I Might Be Underdressed for This Party

“And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them…” ~Luke 2:8-9

Have you ever been invited to an event for which you weren’t sure how to dress? Is it black tie? Will a sweater and jeans suffice? Can I stay in my pajamas? The danger, of course, is that you end up being underdressed. One could imagine the embarrassment of arriving in casual clothes for a very formal party. In a sense, that’s what happened to the shepherds to whom the angels appeared in Luke 2:8-20.

Of course, this particular party didn’t seem very formal, did it? It was being held in a barn, after all. The guest of honor was napping in an animal’s feeding trough. The hosts were an engaged couple who had just traveled eighty-plus miles on foot to be there, and she had just delivered a baby that wasn’t his son! Quite a party! Maybe the shepherds weren’t that underdressed after all.

But we could only conclude this if we thought very little of the boy to whose party the shepherds were invited. This wasn’t a regular child sleeping in a manger. This was the Son of God, the Creator of the universe, the One who upholds all things by His powerful word (Hebrews 1:3)! This baby was sent to bring peace to those upon whom God’s favor rests (Luke 2:14). And these shepherds were invited to His birthday party!

Now, God could have announced the birth of His Son to anyone. He could have sent angels to royal families, or to the religious leaders of the day, or to the God-fearing remnant of Israel, such as Simeon and Anna (Luke 2:25ff). But He didn’t. Instead, God chose to announce Jesus’ birth to outcasts, to the dregs of society, to the scum of the earth— to the underdressed, such as it were. You see, shepherds in Jesus’ day were societal outcasts, ranking just above lepers and prostitutes. They weren’t on anyone’s invitation list, especially not for a party celebrating the birth of God incarnate. And that’s the real shock of this story: God invited the least well-dressed people He could find to come to the birth celebration of His Son.

Why did He do this? To show us who Christ came to save! Jesus came for the humble (Luke 14:11), for the foolish, the weak, and the ordinary (I Corinthians 1:26). And He did so in order that He might receive all the glory in our salvation. There is not one among us who can dress ourselves up enough to earn an invitation to heaven. It is not by our righteousness or law-keeping that we find favor with God. Rather, it is according to His mercy (Titus 3:4-7). So this Christmas, even though you may get dressed up for a fancy party or two, remember that God sent Jesus to save those who know they will always be underdressed until they receive the robes of Christ’s righteousness. Then we’ll be dressed for heaven.

Rev. Kyle Lockhart, Associate Pastor