He came to people like us so that people like us can come to God.[1]
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This past Sunday (December 15, 2025), I taught Luke 2:1-20 to Kids Club 3. We had them act out the narrative – Caesars order, Joseph and Mary travelling, the Shepherds smelly and bored, the Angels loud and praising – the kiddos loved it. Then we sat down to make this point: “He came to people like us so that people like us can come to God;” now we can point people to Jesus, too.
The shepherds were, surely, bored and smelly. It’s not a terribly exciting job – even though it was important. Sitting out watching sheep was necessary. Wolves and robbers would’ve loved to come in and steal those animals. Yet, it’s not a job that would’ve come with a lot of recognition or acclaim. You watch sheep, after all! Straightforward enough for anyone to do it, even though most people don’t. Maybe you work a job like that – I do: I clean a big building and watch over a small park when I’m not doing youth ministry.
Bethlehem was a small town. It might have had a few thousand people living there, but that would be on the high end. That means that births don’t happen regularly. And if Jesus was the only baby born that day – or that week or even month – He wouldn’t have been difficult to find. So why did the angel give the Shepherds a sign?
And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger (Luke 2:12).
The angel had just announced that the Messiah, the King of kings and LORD of lords had been born to save the whole world that very night. These shepherds probably weren’t used to being the first one’s told news. But God is kind. He directs His message to the most unlikely of groups: smelly, rather boring, ignorable shepherds. God didn’t ignore them. He delivered this news of salvation to them first.
The angel wasn’t sending them on a treasure hunt, giving them clues to look for. The new born wouldn’t have been hard to find, as we’ve said already. No, the whole message screams assurance: this baby is born unto you! This royal baby is in your hometown. This baby is in a home like yours. This baby is wrapped in cloths, lying in a manger – a manger, the thing you use every day to feed your animals out of.
The shepherds went and found Jesus. They praised God, and they went out and told them what they had heard and seen… who they had found!
He came to people like us, so that people like us can come to Him!
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The shepherds had full assurance that the One they had found was for them. Then they went out in full assurance that absolutely anyone could find Him, too. What does that mean for us today? Are you fully convinced that Jesus is for you, too? Does this change or challenge how you point people to Jesus where you are?
As a final thought, I’d like to quote from a friend back in the States. She wrote this two days ago, and I think it fits well. Her blog is well worth following!
Jesus came for sinful, ordinary people in small (and big) places. He came for the barber, baker, butcher, and barista. He came for little towns like ours, little people like us—not so we could stay small in our sin, but so He could set a bigger work before us than we ever deserved to take part in. With us, He isn’t just building Small Town America, but a kingdom that cannot be shaken (Heb. 12:28).
[1] Peter Mead, Pleased to Dwell,
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