But why shepherds? Why are they the first to hear this life-changing announcement? What do these keepers of sheep have to do with Jesus’ lineage to David, the shepherd boy who became Israel’s greatest king? Why is Jesus himself so often compared to a shepherd, and how do both David and Jesus reveal the heart of God’s message to the world?

These questions lead us into a story that unfolds in Bethlehem—one that spans hundreds of years but shares a common thread of God’s love and care.

The night of David’s anointing (from I Sam 16:1-13)

It was a cold, clear winter’s night in the rural town of Bethlehem.  The shepherds were up watching over their flocks in fields near the town, which was not always the case.  This time of year, came with a lot of rain that created fresh new grass growing on the fields in that region – plenty to feed the flocks of sheep without traveling too far away.  The rest of the year, the landscape was its normal desert-like condition, and the shepherds had to lead sheep farther and farther into the wilderness to find food and water for them, which was a constant challenge.

The shepherds were dedicated to their task of watching the sheep, who were pretty much helpless on their own. They had to stay with them, day in and day out and stay up at night to protect them from predators, often putting their own lives on the line to keep them safe.  Shepherds even had to work at protecting the sheep from themselves, for they were prone to wander, they needed the shepherd to find their food and water for them, to take care of them when they were sick, to look for them when they got lost or stuck in a difficult terrain. It was a difficult, dirty, often cold and sleepless job, watching over sheep, but that’s what the shepherds were there to do.

Since it was winter time with the new growth of grass, it was much easier to find a particular shepherd since they were all relatively nearby in the fields around town.  On this special, night, one shepherd was being called back home – his name was David – a young boy whose hometown was Bethlehem and who had been chosen by God to be King.

The prophet Samuel had gone to the house of David’s father, Jesse, because God told Samuel that one of Jesse’s sons was his chosen one to be the next King of Israel.  God wanted Samuel to go and anoint the one whom God had chosen – this was the custom in naming a king – anointing the head with oil to set that person apart.  Samuel carefully assessed each of Jesse’s sons, seeking to discern whom God had chosen as king.  He looked at their height and strength, and right away picked the one who looked the strongest and surest, but it was not he.  And God said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature…for God sees not as humans see, for humans look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (I Sam 16:7)

7 sons in all passed before Samuel that day – none of them were it.  Finally, as the day grew into evening, Jesse admitted to having one more son, the youngest and certainly not the strongest, only able to do the dirty, unforgiving work of a field shepherd. Jesse’s son David was this kind of shepherd, and he was the one God had chosen to be king.  Once Samuel saw him, he knew, and he anointed him then and there – setting him apart for God’s work in the kingdom.  In this unexpected visit in a completely unexpected way, God’s next king was chosen, David was called the messiah, which literally meant “one who is anointed” and because he was God’s choice, David was also known as God’s son.  And so were all the kings of Israel who followed in his line.

The choice of a boy from a tiny rural village who was too young and too inexperienced to do anything but tend sheep to be God’s king was surprising and unsettling.  God was putting this kid in charge of his whole kingdom, replacing the former king who was strong and powerful, who had wealth and life’s experience – a warrior who knew how to go to battle.  God turned everything upside down that night in Bethlehem by choosing a new kind of King for a new kind of kingdom – where sincerity of heart mattered more than strength of body, where ruling in the power of God’s spirit was more important than ruling from the power of wealth or fear.

In this surprising choice of a shepherd from Bethlehem, God was announcing to his people that his king needed to rule like a shepherd cares for his sheep.  He had to be willing to do everything possible to make sure they had what they needed, to live with them day in and day out, to care for them when they were ill, to protect them from harm, to never leave their side even to point of putting his own life on the line for them.  This is how God wanted to rule over his kingdom on earth and who better for this kind of king than a shepherd from the fields.

Centuries later, on another cold, clear winter’s night in Bethlehem—the town forever linked with David—God would once again make a surprising and transformative choice of a king. This time, He came to earth himself in human flesh in the most vulnerable state of a newborn baby: a baby who would be king – and not just for Israel, but for the whole world – clearly too young and inexperienced to be ruler of anything and yet God’s choice to not only rule, but change the world.

And who better to come and witness this unexpected newborn king, who better to recognize the true nature of God in this surprisingly humble birth, then the shepherds in the fields?  For it was on a night like this, in the same small country town so long ago, that God’s king was chosen from among them. No wonder the angels came to them first.

It wasn’t because they were the nearest people around when Jesus was born and it certainly wasn’t random – the angels knew that the first people who would be able to see and understand God’s plan in the manger birth, would be the shepherds.  This baby was not only for them but was one of them.  A baby who was meant to be king and shepherd – God’s physical presence on the earth to show the kind of love God truly has for all of God’s people.

The kind of love that will stay up nights and keep watch, the kind of love that sticks with you day in and day out, that never leaves your side no matter how cold it is or how hard things get. The kind of love that devotes all its time to helping you find what you need for the nourishment of body and soul, that comes and looks for you when you’re lost and uses all its strength to help rescue you from rough terrain.  The kind of love that takes care of you when you are sick or sad or lonely, that protects you from harm even to the point of giving up its own life for your sake.

It is a love that cares for us like a shepherd watching over his sheep in the fields – it is not easy, it is not glamorous, it is not always clean or happy or even rewarding  – but it is true and eternal and it is for all people everywhere.  The shepherds understood it as soon as they saw the newborn baby, lying in a manger, surrounded by animals on a cold winter’s night – where else could the true love of God be found but in the humblest of places on a cold night?

God first chose a shepherd boy because God looks not at the outward appearance but at the heart.  God ultimately chose a baby in the region of shepherds so that God could rule from God’s own heart.

On this final Sunday of Advent, with Christmas just two days away, how might we prepare our hearts to receive the love of a shepherd-king who comes to rule not with power, but with grace and compassion?

In the name of the One whose Advent is almost here.  Amen.