Yes I know but...

Most Christians know that ‘The word became flesh and made his dwelling amongst us’  1 John 1:14 but when did you last stop to ponder it? Could it be that for all practical purposes you have forgotten? If so, here is a reminder!

No small miracle

This is no small miracle on Gods part. It all went wrong in that garden. Close fellowship between God and Man came to an abrupt end at the fall. Adam and Eve were banished from Eden, but in a sense God himself was banished, no longer could he provide the intimate friendship with men and women that he created them for. A Holy God needs to keep his distance from a people ‘whose every inclination was evil’ 2 Genesis 6:5 , for their own sake as well as his.

A sorry history

The Old Testament records the sorry history of man in his ongoing exile from God. Even his chosen people turned their backs on their special relationship with God preferring the godless habits of their neighbours. Yet as this story unfolds there also appear unexpected chinks of light, hope for something (or someone) better.

In the midst of suffering righteous Job blurts out:

‘I know that my redeemer lives and that in the end he will stand upon the earth’. 3 Job 19:25

Even the pagan prophet Balaam declares:

‘I see him but not now; I behold him, but not near’. 4 Numbers 24:17

The end of a long wait

The Israelites had to wait a long time but then in the most hopeless of circumstances with Israel subjugated under the iron fist of Rome the promised Messiah appears.

The circumstances of his birth could hardly be more humble, spending his first day in an animals feeding trough. He had none of the typical privileges a King would expect.

Gods kindness

Set alongside the rather terrifying judgements we see in the Old Testament it seems hard to fathom that the Father could be so kind and generous to his rebellious creation.

No longer did we have to think of God as only ‘up there’, now in Christ he was one of us.

The humanity of Christ

The Lord Jesus from that time on shares humanity with you and I. A few thoughts:

He knows how we feel. Its frustrating to be told ‘I know how you feel’ by someone who obviously doesnt but the Lord truly knows. He was misunderstood, his family thought he was mad, the religious leaders thought he was possessed by a devil, people were baffled by his teaching. He experienced temptation, yes he knows all about it! He got tired, just as we do. He gives us hope, if the Lord Jesus can go to these lengths for us, there is no need to despair. He loved all sorts, prostitutes, lepers, sinners of various kinds (but hated religious hypocrisy) so yes he can love us too. He faced and experienced death, the very thing that hangs over each one of us (but of course he conquered it). Comfort for believers

Of course there is much more to say about who Jesus is, what he accomplished on the cross and what we should do about it. Nevertheless the struggling Christian can take comfort from the Saviour that became one of us.

For unbelievers

The Christian faith isnt set upon some vague half-being we idly hope to encounter some day. Instead the Christian message is that God intervened in our world at a specific time (0 AD or thereabouts), in a specific place (Israel) for a specific purpose.

For those who are not sure if they can believe it is good starting point to understand his arrival was prophesied like no other, has had an impact on the world like no other and indeed he was a man like no other. Hope has a name...Jesus!