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Imagine That Day

Imagine for a moment that you were present when Jesus was born. Imagine how Mary must have felt. Can you see her? A poor, young, scared girl aware of what she will be doing but unaware of how it will all play out. She is tired from her journey and the pains of childbirth add even more exhaustion. The night is cold in the desert, but she is sweating, excited about her child, but at the same time nervous about her responsibility.

Think about the moment Christ was born. Picture God, looking down from Heaven at a world caught up in so much sin it could never find its own way out. See the tear in His eye, as He thinks about what He has to do. Watch him as He sets down His crown, leaves His throne, closes His eyes, and descends into our world. When He opens His eyes, He is a baby. A helpless child, needing His mother for food, clothing, and every basic need.

As He looks around His surroundings, it is easy to tell that He is no longer in Heaven. His palace has been replaced with a stable. His throne is a trough that animals once drank out of. His royal robes have been replaced with rags, and His crown has been replaced with human flesh. He breathes in to take in His surroundings and the smell is not pleasant. Animals, straw, fur, and sweat.

The air around Him is cold, and for the first time ever, He shivers. For the first time, He is able to feel pain and discomfort. As a baby, He cannot communicate who He is, nor can He communicate His discomfort, so He does the one and only thing He can do to express His feelings. He cries.

Imagine Joseph, as he holds and comforts the baby for the first time. He knows the child is not his own, but that he must love him and treat him as though he is. What a responsibility he has. How will he ever do it? In his arms, he is holding not just a baby, not just the savior of man, but God Himself, wrapped in human flesh. The thought alone is frightening to Joseph, and as he holds the newborn baby, he says small prayer. “Lord, please don’t let me do any wrong by you. Let my words and actions serve you, so that you may accomplish your earthly task.”

The Shepherds look on in awe of this scene. Here, in this tiny, dark, damp and dingy stable, a helpless child has been born to a poor couple from Nazareth, they are scarcely able to afford their own food and clothing, yet they have been entrusted with this child from Heaven. There are no loud blows of a trumpet, no joyful band of angels, and no lightening flashes or thunder claps. In fact, other than Mary, Joseph, the baby, and the Shepherds, no one else is aware that this child born in Bethlehem is the promised one. To them, the night came and went just like any other ordinary night.

This was no ordinary night though, for on this night, something mysterious and strange had happened. God had traded His throne for a cradle. Not only that, He announced His arrival to two peasants and some shepherds instead of to kings and religious leaders. On this night, God revealed to ordinary people His extraordinary plan. And on this night, God brought hope to the sinful and the common, the poor and the needy. On this night, God showed that His love was for everyone. While there may have been no room at the Inn for Mary and Joseph, this night revealed that there was always room in the place God has prepared in the Kingdom of Heaven.

The Infant King

Was it a cold night? Was there something in the air not felt before? We can only guess what it must have been like. Some people only think about it once a year. Others think about it and know that it means much more than what it seems. How does it make sense, anyway? God’s sinless Son being born in a stable, whose earthly parents are mere working class people? Can you imagine… Jesus Christ being wrapped with the remains of a burlap sack? In many ways, this doesn’t make sense. People everywhere look at this story in history and wonder how God could have allowed this.

Why would God ever want what is perfect and holy to be at the hands of men, and subject to the infirmities of humanity? Christians sing hymns about this beautiful baby…some suggest that the baby Jesus didn’t cry, or made little noise as he lay in the manger. This idea seems to take away from the concept that has become the hope of humanity…that while this baby was fully God, he was fully human…and that he experienced the same joys and trials that you and I go through. And yet, we overlook this. It is hard for us to see that an infant born in such a poor condition has any relevance to us.

Almost 2000 years later…and for what? What does it matter if we recognize this poor family? Were there not others like them? It is possible that other families got turned away for various reasons. The thing that made this family different was not seen by the society they lived in…it was not seen by the people around Mary and Joseph…and it was not seen by the inn keepers. It could only be seen by those who were looked down upon, much in the same way that Jesus was born. Unlikely circumstances. Less than comfortable conditions. So it should not be surprising, then, that an angel of the Lord appears to a bunch of shepherds.

