Week 3 - Reading
The Angels’ Song | Luke 2:8-15
That moment.
That moment when the command was issued and went rolling through the celestial ranks, angels talked. Our amazement rumbled across the skies, resonating from one corner of Heaven to another. We exclaimed and shouted. We discussed and rehearsed. We weighed the meaning of what we were to do. We did not question His orders—not the vast size of the task force, nor the mission’s target region and civilian group, nor even the radical message we would deliver–but we did wonder. We wondered as ones puzzled and awestruck. Always, God’s affection for man and woman—those creations of the sixth day whom He declared “very good”—has been central to the business of Heaven. For years—millennia, no less—we angels have known that God has been planning something. He has forever had some sort of rescue operation in mind, has forever been plotting some advance into enemy territory. And that is our assignment now: to herald the Sacred Invasion that will save His people.
Had we not served the Almighty One for a very long time and witnessed His unequivocal capacity for victory, we might think His plan more lunacy than genius. He never has been a commander to go about things the conventional way. He loves a good underdog story, and He specializes in eleventh hour rescues. So, in a way, the audacity of this new foray should not be entirely surprising. Yet it is...It is so very surprising.
First, there is the problem of majesty. Who is God but the Alpha and Omega, the King of Kings, the powerful I AM? He is Creator of all and Sustainer of all. He alone guards the designs for eternity. So to send the secrets of Heaven to Earth in the tiny form of a human newborn? To entrust the inestimable wealth to flesh and bone? Perilous. How can such a small, fragile body possibly hold the glory of the Sovereign Lord? It is inconceivable. Where He is, His glory is ubiquitous. It flows free and strong, breathtaking as it whirls and spins, shooting upward, then dipping dangerously down, brushing against your cheek, scudding around your feet, encircling you in its closeness, pulling you along in its dazzling light and wind. Can a mortal baby bear it?
And what of peace? We are to sing the words, “Peace on Earth.” How is such a thing possible? It is the most bizarre message my fellow angels and I have even been sent to deliver. We have been watching the movements of people for a long time now, have observed Adam and Eve’s offspring blot the world with their sin. Daily they turn their backs on God and bow to the Fallen Angel. Their unholy ways are just a trace of the terrible strife in the spiritual realm, the endless battle between good and evil. Earth and its inhabitants are cracked and broken, restless and war-torn. How can peace ever be in such a place? Perhaps if God lay His glory down upon the globe like a blanket, forcing Creation to see Him and smothering every wrong, there could be peace. But God does not coerce or stifle. In His kingdom, people choose to honour Him or not; and peace, or the lack of it, is inextricably tangled in this choice.
We prepare to go. With us, we take some of the splendor of Heaven, His light clinging to our robes; and we take His words, “joy for everyone.” We softly drop into the darkness, weaving among planets and stars, until we feel a trembling sadness below—a grieving world, parted from its Maker and at odds with itself. We pause and look on the shepherds a moment. What good will this do, putting a wisp of purity into a place so fouled by wickedness? I don’t know...None of us do. But we, His angels, will sing His message faithfully. We will fulfill this duty with a passion that only deep trust in the Almighty can evoke. There will be peace, and there will be joy. And the armies of Heaven will lead humanity, God’s cherished masterwork, in believing this.
“Have confidence in His plan!” our hearts thunder. “He never missteps, never misestimates. Eagerly watch with us and see what He accomplishes through this Baby.” May our faith sound so loudly now that the whole Earth hears... “Look for His glory, for it is with you today! Cradled this night in a manger is God Himself, His radiant character and strong hand come to save!” Glory to God in the highest heaven...