“Papa,” she asked, “Christmas really is all about lambs and shepherds, isn’t it?”
Her Papa, a little startled, queried her softly, “Why do you think so, little one?”
“Oh, Papa,” she sighed, with the just-before-bedtime tired of the very young, “you know.”
He waited. And soon she resumed. “Because Jesus was our lamb, for our sins. And now we’re His, ‘cause we follow Him. And first thing when Jesus was born, God told the shepherds in the fields. And now Jesus is our shepherd and He watches over us. See? It’s all about lambs and shepherds.” She stopped talking, still watching the Nativity, quiet on his lap.
- Jesus is our lamb. Because sin entered the world, Genesis 3 tells us, death entered the world. God was eternally separated from man due to man’s sinful nature. The One, righteous, Holy, Omnipotent God took it upon Himself to create a plan. Rather than the temporary sin offering of a perfect, unblemished lamb whose blood would cover over sin, Jesus offered Himself – a perfect and sinless sacrifice to once and for all take away our sin. Yes. Jesus is our lamb – the only possible perfect once-for-all sacrifice.
- Jesus is our lamb, too, in that while God would NOT require Abraham to make that ultimate sacrifice of his son, Isaac, on the altar, God did make that sacrifice Himself. His only son – substitution for our death payment for sin. For the price required to pay the penalty for sin is death, Romans 6:23 tells us. Thank God, He paid that price for us. Jesus is our substitionary lamb.
- And now, we are His lambs. He tells us over and over that we are the sheep of His pasture. Psalm 95. Psalm 100. Ezekiel 34, Jeremiah 50. It is a little funny, because among herds folk it is well known that sheep are not the smartest of animals. How fitting. For, like that little sheep of Luke 15, we tend to wander away and get lost. Thank God He comes looking. We must simply follow Him.
- The birth of Christ in a stable, His crib an animal’s feeding trough & His first mattress the hay, prove that God did not send Jesus to an audience with the powerful and rich of the day. Jesus wasn’t born in a palace, or in a rich man’s mansion. His birth wasn’t announced by ornate brass trumpets, but with heavenly ones; the audience not the city’s masses, but the shepherds of the hills. God cares for, God came for, the lowly and humble among us just as much as for anyone else.
- He is our Good Shepherd. He can take us through anything – even the valley of death (Psalm 23) and supply our every need. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. He loves us.
"Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture."
- Psalm 100:3
As we anticipate celebrating Christmas, don’t let the lambs and the shepherds get lost in the tinsel and wrapping paper! Make sure to purpose to take time for the very basic, very simple, yet most extraordinary facts of Christmas.
Jesus came to be our sacrificial, one-for-all substitutionary lamb. We must follow Him, or we will be lost. His birth and birth announcement prove that God is interested in the humble, real folk of the world – not just the wealthy, powerful, or religious. And He IS our Good Shepherd, ever watchful, ever caring.
Today is about the best time I know of to tell Him how thankful you are to be His sheep.
Thank You, Lord Jesus, for being the Lamb of God. Thank You, for being my Good Shepherd. Thank You for loving me, for leading me, for providing the gift of salvation – for me. I am so thankful. I am so awed and humble by Your mercy and Your care. For the sake of Your glory – amen.
Blessings as you prepare to celebrate His birth!
Cara & Patti
Classic Christianity