Advent Poem Reflection: Lamb

Lamb of God

Lamb

Fast asleep on the hillside when the angels appeared,

“Let us see the Savior!” My good shepherd cheered.

I shook off my slumber and got to my feet.

The Messiah, the Lord, we were going to meet!

 

We walked through the town with our heads held high,

Ashamed, we were not, when people walked on by.

The Savior had come for us, poor as we were,

We rushed on ahead as our hearts did stir.

There did lie the Lamb of God,

The world’s sin He had taken upon.

So tiny a child, so great His glory,

God stepped out of time and entered our story.

I will never forget sitting in my 7th-grade home Economics class when I experienced bullying for the first time.  A boy walked past me, where I was obediently sitting, waiting for class to start.  He stopped right in front of me and started to sniff the air dramatically.

“What is that smell?”  He taunted.  “It smells like manure!   Must be that farm kid!”  He jeered and pointed at me.

I was mortified.  I was a timid child, so I had no idea how to stand up for myself.  If I’m being honest, I still haven’t figured that one out yet!

But I was proud of where my family came from—the long hours that my dad worked to put food on the table for all 8 of us kids made him a hero in my eyes! 

I loved growing up on the farm with endless places that needed to be explored, rocks that needed to be skipped in the pond, and baby puppies that needed me to squeeze and hold them.

It was the first time in my life that it even crossed my mind that being a farm kid was somehow inferior.

While my story could have had a very dramatic end to it, with years of bullying and therapy, it actually ended about as quickly as it started!

Another boy in that class, whose parents were friends with mine, got up out of his seat and confronted the bully, staring him right in the eyes.  He sternly told him to knock it off.  I think he had quite a few things to say to him, actually, but I was in a bit of a shock, so all I remember was that the bully never even spoke to me again!

I was incredibly grateful to the kid who stood up for me, but I wonder if I ever actually thanked him or even spoke to him after that incident?  Probably not.  Again, VERY shy!

I thought of this story while reflecting on the little lamb and his shepherds in this poem.

Shepherds were at the VERY bottom of the pecking order in that time.  They were among the poorest members of society.  Spending all day, and often all night with their flocks, they would have smelled like their charge.

Out of desperation, some of them were a bit of an outlaw, so many people in the towns and villages were afraid of them.

The Good Shepherd

I have often thought about the shepherds in the Christmas story because, despite their status, they were the very first people to see the Messiah!

Jesus came in a way that made Him accessible to all… not just the elite.  Not just the holiest.  Not just the richest.  Not just the prettiest.  Not just the smartest.  Not just the most put together!  Get my point?

If Jesus wasn’t too good for the lowly, dirty shepherds, He wasn’t too good for anyone!  This is comforting because in my worst moments, I am FAR lower than those shepherds.

What I also find so beautiful about the shepherds meeting baby Jesus first is the deep symbolism. The language of shepherds and sheep is used throughout scripture to describe Jesus Himself!

He refers to Himself as the Good Shepherd, and the book of Revelation uses a very curious title for Him- the Lamb of God.  What a strange thing to say!

But Jesus Himself became the spotless paschal lamb who sacrificed Himself.

The little lamb in our Advent poem gets to meet the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world with His sacrifice!  To Him be glory and honor, now and forever!

Until next time, your sister in Christ,

Leah