It was more than likely an ordinary night for the shepherds. Did they feel something in the air? Again, we can only guess. They had what most considered to be an unfortunate job…watching their flocks into the morning hours. They had to stay up and keep control over these animals when they were undoubtedly as tired as anybody else. It goes without saying that this was a less-than-respected career. So why would God choose to reveal the birth of The Messiah to a group of shepherds? For all we know, they were standing around discussing the issues of the day…maybe they were talking about the census, and about how many people would be returning to Bethlehem to register.

We find ourselves doing the same thing…we may be standing around talking one day, or just doing our job as normal, when God decides to show up. And who can expect it? Who would have ever thought that God would reveal Himself to the outcasts of Roman society? What makes them worthy of receiving this good news over people with more money or reputation? The answer is amazing. Even today, we think that there are things we can do to get “brownie points” from people…ways we can act, things we can say. But the amazing thing about Jesus’ birth was that he reversed this way of thinking.

No longer do we need to think that doing certain things gets us credit. No longer do we have to be a certain way to get a taste of God’s grace. No longer do we have to be somebody “important” or well-known to really see what God’s purpose is. God’s purpose is to give strength to the weak… hope to the hopeless…and extraordinary love to the ordinary. People talk all the time about how God could have entered this world in any other way. But aren’t we glad that He didn’t? What better way to come into the world?

The way God came to this earth as an infant… subject to every human emotion and
every human environment… shows a greater understanding for what His purpose was… and still is… in the world. Jesus’ circumstances as an infant reveal so much about what he would do as an adult.

In the same way that he was born in humility, he bowed down in service at the feet of his disciples. In the same way that he was born in an unconventional way, he lived a radical life that boggled the minds of even the most “religious” folk of his day. In the same way that God gave Jesus as His gift out of love for His people, Jesus gave himself out of love for us. In the same way that God sent angels to the less-than-accepted shepherds in the middle of the night, He sent Jesus to us…some of us, who are looked down upon…who can not meet other peoples’ expectations… who need one person who understands what it’s like to be in the real world.

Did Jesus cry out that night? Because he was in the real world… the real Son of God, crying out for humanity. If we were not valued by God, in spite of ourselves, Jesus would never have come into the world. But we are. And the thing that we miss…so many times…is that God didn’t just come into our world in passing. He never stayed to amaze the people, and leave again. He had every right. But He wanted to make sure we really understand what it means for us. What does it mean for us today? Some people celebrate Christmas in passing… we are glad God chose to reveal Himself through Jesus… as an infant, reaching out to those who others rejected… but we have to remember what value that should have to us now. When we think about the birth of Jesus, we see an infant… but that infant is now King.

He is no longer a child in the cold world… He fulfilled his ministry on the Earth and is now offering a relationship out of his forgiveness. When we think about Christmas, we have to remember that it starts with a birth, but it ends with a resurrection. The story begins with a passion, and ends with a purpose. The purpose of Christ being born the way He did re-enforces the amazing way He lived his life…and is willing to work in ours today. The Jesus that was an infant is now a King…stretching out His hand from eternity…and asks, “Who do you say I am?”

Why He Came

It could have been so simple. Just a snap of the divine fingers and it could have all been over with. Sin could have been out, grace could have replaced law, and people could have been forgiven on the spot. He created the world, He was certainly powerful enough to change the world and forego the pain. Why then? Why become a man? Why go from royalty to servant-hood? Why the cross? Why did he come? Poetic justice? The creator dying to save his creation? It goes far deeper than that.

The whole beauty of Jesus Christ is that he was God in the flesh, that he became like us and experienced the same things that we do. I’m not sure about you, but I wouldn’t be able to look at my savior the same way had he not been human. What makes a personal relationship with him so unique and significant is that he feels our pain because he has experienced it all himself.

