33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! 34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?” 35 “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?” 36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.
38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Enthroned in splendor and majesty, unearthly in its magnificence, His pure glory veiled from mankind’s eyes. Surrounded by thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly all gathered together singing His praises. Eternally rich, gloriously exalted, flawlessly perfect. Indescribable beauty. “Holy, holy, holy” the refrain resounds. Perfect paradise indeed.
The Lord Jesus acquiesces to condescend, stooping down from His majesty, leaving His glorious splendor to don the cloak of a mere servant and the created is filled with the Creator. Paradise for poverty. The promise became the Person. The Holy Seed becomes the Stump of hope in the barren land. Born into the muck and mire of our fallen humanity, Perfect Purity came to reside. Earths’ best to offer not worthy of heaven’s least and yet He goes further still. The Christ child was born in a stable amidst the smells and the sounds of the barnyard. A feeding trough for animals held the Creator. No fancy linens, no beautifully adorned clothing, simply a cloth wrapped around His flesh. How in the world did that mere flesh of a baby boy contain the great I AM? The God Who spoke all creation into being stooped down to be with me and to be with you. The Word made flesh and dwelt among us. He Who formed the womb placed Himself in the womb, He Who spoke the world into being, came and walked in the world on a mission to save those languishing in the world. The world was never His home, heaven is. The world was not worthy of Him. Neither were we.
Two natures in the person – Deity espousing manhood so that mankind may be redeemed. The perfect Lamb to take away the sins of the earth. This truth would ravish our hearts forever if we could fully comprehend the breadth and depth and height and width of the love behind the action. What other possible motive could have prompted this incarnation – what could have made Glory walk this dusty earth, separate Himself from the Triune God for the benefit of mankind’s redemption if it were not pure love? There is no greater love than this that a man would lay down his life for his friend. What love is this, the strangest of all acts of condescending love? The Creator comes to His creation. The fullness of the Godhead in bodily form, Who did not considered equality with God something to be grasped but rather made Himself nothing taking the very nature of a servant being made in human likeness and being found in appearance as a mere man, the I AM came to be with us. He not only came to be with us, He came to die to save us. He came to demonstrate to us how to walk as He did. He came to loose the chains of injustice which held us tightly bound, to untie the cords of the yoke of sin and set us – the oppressed - free and to break every yoke of bondage. We who once walked in darkness have now seen a great Light. The Child has been born, the Son has been given. The government He carries on His shoulders and He is called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Our despair now gives way to hope. Hope deferred makes one’s heart sick but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. Comfort, comfort My people says your God. Speak tenderly to them and proclaim to them that their hard service has been completed, their sins have been paid for. This is really very Good News – For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Don’t let the tinsel and lights of this Christmas distract you from the True Light Who, for love, freely gives life in abundance to all who will trust in Him. In Him was life and that life was the light of men.
MERRY CHRISTMAS
BETH YOE