Tim James looks at what we can learn from a bunch of seemingly unimportant individuals who were brave enough to accept an invitation to meet the Messiah 

As we approach Christmas this year, we once again remember and reflect upon the ancient stories of Jesus coming to Earth that we read in the New Testament. Through the biblical stories of Jesus’ incarnation we are invited, once again, to step into the Christmas story ourselves, to find our place in this miraculous narrative of God entering into the messiness of our world, taking on human form and living alongside humanity.

The invitation of Jesus is extended to us today, 2,000 years on from his birth, but the very first invitation to meet with the newborn king was somewhat different. For we read in the Gospel of Luke that the first people to receive the news of the birth of the Messiah were some unnamed shepherds going about their day-to-day work of looking after their sheep. These shepherds were the first people… (Register to read the rest of the article)