Go and See, Luke 2:15-20

"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. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them."

     There is a mystery about the Christmas story, the birth of Christ. It holds a particular sense of awe in my heart, and so it seemed that it would not be right of me to necessarily gain any sort of application from it, but to just stand in awe at the marvelous beauty of it all: The Creator of all heaven and earth coming to earth in the form of human flesh, born into a humble family, in a lowly state. The news was too wonderful to keep quiet, and so angels came and revealed it to some lowly shepherds tending their sheep by night. As they spoke, the heavens were opened and they saw a multitude of angels praising and giving glory to God. What a wonderous and magnificent mystery, God in human flesh.
     Yet in this mystery we also can gain application for our own lives. Many times in our lives God will reveal something to us, and yet we keep it and ponder it in our hearts, never acting upon it. But when we go and see, then we are blown away by the sheer amazement at God has shown us and cannot help but go abroad sharing what God has shown us, praising Him and giving Him glory all the way. These shepherds, who were doing nothing more than obediently serving in the lot God had given them, were blessed beyond their wildest imaginations when the angels came and revealed to them the birth of their Messiah. And not only was it revealed to them, but it was revealed to them first. In simply doing what God had called them to do-- watch and raise and tend sheep-- they found grace in the eyes of God and were blessed exceedingly.
     What did the shepherds do with this amazing blessing? They acted upon it-- they went to Bethlehem to see what God had revealed to them by the word of His angel. And in so acting upon what God had shown them, they were blessed even more, and the thing which was told them by the angel was confirmed. Being full of joy and amazement, no doubt, these lowly shepherds went and made known to all what had been told them: that the Messiah had been born, that the day of salvation was dawning.

     People had different reactions to what the shepherds had to say. The Bible tells us that all who heard them wondered at what they had been told. When God reveals something to us, to we simply wonder? Do we spend time considering and thinking about, but never acting upon in faith? These poor people missed out on the most awesome blessing ever known to man-- to see the coming of their Messiah, Jesus Christ. To sit in wonder is to miss out.
     Mary's reaction to what the shepherds had shared was to keep them and ponder them in her heart. Surely she was the instrument through which such a blessing had come, and no doubt she was blessed beyond her expectations. But it may be safe to assume that she did not fully understand the full spectrum of what was going on at the time. I'm sure she did not realize that the One she had just given birth to would one day save all mankind from judgement, restoring communion between God and man. And so she sat in silent amazement at what went on around her.
     As we cannot possibly be in the place of Mary, we cannot know exactly what was in her heart at that moment. She was probably overwhelmed by it all. And so too, we can be an instrument through which God chooses to bless others, and sit in amazement, in awe of what God has done. But for those times when we are not the instrument, when we are the hearers of God's miraculous deeds, it is safe to say that we cannot fully receive the abundant joy that God has in store for us until we go and see-- until we step out in faith in that area God is showing us.