Proverbs 25                                                                                                      

Good morning son,

Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas? Merry Christmas.

For many people that is how the greeting of today goes. It starts out happy and joyful, and then as the day progresses it moves to a question as the expectations of the day go unmet, or unfulfilled. By the end of the day it is simply a statement of resolve – Merry Christmas. Somehow the joy with which the day began has faded.

Proverbs 25:25 “Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land.”

In the gospel of Luke we see that the first feeling of the shepherds when the angel appeared to them was fear. Luke records the seen as follows:

“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.”

Terrified. Terrified. In the presence of the angel, in the presence of the glory of a Holy God, they were terrified. If you know anything about the shepherds of the day, you would understand why. See shepherds were the terrorists of their day. They were not known to be trustworthy at all. They didn't just live out in the fields because they smelled of stinky sheep, but also because they were social outcasts. The Rabbinical law of the day said that a shepherd could not give testimony in a court because their word was not true. And if their neighbors thought this of them, what did they the shepherd thought of their own heart? Did they not know just how black with sin it was?

Kinda like us, huh. Knowing all that we know about what we think and desire, of how often we disobey the King of Kings and Lord of Lord. Knowing how much we hate our fellowman. Knowing just how much we have and would murder, steal, rob, and commit all manner of sexual sins if we just but had the chance. Knowing the pain we have from past hurts and the hardness of heart now associated with it. They knew themselves even as we know ourselves. And in relation to a Holy Lord . . . what did they feel? What would we feel? What would we think God was coming to do to us? Its pay back time, huh. We would be . . .

TERRIFIED!!

But then the angel spoke:

“Do not be afraid, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

First words out of the angel's mouth - “Do not be afraid.” I wonder if that removed their fear. I doubt it. I think that if it were me, I would think, knowing how bad I am, he was just calming me down so that I would remain still enough for him to do a clean sweeping cut off of my head! But instead the angel really wants them to stay still, to relax and listen. Why because they had good news for them!

For them! For the smelly, untrustworthy, terrorists shepherd – the angel brought good news. I wonder what they thought when they realized not only was the Angel bringing them good news but they were also being invited to right then participate in the event, invited to see the Christ child for themselves. I wonder if they realized this announcement was not put out all over the hills, and in every street and corner. I wonder if they understood that the rich and powerful were not told. I wonder if they realized that the priests themselves did not receive notice – you know those priests which said they, the shepherds were untrustworthy. I wonder. I wonder if they realized that the good news was for each of them, just as they were.

Do I? Do you?

Well if they didn't they would when they got there and met Jesus for themselves. I guess they would understand this Christ was approachable and he was for them that once they realized that there were no guards to prevent them from getting close to the baby. I guess they would understand when they found him in humble quarters, much like they lived every day ,that he was to be a man like they were, with like passions and needs. I am sure that it would slowly dawn upon them that all though he was human he was also divine, as they looked upon the child in the exact circumstances as it was described to them by the angels. They would realize that God sent His son for them. For me. For you.

And then they might have realized that God saw them differently than did everyone else – that God trusted them. God trusted them to get the message out that His son had come. That God placed in their hands, this AWESOME privilege and responsibility JUST AS THEY WERE THEN. That God saw them in all that they were created to be RIGHT THEN, and called them up to be the men that they were.

You know where I am going, don't you.

“Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land.”

The shepherds saw themselves as far away from heaven and God as anyone could be (other than maybe the Romans). So indeed this was news from a “distant land,” a land where the Holy of Holies resided and as such, they, unrighteous as they were, would never see. Good news from a distant land – cool water to their weary souls.

Good news for us too. Cool water to our weary souls also.

The day is waning on at the time of this writing. New thing this year. We are going to open our presents later, after dinner. And dinner isn't till 6PM! So all day long we are listening to Christmas music, hearing sermons, and sharing Christmas's past memories. And in focusing on the awesome good news from a distant land, the news of our Saviour's coming, we have managed to keep the “Merry Christmas!” We have no question as to why for we keep drinking that “cool water” and refreshing our weary souls. We instead find ourselves rejoicing even the more!

This day, keep drinking the cool water – the good news and all it means to us. Don't run from the message in fear. Hear the message of God's love for us, unworthy, dirty, filthy, and without excuse for our wrongs. A message of hope, of love, of trust in us. A personal message. Good news.

Love yah,

dad