touch and know. Not only that but Jesus was somehow the agent of everything that has been made in the physical, social, and spiritual.  Jesus is at the centre of it all.  Walking around Jesus. Cooking fish for breakfast Jesus. Heart aching as he ...
Post a Comment
Read more
...four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn't bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus... Mark 2:3-4 NLT Great account of inventiveness and determination to get their friend to see Jesus. Love this. Do you wonder about the back story? Are these the same 4 people who bring this man food? Take him to the toilet every day. Clean him up. Does he live with one of them? Are they family? Are there whole families or groups of people in the background who have supported and cared for this man? A group of children who grew up seeing their parents love in action? Probably. Healing Help Hope These things are found in community. These 4 guys are the heroes here. The upfront people. One day it will be interesting to see who the background heroes are. #loveinaction #community #inthistogether #walkingeachotherhome #gospelofmark
Post a Comment
Read more
As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside privately and told them what was going to happen to him.  "Listen," he said,  "we're going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law.  They will sentence him to die. Then they will hand him over to the Romans to be mocked,  flogged with a whip,  and crucified.  But on the third day he will be raised from the dead." Matthew 20:17-20 NLT Jesus wanted his team, those closest to him, to know what was going to happen next.  It seems he wanted them to be prepared.  To be able to hold the hope of what's at the end as they go through the watching him be betrayed, sentenced, mocked, abused, and killed.  I wonder if Jesus needed to tell them, to let those he knew best what was ahead because he needed them with him. Jesus wanted community in the most difficult of times. It's no wonder that we do too.  We're in...
Post a Comment
Read more