Message 12-18-05

Series: Christmas Unplugged
Scripture: Luke 1:46-55 [Psalm 23]

Title: “Hank, the Herald”

Intro:
Hi… I’m Hank… one of God’s messengers. 

I’m here because I’m supposed to tell you what I saw. That’s a pretty easy thing to do, you know. It’s not up to me to make you believe it. It’s not up to me to make it easy for you to believe. All I have to do is tell you. So, that’s what I’m doing. I’m just saying. Doing what I’m told, just like a sheep. 

They pretty much just do what they’re told and go where you lead them. I’m in the sheep business. People don’t much like us sheep guys.

That’s okay. I don’t much like people. I got the family. I got some friends. We’re doing all right. I get to stay outside, enjoy the weather, take care of my sheep and myself and my friends and my friends’ sheep and my brothers and my brothers’ sheep and my friends’ brothers’ and my friends’ brothers’ sheep… and that’s fine with me. ‘Cause I like sheep.

But I’m not here to tell you about sheep. I’m here to tell you what I saw.

Late one night, I was up with the flock. It was me, my brother, my friends and my friends’ brother. We were all there. The only ones who weren’t there were my father and my father’s friends, my other brothers and their friends, some of my friends and some of my friends’ brothers. Those guys were pretty unhappy that they weren’t there. You probably will be too, but I can’t help that. It was exciting. You missed it. That’s why I’m telling you about it. Cause it was exciting. I’m excited just telling you about it.

We were out there. Wasn’t too cold. The night was clear, stars were bright. The sheep were settling. One of the guys, Bert, started to sing. We told him to stop. For some reason he always thought that added to the moment. He was wrong.

Anyhow, we’re sitting there and it got to be colder and darker and then, Simon, he was sitting across the fire from me, he says, “Now there’s something you don’t see everyday.” 

He kind of points with his coffee cup and I was just figuring it was some goat or some big shooting star, or something, so I didn’t look at first. But somebody at the fire said, “What’s that?” And Simon, he just points again with his cup and says, “There’s some guy all on fire over there.”
So, I turned around to look and sure enough there was this guy or something. It was somebody for sure and he was just a glow. I mean he was glowing light like it was inside him. And then he starts talking, “Don’t be afraid,” he says. And I look around and they’re gone. I’m alone. It was then that I realized I lying on the ground. Actually, I was on the ground under three or four sheep. I was pulling more sheep over me as fast as I could grab them. That’s when I realized that Simon and me had a hold of the same sheep trying to pull it over us. 

Then the guy on fire says again, “Don’t be afraid!” And I’m thinking not as long as I’m under these sheep. But he keeps going this time and he’s saying, “I’m here to bring you good news! A Savior has been born for you. He’s right over there in Bethlehem. I can prove it to you. When you go you’ll find a baby all wrapped up in strips of cloth and lying in a feed trough.” 

Well, I started to look out from under the sheep at that moment, but then it was like we were surrounded by an army and there was a million guys all on fire and they started shouting, “Glory to God! Hit the heights!” or something and “peas to the ones God loves”. Well, I don’t much like peas so I was staying under the sheep until they were gone. The sheep I mean. I tried to stay under them but they all got away from me. And finally the guys on fire all left and I asked Simon where the peas were and he told me I got it wrong.

I was just realizing that the sheep were all gone, when one of the other guys says we should go to Bethlehem and see what happened.
Well, we all kind of wondered about that for a moment except for Bert. He just took off running. He’s yelling something about how it’s happened. It’s here. We’re saved. Ever know people like that? Well, that’s Bert. He’s always getting wound up over something or other. There was this time when he wanted all of us to get the same colored shirt, saying that we could tell who was part of the group and who wasn’t. He said it would motivate us. He was wrong. Once he told us that he had heard the voice of God. Turned out that a bug crawled into his ear while he was sleeping. He was always getting set off by something. Anyhow, he was gone in the night like a mist in the wind. 

We all kind of stood around and watched him go for a moment and then we got the young guys together and sent them off to round up the sheep. Then somebody, probably Simon, says, I think we should go. 

So we did. 

We went into Bethlehem and started looking around. Had to be quiet, ‘cause it was the middle of the night, but we finally figured it out. We saw some woman on the street and asked, “Any babies born around here?” Turns out she knew about it and said she was surprised we even stopped to ask directions. Said the first guy just grabbed open every door until he found ‘em. But she pointed it out to us. Just this little beat up shack behind this motel. 

As we got to the door, Bert was coming out. 

He says, “Head on back, guys, It’s nothing.” 

Simon says, “Whatchu mean, ‘nothing’?” 

Bert says, “Well, I thought it was going to be Messiah. I thought it was a King David’s son that all those fire guys were talking about. But it’s just these poor folks with their baby stuck in some goat’s feed trough. It’s nothing.” 

We all kind of stood there for a moment and then a thought perched in my head. “Was the baby wrapped up in strips of cloth?” 

And Bert says, “Yeah… these folks are so poor they don’t even have enough money for a blanket.” 

And then Simon pipes up and says, “But that’s the sign! The guy back there, the guy on fire, he said, we’d find a baby in strips of cloth. That’s the proof that God’s in the middle of all this. Those fire guys were telling the truth. This is not nothing, Bert. This is the whole thing! This is the real deal. And God let us get in on it.” So we just went right past Bert and went in. 

And there it was. The mom and the dad and sure enough this baby in a feeding trough, wrapped up in strips of cloth. I’m just saying. Bert, Simon, bunch of the other guys, we all got in. We saw it ourselves. And then Simon says, “So, ah look, they were right. Pretty amazing. So, what do you think we should do with this?” 

Well, we all kind of wondered on that for a bit. We told the mom and dad about everything that happened and they kind of chewed on it with us. But then, Bert, he stuck up his hand. Simon says, “Just say it Bert. Whatcha got?” And Bert says, “Well, I think maybe we oughta tell people. You know. Just go out and tell em.” And we all agreed, right off, that was the thing. Simon says, “But no yelling, Bert. Just telling.” And Bert he smiles this sheepy, big smile and says, “Well, it is pretty exciting. And it’s true.” 

And it was... exciting and true. Can’t get too much better than that. I got goose pimples just telling you now. I mean… it was big, you know. The whole thing… the guys on fire, the baby, the feed trough, strips of cloth and we saw it. Just the way they told it to us. Everybody was pretty quiet for a moment just watching and then Bert started to sing. We all told him to stop. It was big enough without him singing.
So, that’s it. You missed it. Sorry.

So anyhow, I’m Hank. I’m not one of the guys on fire, but I am one of God’s messengers now. I’m just saying.