It Was for You

Luke 2:12-14 “This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”
 
HAVE you ever wondered why God, the eternal Father and the Creator of the universe, would have his very own Son born in a manger? I’ve been around mangers. They’re dirty. Animals drool into a manger as they eat. Who knows what other unseeable forms of God’s creation live in a manger? Oh, Lord God of all creation, why didn’t you at least open a room in the crowded inn for your own Son?
   In truth, you could ask a number of “why questions” about Jesus’ life. For example, “Why was he born into a lower-class working family? Why did he wait until he was 30 to begin his ministry? Why did people hate him so violently? Why were some so eager to believe, but then, why did so many reject Jesus? Why did they kill you, Jesus?”
   Based on reading the entire counsel of God – that is, the Bible – I believe the Lord God’s answer to us is something like this: “Why, you ask, did I cause my Son to have such a lowly birth, difficult life and tortuous death? It was all for you, my child. You see, my Son is my gift to you. Jesus’ life and death is my demonstration of sin’s terrible, deadly assault on your life. Jesus is also the visible display of the height and the depth of my love to redeem you out of sin’s death. Sending my Son from his throne of glory and power in heaven to be a man in a lowly place on earth, I also have shown to you real humility. Jesus’ life teaches you how to serve me, so my Name will be worshiped throughout the earth. When you know Jesus’ obedient life to my purpose, you, too, will understand how to live into the life I have called you to experience. Be humble, eager to listen, so my words will teach you. As I have graciously served you through the sacrifice of my Son, now you must be willing to sacrificially serve me wherever I call you to be with me. I am directing you to do with me as I have done for you.
   “I sent my Son to the manger and to a working life, so he more closely understands what life is like for you. As a man, he has experienced frustrations, temptations and pain. When you pray for protection and strength, Jesus knows your struggles and your deepest needs.
   “Yes, my Son was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and you esteemed him not. Surely, he took up your infirmities and carried your sorrows, yet you considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. He was even pierced for your transgressions; he was crushed for your iniquities. The punishment that brought you peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.  (from Isaiah 53:3-5)
   “All of this means that my Son’s life was to show you I am willing to sacrifice his life for you, so you can turn and call me ‘Father’. My Son’s life, death and resurrection were to open the doorway to my home I have prepared for you forever.
   “Yes, this is all for you, my child. I am a God who walks with you everywhere, even when it stinks and is uncomfortable, even when it’s deadly. My Son has experienced this. He knows your needs. You can trust him in all things, and turn to him because he’s now praying for you. Know the glory of God has come to a manger, so you will know eternal peace.
   “When you trust my Son, I will welcome you into my home to know the glory the shepherds saw that night.”
 
Prayer: Thank you, Father, for your Son. He has come to dwell among your creation and personally in me. Teach me the humility I must have to faithfully trust and serve you. In Jesus’ name, amen.