The First to Know - December 2009

Eli sighed as his eyelids grew heavy. It had been a long day of tending sheep. As a Hebrew shepherd boy, he spent much of his time with his father, brothers, uncles, and cousins, tending sheep. The sun had gone down long ago, and Eli was tired: tired of sheep, tired of darkness, tired of walking. Most of all, he was tired of being a shepherd. Shepherds in Israel had a hard way of life. Day by day they endured the dirty, stinky work of caring for sheep, and furthermore, shepherds were often looked down on by other members of society. Shepherds were not generally respected or even trusted. Eli thought of his friend Seth. Seth was the son of a priest – he had a great future ahead of him. Just the other day Seth was bragging to Eli how he would soon be going to learn from rabbis at a special school. Seth was going to be a priest. Seth was going to be revered in all the land. Eli, however, was going to be a shepherd, like his father, like his grandfather. Eli’s future was full of poverty, isolation, and many dirty sheep, not the respect and titles a life in the city would give him. For Eli, there was no way out.
Just as Eli’s eyes were about to close, a blazing light filled the entire sky. Blinded by the great light, Eli jumped and cried out in fear. Suddenly a voice boomed out from the heavens: ‘"Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger’” (Luke 2:10-12). As the angel finished saying this, a heavenly multitude filled the sky, praising God. “‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!’” (Luke 2:14). Eli gaped as he looked all around him. The whole sky was full of angels! There was no room for any more. Wow, Eli thought. If we shepherds out here are seeing this, I wonder what amazing things, people in the city are seeing? He had no time to think further, for, as suddenly as they had come, the angels disappeared.
Eli soon found himself hurrying along with the other shepherds among the twisting roads of Bethlehem. He was surprised at the stillness. Hadn’t these people heard angels too? It didn’t take the band of shepherds long to find the stable – it was just as the angel had said. In worshipful silence, they tiptoed in one by one. They told Mary, the baby’s mother, what the angels had told them. “Angels?” she asked. “Angels announced His birth to you?” “Yes,” Eli answered excitedly. “Didn’t they come to the city, too?” “No,” she said. Then she smiled. “God wanted you to be the first to know.” In awed wonder, Eli slowly approached the manger. There He was – the Messiah, the Son of God, the King of Kings, come to earth as a baby. And he – Eli, shepherd boy, son of Aaron, shepherd, son of Benjamin, shepherd – yes, he, Eli, was one of the first to know.
Suddenly Eli’s brother Micah broke the stillness. “Come on!” he told the other shepherds. “Let’s wake up the whole city and tell them this great news!” Micah and a few others started running through the streets, shouting what they had seen and heard. Eli followed close behind, still marveling of all he’d seen. Then he noticed Seth, standing quizzically outside his home. Eli forgot his envy of Seth and ran to him, shouting “Seth! The Messiah has come!” He hurriedly told Seth all that had happened.
Soon it was time to return to the fields and tend the flocks. Eli the shepherd boy hurried to get back to work. He didn’t mind being a shepherd anymore. Sure the work was dirty, tiring, smelly, and looked down on, but that didn’t matter anymore. God had sent His Son to earth, and God cared for Eli the shepherd boy. With a new joy in his heart, Eli returned to work.