There is a story in the Bible that we know well…
It is the story of a family who must travel to fulfil their duty as good citizens.
But this family is also awaiting a great gift of love: the arrival of a baby!
Luke 2: 1-7
At that time Emperor Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2 When this first census took place, Quirinius was the governor of Syria. 3 Everyone, then, went to register himself, each to his own hometown. 4 Joseph went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to the town of Bethlehem in Judea, the birthplace of King David. Joseph went there because he was a descendant of David. 5 He went to register with Mary, who was promised in marriage to him. She was pregnant, 6 and while they were in Bethlehem, the time came for her to have her baby. 7 She gave birth to her first son, wrapped him in cloths and laid him in a manger—there was no room for them to stay in the inn.
This tender birth, in such a humble place, would not seem to be such important news.
Yet there are some who learn of this birth very early on.
And among them is a very special group…
Luke 2: 8
8 There were some shepherds in that part of the country who were spending the night in the fields, taking care of their flocks.
Yes, the sheep… The sheep are sleeping peacefully, but a sudden bright light wakes them up with a start.
Luke 2: 9
9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone over them. They were terribly afraid,
All the sheep then go to the shepherds’ tents, but when they arrive they do not find them, and they cry out in fear:
“Look, the shepherds have abandoned us because they no longer love us. And now we are alone…”
But what really happened? Well, the shepherds must have left while the sheep were sleeping, perhaps when that bright light came.
Luke 2: 15-16
15 When the angels went away from them back into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us.” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and saw the baby lying in the manger.
One of the sheep takes a deep breath and says:
‘I want to find out what happened!’
Leaving the pasture, she soon meets a large goat who tells her:
“A special baby was born tonight, who will do great things in his life! That light is a sign of great joy for this news!”
What news! When the sheep returns, the others are curious, and she acts coy:
“I know what happened tonight, but I’m not saying anything….”
In the end, however, she tells the story, and upon hearing about a baby, the sheep are excited:
‘Let’s go see him!’
The sheep line up in pairs, each remembering who is next to them, and set off to see the baby.
You could try arranging the line and moving from one point to another.
The big light continues to shine in the sky, and the sheep walk briskly towards the village where they know all the men live.
At a certain point, however, after passing a bend, the flock stops: to continue, they have to cross a dense forest.
The discussion is lively:
‘What shall we do? Who will go first?’
Meanwhile, one sheep got distracted before the bend and took another path. She then meets an ox and starts chatting.
The ox says:
“You don’t have to go to the village. The baby was born in a shack behind the rubbish dump.”
The other sheep must be warned immediately.
‘Stop! We’re going in the wrong direction! We have to go to the rubbish tip.’
‘The rubbish tip? How disgusting! Oh well, let’s go there right away.’
To get there faster, however, they have to cross a river…
Well, there’s not much choice, they have to swim: the sheep dive in, paddle around, but make it to the other side.
One is smarter than the others and crosses a small bridge. Here she meets a donkey, who says to her:
‘I saw the baby. There are lots of people queuing up to bring him beautiful gifts.’
Yes: THE GIFT!
‘We have to think of a gift to bring to the baby!’
Another discussion begins…
However, one sheep, the one who always arrives last and always wants to have the last word, can no longer stand all these discussions and makes a decision:
‘I’m going back to the pasture. I don’t care about this baby, you go!’
Aaahh, what satisfaction! The sheep returns to the pasture, climbs onto a rock and says:
‘The pasture all to myself. Alone and free!’
The satisfaction is short-lived, however… Suddenly, the sheep hears a growl and sees two wolves!
‘Don’t be afraid of us!’
She doesn’t answer and remains motionless, terrified.
The wolves are cunning, they are looking for the baby on behalf of the king, and he’s not joking!
Matthew 2: 1-2, 7-8
Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem in Judea, during the time when Herod was king. Soon afterward, some men who studied the stars came from the East to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the baby born to be the king of the Jews? We saw his star when it came up in the east, and we have come to worship him.”
7 So Herod called the visitors from the East to a secret meeting and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem with these instructions: “Go and make a careful search for the child; and when you find him, let me know, so that I too may go and worship him.”
