Jesus Magnified the Place of the Marginalized (Saturday, Week 2 of Advent 2011)

What Did Jesus Do?

All who heard it were amazed by what the shepherds told them
concerning the newborn Christ child.
Luke 2:18

Quite a few years ago a Wall Street firm that liked to think of itself as sagacious tried to convince the rest of us of its wisdom by telling us that, when “When E.F. Hutton speaks, people listen.” I have not interviewed any of Hutton’s clients, but I cannot but wonder if some of them might be wishing they hadn’t listened, given the current state of their portfolios. The intent of Hutton’s advertising was to get the public to believe that Hutton’s financial advice was reliable and sound, worth paying attention to. Hutton was conservative and mainstream, holding a fairly central place in the world of financial advising and investment counseling. So it really wasn’t difficult for them to attract an audience. If we were to go back to First Century Palestine, and change the topic from financial advice to spiritual, we might imagine the Pharisees as the E. F. Huttons of the day. I mean, if someone, God for instance, wanted to speak and get people to listen, the Pharisees would have been the obvious choice. But God didn’t see it that way at all, and instead kicked off Christian evangelism, which is now in its third millennium, in a totally unexpected way. Rather than utilize the prominent and powerful Pharisees, Jesus magnified the place of the marginalized by employing lowly shepherds to first share the good news of his birth. And the people who heard it were amazed. (Luke 2:18)

Think about it. Shepherds were just about as low as you could go on the socio-economic ladder of ancient Israel. Shepherds were at best one small step above beggars. And, considering that shepherds had a reputation for being less than honest and trustworthy, one might have put more stock in what a beggar had to say. Shepherds were stuck out in their pastures with their flocks, beyond the boundaries of villages and towns, pretty much out of sight, and all but out of mind. Marginalized. What was God thinking? Who would listen, much less give credence to, anything a shepherd had to say? But shepherds were the ones God chose to first receive, and immediately begin to spread, the news of the Savior’s birth. And, almost incredibly, people listened, and were amazed at what the shepherds said.

Oh, no doubt there were plenty who ignored the shepherds, as, no doubt, the Father knew there would be. But we know that some listened to, and believed, the words of the shepherds, and in turn took up and spread the word. In fact, much the same amazing, unbelievable good news about the Savior has been reported and repeated for two thousand years now. Why, there are still some who will celebrate the good news of that birth, rather than all the Black Friday bargains and other stuff under the tree, when Christmas comes. And, a few will even take up the shepherd’s role, and make known the saying that has been told them concerning this child. (Luke 2:17)



Each of us still have the opportunity to decide what we are going to do with what we’ve heard, if not from the first shepherds, than from those “shepherds” who have shared the good news with us. Will we believe it? Will we share it ? Will we celebrate it this Christmas, glorifying and praising God, as the shepherds did? One thing I believe is certain for those who follow the example of the evangelist-shepherds, Jesus will magnify our place, guaranteeing that when we speak about Him, there will always be people who will listen.

S.D.G.

Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4