Luke 2:12-15, “And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”
Though there was just one angel who declared this good news to the shepherds, after the good news is declared, the angel is joined by a multitude of angels, and they proclaim together these awesome words of praise! There are only three times when angels together praise the name of God in chorus like this: Isaiah 6, Luke 2, and in the book of Revelation. Because the instances in Isaiah 6 and in Revelation are visions given to individual people (Isaiah and John), then this is the only instance when an angelic host breaks into human history to proclaim the name of God. The only time that happens is right here at the birth of Jesus. That means this is a big deal! Along with the death and resurrection of Jesus, the birth of Jesus is the single most important moment in the history of the world. And that is no exaggeration: all of history up to this point has been pointing to this moment, and all events after will look back on that event. Think of how our calendars work now. Even time itself is measured around the life of Jesus. This is 2021 AD, Addo Domini, in the year of our Lord.
Also notice that the shepherds talk amongst themselves and decide to go to Bethlehem and see the Lord! They are shepherds, watching their flocks by night, they had an important job to do, and they left that job to go see Jesus. We don’t know anything about what they might have incurred as a result, but they left those flocks, and it didn’t matter to them if they lost their jobs as a result. When an angel says the Savior has been born, you go! Are you willing, too, to give him all you have, that you might sit at his feet and worship him?
Hymn for Reflection: The First Noel. Here’s a link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJfjZeiRi3g