Good Tidings of Great Joy

8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

9 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.

10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.

16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.

My thoughts tonight are simple. It's Christmas Day, technically, and as we were reading the Christmas story during our Christmas Eve celebration, I noticed something. In verse 15, I noticed that the shepherds immediately thought to go find the baby Jesus, and in 16 we read that they "came with haste."

What would it be like to have been one of those shepherds? Living your life humbly, tending to your flock, and then seeing an angel and hearing that the Son of God, the Savior, Redeemer, and Messiah has just been born in Bethlehem. Wouldn't you get there as fast as you could? And wouldn't you go joyfully? I can't imagine the excitement felt and the peace that entered into the hearts of those shepherds. 

I love the Christmas Story. Here is a video that retells the story of that holy night.