Think what it would be like had God not become flesh and endured the sorrows of human life. God would seem so distant; there would be no assurance that God really understands us. How would we relate to a savior who never knew despair? How could we put full trust in a savior who had never been betrayed? How could we come to him with our stress if he had never experienced affliction? How could we cry out to him during times of trouble if we knew he had never fallen on hard times? God would be almost unapproachable.

He came and experienced our world. He chose to live among us and face the day to day struggles that we do. It is very difficult to turn to a God of power that hasn’t experienced the hardships of our lives; but it is not at all taxing to turn to a God of love that became one of us not just to show us the way, but to show us He understands us. In every situation we can turn to Christ because we know that he has been there before. He has lived a human life.

Jesus has been betrayed.
He has experienced loneliness.
The Almighty has experienced failure and defeat.
Our Redeemer has felt futile, like nothing he did was making a difference.
The Prince of Peace has been weary.
The Bread of Life has been hungry.
The Everlasting Father has been thirsty.
The Man of Sorrows has felt physical pain as well as emotional pain.
The Christ has felt guilt.
The Beloved Son has felt sorrow.
The Author of our Faith has felt temptation.
The Light of the World has felt the loss of a loved one.
The Lamb of God has made sacrifices to benefit others that would hurt himself.
The Creator gave his all and got nothing in return.
The Morning Star did great things only to be thanked by criticism.
The Son of Man has had people he cared about walk out on him.
The Counselor has been angry.
The Good Shepherd has felt the sting of bitterness.
The Holy One has had to bite his tongue and put his foot in his mouth.
Our Deliverer has had to deal with a family that didn’t understand him.
The Rock of Salvation has felt the temptation to run away from his problems.
The Messiah has felt the gut wrenching feelings associated with stress.
The King of the Ages has been argued with and hated.
Jesus had to choose between the urging of the crowd and the voice of the heart.

The list could go on and on, the point is that our savior has felt every bad thing we have ever experienced, every pain and every hurt. That is what adds significance to why he came. Isn’t it comforting to know that Jesus has been in our shoes? Isn’t it refreshing that He who saved us also knows how we feel all the time? There is more though. Not only did Jesus feel all things mentioned before, he experienced the full scope of human existence.

That means that he also smiled and laughed. He teased and joked. Jesus used wit to get out of some trying situations. Jesus could preach to people, but on occasion he had been known to play with them as well. The Lord smiled at the Samaritan woman and laughed with her as she realized who she was talking to. He teased playfully with the Gentile woman who asked for a healing, and when the Pharisees came after him, he was always ready with a clever witticism to keep them guessing.

Not only has he felt pain and sorrow, but he has felt joy and happiness. There is not a time that we can’t go to him, and not a circumstance he won’t understand. Jesus came to show us how to be like God, by being like us. What a savior. What an awesome God. If you’ve ever wondered why he went through all that he did, it all boils down to one thing. He loves you and will go to any length to be near you. Even if it means becoming just like you so that he can know and understand everything about you.

A Message from A Friend

My child,

I have seen you struggling and I know the hardships of your life. I know all that you have been feeling, even the things you wouldn’t dare tell others. I can see beyond the mask you wear. I know the real you, the one behind the mask. The one that’s dying to come out, but reluctant to show its face. I understand your situation better than anybody else and I am willing to help you, if you will only let me.

I know that in the past, others have let you down. I have watched it happen and know how it has affected you. I too, have been let down, so I know exactly how you feel. But I promise that no matter what, I will never let you down. Because I love you, because I care about you, I would never do anything to hurt you. Though you may sometimes hurt me and let me down, I will never do the same to you. My love is greater and goes deeper than any human love. It goes beyond the heart, into the soul, and remains there for eternity.

I realize this may sound hard for you to believe. After all, nobody else has ever cared about you in this way. You probably don’t think anyone is capable of that kind of affection, but I am. If my words do not convince you, my actions surely will.

