When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the
shepherds said to one another, 'Let us go now to Bethlehem and
see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made
known to us.' -- Luke 2:15
Let's go! Now! When angels came to some shepherds with a
brilliant message one night long ago, the shepherds had a
brilliant idea. Let's go! Let's see what God is doing!
The unknown dangers of the night did not hold them back. Perhaps
they knew that some of God's best work is done under the cover of
darkness -- the creation of all things, wrestling with Jacob,
Israel's escape from slavery.
Or maybe they didn't. Maybe all they needed was the announcement
of what God was up to this time. This time God would be
conducting a rescue like none before -- saving the whole world,
bringing peace and goodwill. Once again it's an undercover
operation -- God hidden deep in the flesh and working "under the
sign of opposites" (as Martin Luther called it). Arriving as a
baby in diapers, God's Son recruited tax collectors and
fishermen, social misfits and despised sinners in a rescue
mission that culminated in the hidden power of the cross.
What if the shepherds had yawned, "That's interesting, some other
time," and remained sitting in the night, in the dirt, in the
comfort of predictable hardships and familiar enemies? Would
promised joy have found them anyway?
Let's not test that speculation with our lives. Let's go!
Let's see what God is doing!
The Rev. Mark S. Hanson
Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org