12 Days Before Christmas Series: 5 – 12/17/2025

Four minute read time

Read: Luke 2:8-21

If you’ve ever watched “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” you’ll remember Linus’s iconic moment on stage, reciting the story of the shepherds from Luke’s gospel.

“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, 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, good will toward men.” Luke 2:8-12 KJV

It’s been 60 years since this annual must-see-tv event began. That heartfelt scene has become a beloved Christmas tradition, weaving the humble shepherds into our collective memory—whether we’re deeply religious or just love a good holiday classic.

The question that scene provokes is, “Of all the people in the world, why did God pick shepherds to receive the news first? Why did they get to tell the news first?”

It might be to remind those hearing this good news that there was another shepherd who tended sheep in the fields near Bethlehem (clue: which is the City of David).

Long before that silent night in Bethlehem, another shepherd boy tended flocks in the very same fields—David, the future king. As a young boy guarding sheep, David faced lions and bears, even rescuing lambs from their jaws. (1 Samuel 17:34-37)

Daivd’s courage in the pasture prepared him for greater battles ahead, like facing the daunting Philistine giant. David’s humble beginnings paved the way for his role as Israel’s shepherd king, showing us that leadership often starts in places of quiet responsibility.

The bible frequently refers to political and spiritual leaders as shepherds and to the people they oversee as sheep (Psalm 77:20; Psalm 78:70-72; Isaiah 44:28; 2 Samuel 5:2; 1 Kings 22:17), But referring to people as sheep isn’t very flattering to the people. One writer says that sheep are “singularly unintelligent, prone to wandering and unable to find their way to a sheepfold even when it is within sight.”^[1] The point is that sheep NEED a shepherd.

If you read yesterday’s blog you may find this interesting. When Moses was at the end of his life, he prayed for God to appoint a man who would take his leadership role, “that the congregation of the Lord may not be as sheep that have no shepherd.” So, God appointed Joshua to shepherd his people.

In the same way, when Jesus “saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36) The very next thing Jesus did was send his disciples “to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ (Matthew 10:6-7)

Jesus identified his disciples as shepherds. He also claimed that he was the Good Shepherd (John 10:7-18) and the Good Shepherd is the one that lays down his life for the sheep. Jesus knew that he would soon give his life for the sheep. But that was more than thirty years after his birth, thirty years after the field outside of Bethlehem lit up with the presence of angels. That’s a story for another day.

The story for today, the story that Linus recounted, is the story of simple men and women doing a simple task – taking care of stupid sheep that couldn’t care for themselves. And in the midst of their sometimes-thankless duties, they received an opportunity of a lifetime – to be the first witnesses to the birth of the Good Shepherd who would one day give his life that we might live.

If you’d like to read the whole Christmas story as it unfolded more than 2,000 years ago, check Saturday’s blog for a list of scriptures. If you have questions, feel free to reach out—I’ll do my best to answer.

Return tomorrow and we’ll talk about the other part of this story – the part that many Christmas hymns get wrong: The Heavenly Armies Didn’t Sing

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^[1] Leland Ryken et al., in Dictionary of Biblical Imagery (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000), 782.