This is the third Sunday of Advent.
I love remembering what this Sunday stands for, and I think of it as we light the pink candle. There is so much to ponder. All of it can be defined in one little four letter word; LOVE.
The third Sunday of Advent is all about love.
It is a time to remember that God gave the glorious news of the gospel first to ordinary shepherds tending their flocks in the fields. They were the first to hear the message of Christ, just ordinary men, not Kings and greatly known world leaders.
It is a time to remember that God chose Mary to give birth to Our Lord and Savior, an ordinary young girl living a very humble life.
It is a time that God chose Joseph, just a simple working man, a carpenter by trade, to watch over His precious son as He grew and fulfilled His destiny.
For God so LOVED the world that He gave His only begotten Son and WHOSOEVER believes on Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. Humble little "you" and "me." We, just ordinary people going about our ordinary lives get to be a part of that great big "whosoever." Our part is so easy; BELIEVE! It is that simple.
It is a great time to remember God's wonderful love for all of us, so much that He sent us His greatest treasures in a gift from Heaven. He sent the greatest gift ever given to all. Not just to Kings and dignitaries, He sent the love of Christ into the world as a gift for all mankind. Red or yellow, black or white, ALL are precious in His sight. He sent the gift to young and old, weak and strong, rich and poor. He came to save us, and He gave the news first to humble shepherds abiding in the fields at night. They were tending their sheep right before the coldest part of winter when they looked up and saw the glorious angels and heard them rejoicing over the Great Thing That God had done for all of mankind.
And what do you think these shepherds did?
They SHARED the gospel that they had come to know with everyone that they met. They wanted everyone to know the wonderful news!
We are shepherds too, just ordinary people walking humbly through life in a strange and sometimes frightening world. We too, like these shepherds, have heard the glorious news of the baby in the manger that would one day become a King. Are you telling everyone you know that the King is coming? He is coming again, but not as a baby. The next time He will come as The King of Kings.
Go out, like those shepherds from years ago, and tell the world that LOVE has come down.