Luke’s well-known account of the
Christmas story tells us that an angel appeared to some shepherds near
Bethlehem during the night and announced the birth of Jesus. This angel was
then joined by a whole host of angels who sang praises to God.
Do you believe that? We take this
angel visit for granted as part of the Christmas story, and we sing “Angels We
Have Heard on High,” but do you really believe that actual angels appeared to
these shepherds? In other words, do you believe in angels?
In one Christmas service, a pastor
led the children over to the sanctuary’s nativity scene to discuss the
characters portrayed there. Asking children questions in front of the
congregation is always risky, but the pastor was young and brave. He pointed to
the angel near the top of the stable and asked the children, “Why do you think
the angel is there?” One little guy, all of four years old, said, “Because
somebody nailed him there!” When it comes to angels, that may be as good an
answer as many of us could give.
Of course, belief in literal angels
has nothing to do with our salvation or acceptance by God. But if you are
skeptical about angels, suspend your conclusions for just a few moments and
take a look at the shepherds’ response to the angelic announcement. Rather than
being thrown into a state of confusion or doubt or fright, 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.”1 In other words, they
took the angels seriously and set off to see the baby.
The Sadducees
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