Paradoxes About Jesus
Posted by jerrywhite on Dec 29, 2008
“Jesus was the Bread of Life, and he commenced His ministry by suffering hunger.
He was the Water of Life and He commenced His ministry by suffering from thirst.
He suffered from hunger, being man, yet He fed the multitudes.
He suffered from thirst and He said, ‘If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink.’
He was weary and He said, ‘Come unto me, all You that labor and are heavy laden.’
He was exhausted and He is our rest.
He paid tribute and yet He was the King.
People said of Him, ‘He has a devil,’ and He expelled the demons.
He prayed and He answers prayers.
He wept and He dries our tears.
He was sold for thirty pieces of silver and He has redeemed the world.
He was made prisoner and He has said to the captives, ‘Come forth.’
He was brought as a lamb to the slaughter and He is the Good Shepherd.
He was dumb as a sheep before her shearers and He is the Eternal Word.
He is a Man of sorrows and He heals our afflictions.
He was crucified and died upon the tree, and it is by that tree that He gives us life.
He died and by His death He destroyed death.”
H. Henniger
Source Unknown
~~~
This is he of whom I [John the Baptist] said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’
John 1:30 (ESV)
~~~
“O Lord, You’re beautiful! Your face is all I seek.”
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A Savior Born
Posted by jerrywhite on Dec 25, 2008
Let the stable still astonish:
Straw—dirt floor, dull eyes,
Dusty flanks of donkeys, oxen;
Crumbling, crooked walls;
No bed to carry that pain,
And then, the child,
Rag-wrapped, laid to cry
In a trough.
Who would have chosen this?
Who would have said, “Yes,
Let the God of all the heavens
And earth
Be born here, in this place?”
Who but the same God
Who stands in the darker, fouler rooms
Of our hearts and says, “Yes, let the God
Of Heaven and Earth be born here—
In this place.”
Leslie Leyland Fields
~~~
That the Creator Himself would be born as a creature in a stable is astonishing, but that He would actually come to live inside His followers by His Spirit is incomprehensible. That the Lord Jesus is all the fullness of God in a body is unfathomable, but that we as His believers have this very same fullness in Him is staggering (Colossians 2:9-10). What difference would it make to us if we really believed that we have all of His fullness in our very selves—that we are literally the temple of His Holy Spirit—that He is truly closer to us than our own breath—that we are as one with the Lord Jesus as He is with His Father? For this miraculous Gift I praise you, O God! I receive it with deep thankfulness. I marvel at how You love me!
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The Humble One Exalted
Posted by jerrywhite on Dec 22, 2008
“See the different state of Christ on earth and in heaven. Oh how is the scene altered!
When he was on earth, he lay in a manger; now he sits on a throne.
Then he was hated and scorned of men; now he is adored by angels.
Then his name was reproached; now ‘God hath given him a name above every name.’
Then he came in the form of a servant, and as a servant, stood with his basin and towel, and washed his disciples’ feet; now he is clad in his princes’ robe, and kings of the earth cast their crowns before him.
On earth he was a man of sorrows; now he is anointed with the oil of gladness.
On earth was his crucifixion; now his coronation.
Then his Father frowned upon him in desertion; now he has set him at His right hand.
Before, he seemed to have no form or beauty in him; now he is in the brightness of his Father’s glory.
Oh what a change is here! ‘Him hath God highly exalted.’
Thomas Watson
Body of Divinity
~~~
And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2:8-11 (ESV)
~~~
Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory, and honor and power.
Revelation 4:11, ESV
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Humiliation
Posted by jerrywhite on Dec 18, 2008
“The word became flesh! God became human! The invisible became visible! The untouchable became touchable! Eternal life experienced temporal death! The transcendent one descended and drew near! The unlimited became limited! The infinite became finite! The immutable became mutable! The unbreakable became fragile! Spirit became matter! Eternity entered time! The independent became dependent! The almighty became weak! The loved became the hated! The exalted was humbled! Glory was subjected to shame! Fame turned into obscurity! From inexpressible joy to tears of unimaginable grief! From a throne to a cross! From ruler to being ruled! From power to weakness!”
Sam Storms
Pleasures Evermore, p. 154
~~~
Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.
1 Timothy 3:16 (ESV)
~~~
Someone has said that man aspires but God condescends. The eternal Son of God could have come in any way He chose, but He chose the lowest way, which expresses His pure humble character. Who were the first to be told about the Savior’s birth? Angels announced the Christ child’s birth to lowly shepherds, not proud aristocracy, world leaders, or even religious leaders. Shepherds were the first ones directed to go see the baby who was the Savior. God reveals Himself and His truth to those who are like “little children,” not to the wise and understanding. This is His gracious will (Matthew 11:25-26). If we want to experience the Lord Jesus and His truth revealed to our heart, He has made known the way. The way is to come before the Humble One with all humility. To the humble He dispenses grace.
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Divine Paradox
Posted by jerrywhite on Dec 15, 2008
“The omnipotent, in one instant, made himself breakable. He who had been spirit became pierceable. He who was larger than the universe became an embryo. And he who sustains the world with a word chose to be dependent upon the nourishment of a young girl.
God as a fetus. Holiness sleeping in a womb. The creator of life being created.
God was given eyebrows, elbows, two kidneys, and a spleen. He stretched against the walls and floated in the amniotic fluids of his mother.
God had come near.
He came, not as a flash of light or as an unapproachable conqueror, but as one whose first cries were heard by a peasant girl and a sleepy carpenter. The hands that first held him were unmanicured, calloused, and dirty.
No silk. No ivory. No hype. No party. No hoopla.
Were it not for the shepherds, there would have been no reception. And were it not for a group of stargazers, there would have been no gifts.”
Max Lucado
God Came Near, pp. 25-26
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And they [the shepherds] went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.
Luke 2:16 (ESV)
~~~
Quiet reflection upon this phenomenal event is required if this overly familiar account of Jesus’ birth is to become a living reality in your heart. It is easy for this story heard many times before to be no more than a child’s make believe story that makes you feel good.
The angels praised God. The shepherds glorified and praised God. The wise men bowed before Him, worshiped Him, and gave gifts to Him. When the truth of Christmas is real to us we will have the same response of wonder and worship. We can give a gift that will honor this Humble One whom we call Savior and Lord. We can give a measure of time from our busy schedules to meditate upon this incarnation truth until it is deeply real to our souls.
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