Q

The first birth announcement on record about Jesus went to shepherds working the night shift, “keeping an eye on their sheep” (Luke 2:8). If God has a flair for the dramatic and a taste for metaphor, what do you think the value was in an angelic announcement like this to shepherds whose status on the social ladder was lower than dirt?

A

If God played poker, he saw their status lower than dirt and he raised them higher than the sky. Getting a message from an angel would have put them in the company of Israel’s most respected spiritual leaders. An­gels came to Abraham, father of the Jewish people (Genesis 21:17; 22:11). David, too, Israel’s best-loved king (2 Samuel 24:17). The angel Gabriel visited the prophet Daniel (Daniel 8:17).

Reprinted from Leader’s Guide & Atlas for Luke

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