The good ol’ boys of Bethlehem

It was a tough occupation. It took rugged men to do it. There were long hours under trying conditions. But the job was necessary, and someone had to do it. The work wasn’t glamourous, didn’t pay much, and many looked down on those who worked in that field. And out there in the field it was tough for those shepherds that night near Bethlehem.

Like me, when you think of the shepherds, you probably think back to the Christmas plays at church when you were young. Back then, we young boys would put on an old housecoat for a robe and wrap a towel around our head. We would use a tobacco stick (Many of you are saying, “What’s that?”) for the shepherd’s staff. All the adults thought it was so nice and sweet.

But the real shepherd’s life was anything but nice and sweet. It was tough out there keeping watch over those smelly sheep. There were many hot days and cold nights. The hours were long, and the work was hard and physical. You had to keep a watch out for thieves and predators, like wolves. The shepherds had to be tough, because it was a tough life.

Most people during those days looked down on shepherds. The shepherds were considered a simple, uneducated, scraggy bunch. Like their sheep, they were also probably smelly. (You folks who have ever worked in a hog house understand.) No one planned on a career in shepherding. I wonder if there was a song back then called, “Mommas, don’t let your babies grow up to be shepherds?” I suppose they could have been considered the “good ol’ boys” of their time.

Yet, on that night so long ago, there was an angel appearing to the shepherds in the field saying, “Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11) There they are, the rough and rugged shepherds, right in the middle at the beginning of the most pivotal time in history, the birth of Jesus.

But those are the type of men God has often used throughout history. David, before he was king, was a shepherd, too. Before his battle with Goliath, David told King Saul in 1 Samuel 17, “Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God. The LORD, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” Doesn’t sound like a little shepherd boy playing his harp surrounded by little lambs, but more like a man wanting to go hurt someone for his God.

The baby the shepherds went to see in the manger in Bethlehem grew up. He was still surrounded by rough and rugged men. Yes there was a tax collector (Matthew), but Jesus’ closest friends were ex-fishermen (Peter, James, Andrew and John). Jesus, himself, was the son of a carpenter, and worked in his father’s shop. He showed that He was no wimp when he cleared out the moneychangers from the temple with a whip. And Jesus ultimately showed it when He suffered the torture of the Roman soldiers and the death on the cross. And the ex-fishermen and the rest of the disciples endured hardship, persecution and death to carry the message of salvation to the world.

Several years ago there was a quartet gospel music song that said “Good ol’ boys won’t make it into heaven.” Probably the writer was trying to write a cute sounding song to sell some records. But sadly, through the years the church has often echoed that same message. And even more tragic, there have been many men who have believed it. But they were there at the manger in Bethlehem, and have been there throughout history. Because they were needed. And they are needed today. Jesus knew that when He proclaimed, “The kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.” (Matthew 11:12 NIV) Sounds to me like there will be some good ol’ boys in heaven after all.