"When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them."
Luke 2:17-19
The shepherds were the first to see the Christ child, the first to believe and the first to tell others about Jesus. All who heard the shepherds testimony "wondered". The text doesn't say the hearers went to worship Jesus, too. It just says "they wondered". It doesn't sound much different than what we find today in sharing the gospel. We discover its truth and come to Christ. Then we share what we have found with others. Some receive it, but many others just wonder about it. And still there are those who reject it altogether. The shepherds didn't seem bothered by how their message was received. They simply told what they knew and continued to glorify and praise God for all they had heard and seen, just as had been told them. This is a good lesson for us. We have something wonderful to share -- the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our task is to share it with others. Some will receive it, some will wonder about it and some will reject it altogether. No worries. We go on glorifying and praising God for all He has done, and leave the results of our testimony to Him.
So true: we need to stop taking on God's job. We just do our telling or writing or sharing and let God do the convicting!
ReplyDeleteDena, it took me awhile to figure that out. Once I did, it was very freeing. Thanks for your comment. Praying 2012 will be a great year for you.
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