I could easily have been a king with tons of servants. Instead, I made myself a servant. Even today I am still here to serve. I serve you because I love you. I was the most caring and compassionate person, but instead of being treated the way I treated others, I became the most hated among men. I always cared about everyone and I loved all people, even those who hated me. I was constantly concerned for the well-being of others. Despite this, I was mocked, criticized, and had my dignity stripped from me everywhere I went. Even in my hometown the people I grew up with, who should have understood me, did not and mistreated me. I could have given it all up at any time, but I endured it because I love you.

At the darkest point in my life, one of my friends betrayed me. He put me into the hands of people who would mock me, spit on me, put me on trial, accuse me of crimes I didn’t commit, brutally beat me without reason, and finally, kill me. I went through it all without saying a word. I didn’t argue, I didn’t fight, I didn’t run away. I suffered because I love you.

I went through all of that so that you could have life, but not just life like you have right now. I died so that you could have eternal life. Sin is what has always stopped people from having everlasting life, but I took the sin of the world on my back. The blood that I shed washed over all the sins, so that all my people could be free from the sin that has held them captive for years. I did this because I am able to see the good in everything and everyone. I died not only for the sins of those who loved me and cared about me, but for those who killed me too. I died not only for the people living at that time, but for their children, and their children’s children. I died for everyone including you.

I know you have your problems. We all do. Over the years, people have searched in many places for solutions to their problems. Some have turned to drugs, others to religion. Some have surrounded themselves in their music, others have tried to drink their problems away. Some have turned to psychics, while others have looked to dead-end relationships. None of these things has ever answered the questions they seek. None of these has ever ridden them of their problems. In many cases, these solutions were not solutions at all, and only added to the problem.

But those who have come to me have been given peace. It is a peace, unlike any other, that goes beyond all understanding. I have given them rest for their weary souls and I am willing to take their burdens on my back if they are only willing to let go of their pressures, and give them to me.

Everything I have done for them I will gladly do for you, if only you will come to me. I don’t ask that you walk thousands of miles in the sweltering heat of the sun, across rocky terrain. It isn’t a long journey. You don’t have to change yourself or make yourself perfect. I will help you and be your friend, and I will love you, just as you are.

Once you come to me, that is when the true journey begins. I will pick up where you left off and lead you to safety. Not only will I help you pick up the pieces to your life, I will fit them together and help you realize who you were meant to be. I can show you things you’ve never seen before and I can take you beyond your wildest dreams. So often people say that they wish life were easier, that they wish there was a guide to show them where to go. I am that guide. Only instead of showing you where to go, I will take you there. I’ll always be here, ready and waiting to lead you whenever you become unable to lead yourself. I will be right beside you when the road is smooth and when it gets rough.

I know you may not be ready for me right now. But I want you to know that when you are ready, I will be there just the same as I am today. I will wait for you forever, without becoming impatient or angry. Though you may not feel important to anyone else, you are important to me. You are more important to me than anything else. Come with me, I promise you will never want or need to go back, and you will be having the time of your life. Come to me, and I promise I will be with you always, even to the end of the age. I never break my promises and I never lie. I’m am always here for you.

Your Savior and Friend,
Jesus Christ

Immanuel: God With Us

Immanuel. In Hebrew it means “God With Us.” (“El,” means God and Immanu means “with us.”) It is a name we don’t invoke often. In most cases, pastors pull out this name and dust it off every year at Christmas, and we talk about the birth of Christ and the Christmas star, and the wise men and the promise made in the Old Testament being fulfilled. After Christmas, we go on about our lives and we don’t often think about the implications of Christ’s arrival. The name Immanuel, given only twice, once in Isaiah, and once in Matthew, compels us to focus on those implications.

