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December 20

Luke 2: 17-20

¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

We live in an age of information overload and fake news.  Who do you believe?  Who should you believe?  Why should you believe something someone tells you.  Some time ago. The late queen Elizabeth coined the phrase “ Recollections may vary”. And that is so true,  isn’t it?

We are all susceptible to believing some people more than others,  either because we like or trust them,  because they share the same views as ourselves, or because we prefer their version to the alternative,  but teasing out the truth can be very hard.

That’s why I think that short verse,  so often overlooked in verse 18 of  chapter 2 of Luke’s gospel is so important.  The shepherds didn’t just head back to their fields and their flocks.  As they did so,  they caught the attention of everyone they passed and told them what they had witnessed and experienced.  That was maybe to be expected.  The really important point,  however,  is not that they told their story but that they were believed.  Those who would normally have shunned these unkempt,  smelly outcasts saw something in their demeanour that pointed to the truth of what they were saying.  This was truth – life-changing truth!