So they try to trick the sheep:
‘We’ve heard that an important baby has been born, maybe you can help us find him, we’d like to say hello…’
While the sheep is listening, one of the wolves approaches. She sees him but doesn’t know what to do…
By now, the wolf is about to arrive… So the sheep cries out:
‘You’ll find the baby in the shacks behind the rubbish tip!’
The baby? The rubbish tip? The wolves don’t understand:
‘We’re looking for a baby, and we need to find it quickly. This sheep is just wasting our time!’
And they leave, but the sheep doesn’t know what to do. She’s alone… Then suddenly… she hears voices she recognises, those of her companions!
‘You came back for me!’
‘Of course, we love you, and we’re all going to the rubbish tip together!’
‘And what did you decide for the gift…?’
‘We thought we’d dedicate a beautiful song to the baby!’
Finally, they arrive at the rubbish tip and are ready to sing it. However, they find no one there. The party is over and the manger is empty. The baby and his family have left…
Matthew 2: 13-14
13 After they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, “Herod will be looking for the child in order to kill him. So get up, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you to leave.” 14 Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and left during the night for Egypt,
‘What a shame…’
The sheep that had run away is the most upset:
‘It’s all my fault, I’ll never forgive myself!’
On the other hand, when they meet three camels that had stayed at the rubbish tip, they learn that the baby, a beautiful boy, is truly special, but there was too much confusion and too many strange characters at the party, so it was better for the family to keep him safe.
‘Come on, it doesn’t matter, in the end we’re all fine and we had a night we’ll remember forever. Let’s go home to the pasture.’
So the sheep return to the pasture, and there they have another big surprise… The shepherds are back!
Luke 2: 20
20 The shepherds went back, singing praises to God for all they had heard and seen; it had been just as the angel had told them.
They were worried because they couldn’t see the sheep: they run to meet them and embrace them.
They run towards them, hug and caress them, and have a lovely bag of sweets ready for each of them! The usual sheep has the last word in this great adventure:
‘I always said it: this story will end well! Come on, let’s sing our song anyway: the baby is special, he’ll hear it even from far away!’
Song: This little light of mine
Well, the story of the sheep may be over, but on that night there is another one that may have just begun…
Sermon in English
A flock of sheep taught us a lot.
It taught us what it means to wait, that even if you are impatient and cannot sit still, you wait, imagining something, and while you wait, something special happens, you learn many things.
The flock of sheep teaches us that expectations can be disappointed, they can be
It is the story of a child who came into the world unexpectedly for his father and mother, for whom it was a little early, and eagerly awaited by many people and an entire flock of sheep who traveled long distances to come and see him.
It is the story of an extraordinary birth, a miraculous event, yet as predictable and natural as the birth of a child: the son of God does not come directly from heaven but grows in a woman’s womb, coming from his mother just like all boys and girls.
It is the story of those camels, donkeys, and sheep who, together with many other human beings, told the story of Jesus, how they imagined him, how they waited for him, and how his coming into the world actually was.
It is the story that unites us not only at Christmas but every Sunday: Jesus came into the world so that God would be more present in the world, so that he would be closer to all humanity, even to those who bite, even to those who are dirty and smelly. He did not come as they expected, but in a miserable place, a place where one can be completely invisible. Yet Jesus was not invisible, and many made a journey to go and see him.
Not the sheep, who were dazzled and did not receive the announcement. This story of the adventures of a small flock of sheep tells us that without the announcement it is difficult to find Jesus; we wait for him without knowing exactly what to expect. In the journey of the sheep, we have learned something about walking towards God: no one is left behind, no person, no sheep. All the sheep have the desire to reach Jesus, but all together, despite the great concern that the pandemic brings us today, not only for our lives, but also for the peripheries of our world that the pandemic has revealed even more.
The story that the boys and girls of Sunday School have offered us today is taken from a book, The Last Sheep by Ulrich Hub with illustrations by Georg Muehle, which intertwines at least two biblical stories to tell us two things:
Jesus can be as unexpected and surprising as a baby to a flock of sheep that expects a female or something special and finds itself faced with a child like any other.
Jesus is the true gift we received at Christmas, because with him was born a great hope that illuminates the darkest night. That is why no one, not even the laziest and most hateful sheep, is excluded from this good news.
Amen.
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