“His name shall be called Immanuel.” If Isaiah had written that in modern day English, it would read, “He will be called God among us.” This revelation, given 700 years before Christ, was unfathomable to its hearers. Even today, people have a difficult time accepting this idea that God who created the universe would actually become a man and walk among us. When Jesus came, the religious leaders accused him of blasphemy for claiming to fulfill this prophecy.

The prophecy, found in Isaiah 7:14, sets this child apart from others. It signifies that there is something inherently different about this baby. This child will not be your ordinary human, this unique child will one day be called God. He will be the Almighty clothed in the flesh and blood of a mortal man.

The idea of God With Us, while unbelievable, is not unheard of. God was with us once before. At the dawn of creation, in a garden that He planted, God walked among the first two members of the human family. Creator and creation were together and the world was for a brief season the way it should be.

The sin of Adam and Eve created a chasm between us and God, it drove us away from God, in such a way that no act of man could ever bring us back into His presence. God was with us in the beginning before sin entered the garden, and at the moment of our sin, God promised He would one day be with us again, that the offspring of the woman would crush the head of the serpent.

God didn’t demand that we come to Him. Instead, He promised that He would return to give us freedom from the sin we invited into the world. For us to be with God, we would have to be righteous. We would have to go to a righteous and perfect place. We would have to do something that we are not capable of doing. But for God to be with us, it means God would have to traverse the chasm and come into our sin. The Holy of Holies would have to put Himself into a world infected with a curse. The strongest being in the universe would have to enter our weak and pathetic state to make it possible for us to come home.

That’s the spiritual reality of the name Immanuel, but there are also physical realities behind this concept. The hands that worked in his earthly father’s carpentry shop would have had real finger prints at their tips. The feet that walked the desert sand would have left real footprints. The man who claimed to posses divinity would have a real impact on the world.

The “great physician” who laid his hands on those whom he healed, would carry the physical touch of God. When He cried in Gethsemane, the tears were real, not mythical. God cried real tears. God felt real pain. The blood that was shed on that cross was pumping through the veins of the very one who initiated all sacrifices. The heart that was pierced was the heart of the Master. God left the world of “spirituality” and “philosophy” and entered our physical reality. He became flesh and blood. He was just as real as you and me. The one who hovered over the waters in the beginning of time walked thousands of miles across desert terrain He is no longer the voice on the mountain top, the writing on the tablets or the source of a divine message. He is the God who bridged the gap between Heaven and earth and touched His creation.

But we can’t stop at the reality of Christ’s incarnation. “God With Us” is just as important to us today, as it is in Scripture. The name Immanuel is not just a commentary on the incarnation. Because God does not change, the Immanuel of scripture is the God who is with us still. God is with us in our day to day struggles and in our triumphs. He is with you at work, He is with you when you are at home, He is with you when you sin and He is with you when you ask forgiveness. The gap has been bridged, and the God who entered the world 2,000 years ago as a carpenter, enters the everyday life of His people today.

God is among us. He is among us in His church and through His people. He is among us through the gentle leading of the Holy Spirit. He is with us through His Word, and He is with us through our prayers. This is not a distant God who waits for you to mess up and punishes you heftily for it. This is the God who saw you mess up and came to pay your debt. This is the God who has a name and who had a physical appearance, who talked about love and called His followers friends. This is the God who bridged the gap. “God With Us” made it possible for us to be with God.

What If Jesus Was Superficial?

When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him with criminals, one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said…

