Luke 2: 15 – 20
When the angels had departed from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let’s go straight to Bethlehem, then, and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. When they had seen Him, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. And all who heard it were amazed about the things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.
One of the things I love about the shepherds is that they did something when they heard the good word of the Lord. I think that sometimes when we hear the voice of the Lord, it requires something of us. These shepherds dropped everything and sought the Lord. The Bible encourages us time and time again to “seek the Lord.” Well, they did, and just as we are promised if we shall seek him, they found him.
The best part of this passage to me is in hearing about Mary. It must have been quite a task being the mother of the Christ. Wow! It is hard even to comprehend. This passage gives us a sneak peak in how she accomplished her charge. In the beginning, she treasured all that God revealed about Jesus. She treasured these bits of wisdom and pondered them continually.
Have you ever wondered what became of Joseph, Mary’s husband? Perhaps he didn’t treasure and ponder the revelations and prophecies about the babe. He too had an angelic visit, his in a dream, where the angel told him of the forthcoming birth. Did he treasure the words of the angel and ponder them in his heart? We don’t know because he just disappears from the scene. Mary never forgot the prophecies about the child. She kept them close all her days.
There is a lesson in here for us too. We are to treasure Jesus’ words and continually ponder them in our hearts. They are to stay before our eyes and in the midst of our thoughts. They are life and light. Think of that when you see all those pretty lights on the Christmas tree. They are little representatives of the Word of God lighting up your life.
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