Father, I can not forgive that man down there in the front.
He has too much facial hair.
That guy beside him can’t be forgiven either.
He has a serious problem with body odor.
That woman just a few feet from the man with the chipped teeth,
I have heard some ugly rumors about her. No forgiveness there.
That man below me is a Centurion.
I don’t like his occupation, so there will be no forgiveness for him either.
There’s a woman down there who’s hair is too short.
And her husband’s hair is too long. That’s not right, no forgiveness.
That lovely lady next to the tax collector wears too much jewelry.
I will not forgive her for being so flashy.
The girl next to her is filthy.
And cleanliness is next to Godliness, so I can’t forgive her either.
God only helps those who help themselves,
So that beggar over there receives no forgiveness.
I will not forgive that helpless child laying on the ground.
He has too many deformities.
His playmate is too young to understand the mysteries of God
And his grandfather is too senile to understand anything.
I can not forgive any of these.
There’s a boy over there under the shade that is too tall.
And four feet below him is a grown man who is too short.
That person by the rock with the scroll is a nerd.
I can’t forgive anyone that society frowns on.
It just wouldn’t look right.
That man who carried the cross for me when I fell…
His skin is too dark.
And that man on the opposite side of the crowd who wouldn’t go near him,
His skin is too light.
All of those Gentiles make me sick
They are not the chosen ones
I will not forgive anyone who is a different race than I am.
That gentleman down there has a tattoo
That lady beside him is pierced in strange places
I refuse forgiveness to that man with the beady eyes.
I just can’t trust him.
And that one next to him with the blood shot eyes.
He looks like he is on drugs, so you can forget about him.
This one’s nose is too big.
This one doesn’t have a chin.
This one’s too fat.
This one over here is too skinny.
That one over there has big ears.
That one one’s got a crooked smile.
This one has bad breath, I can smell it from up here.
This one hasn’t bathed in a week.
This one doesn’t know who her father is.
That one doesn’t know how to dress.
Those people over there are poor.

On and on and on Christ went, calling out every error that the people below had no control over. It was now about the sixth hour and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour when Jesus finished. For the sun stopped shining, and the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit, let’s start over on another planet.”

Some of you may be wondering why anyone would write something about Jesus being superficial. Some of you already see why. This is written to show people what they may be guilty of in their own lives. There is nothing more revolting than Christians, who claim to know the Bible, say they live in the Lord, and then continuously judge people based on standards that are cruel rather than biblical. We’ve all seen it happen. People go into church and rather than watch the preacher they are watching the people in the congregation, seeing what jewelry they wear, how they dress, how they look. Making sure they “look” like a Christian. That isn’t what our faith is all about. It is about the love of God, which sees the heart, not the outside. The question I would like each of you to think about is this:

If Jesus had been as superficial as you are, when he died upon the cross, would you have received forgiveness?

3 Years That Changed The World

Three years is not even a full term for a United States President. It is the time that a child is in middle school. It isn’t a long time. Married couples who are in their third year of marriage are still considered newly weds, and a three-year-old child can barely walk and talk. The American Revolution lasted from 1776 to 1783, and it took a little longer before the new government was finally seated.

It’s hard to fathom that in just three years’ time, Jesus could have made the profound impact that he did on the world. In just a little more than 1,000 days, a carpenter from a tiny blip on the map known as Nazareth, managed to throw the world into an uproar.

Some loved him, some hated him, and those in power wanted him dead. Entire revolutions that change countries take longer than that, and yet, Jesus ignited a firestorm that would change the entire world.

In such a short time, this man from Galilee healed the sick, raised the dead, redefined people’s thinking about the nature of God, planted the seeds of a new religion, and started a revolution that has well withstood the test of time. There are churches on every street corner now as a result of events that took place over the course of three years 2,000 years ago.

No other man in history has had that much impact in such a short time. To use the earlier example of a U.S. President, who serves a 4-year term, even the shortest-lived presidencies need time to build a legacy. We always rely on history to tell us who the greatest leaders of our country were. First century Jerusalem was immediately dealing with Christ’s legacy, because not only did he change the world, but he rose from the dead. It would have been easy to settle the revolution that was early Christianity, by simply pointing to a dead body, but no such body could be found.

His impact was so widely felt, that 2,000 years later people are still debating about Him, still investigating Him, and still following Him. Perhaps the reason Jesus has had more of an impact than any other man over a short period of time is because He wasn’t merely a man. He claimed to be God, and while His impact alone doesn’t prove that claim, it certainly makes it worth looking into.

Perhaps the reason He is still making an impact is because He is still alive.