Skip to main content

Christ Came for the poor and lowly. A poor man's Christ.

 Christ came for the poor and lowly. God choose to leave Heaven's riches and became a human being for us, in the person of Jesus Christ. I have been listening to sermons throughout this Christmas season and being mindful of the story of the birth of Jesus and what the bible has to say about it. One of the stories that has been in my mind is the Angels announcing the birth of the Messiah to the shepherds keeping watch of their sheep by night, (Luke 2:8-14) And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9An angel of the LORD appeared to them, and the glory of the LORD shone around them, and they were terrified. 10But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the LORD. 12This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." 13Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14"Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests." During that time the job of a shepherd was a lowly position, it was a job for someone who was less educated but had an understanding of life that maybe some of the other people in society didn't have. Jesus's parents found no room for them in the inn, as Mary was about to give birth to Jesus, and God designed it that Jesus was to be born in a stable, or a cave as they were back then. Jesus was born in a humble way because his parents were poor, and the shepherds were poor as well. God was and is trying to tell us that all of the circumstances surrounding the birth of Christ indicated that He (Jesus) was and is Lord not just of the rich, but of the poor specifically too. His birth tells us a story that the Son of God choose to be born in poverty, and God including the poor shepherds as the first to be told of the Saviour's birth by the angels, include all humanity, no one excluded. When society shuns certain people, the shepherds show us that God shuns no one. All are included especially those that people tend to look down on in society. Yes, there were wise men who celebrated the birth of Jesus, and Jesus received fancy gifts from them, however these gifts were for a king and Jesus had to be celebrated in this way. When those in society have nothing to celebrate, or nothing to hope for, God offers us His Son. There are no conditions on salvation, God just asks us to believe and have faith. This is Mike.
The story of Christmas is about God revealing Himself to certain people, and showing us that Jesus was just as much human, but sinless of course. God identified with his people with the incarnation, and asks us to identify with Christ in all of God's humanity in Jesus. He invites the poor, the forsaken, the outcasts to come to the banquet and feast upon the risen Lord, who took on the form of man, as a baby.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Some Bible Verses on Money.

  Bible verses about money. I bet you didn’t think the bible said that? Proverbs 23:5 When you glance at wealth, it disappears, for it makes wings for itself and flies like an eagle to the sky.  1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. Proverbs 13:11 Wealth quickly gained is quickly wasted — easy come, easy go! But if you gradually gain wealth, you will watch it grow. Psalm 62:10 Don’t make your living by extortion or put your hope in stealing. And if your wealth increases, don’t make it the centre of your life. Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Ecclesiastes 11:1 Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Malachi 3:10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that
Post a Comment
Read more

How Believing in God Changes Your Perspective on Time.

  When you have an awareness of the Divine your perspective on time changes. Uncertainty can be the cause of a lack of belief in God. In generations past our culture has had more of an awareness of God and lived with more certainty. The bible is not just a story book for the present moment, it contains the past, the present, and the future in it. The Holy Spirit can give us a perspective that holds the past, the present, and the future, and allows us to see God’s whole picture, despite what we may be feeling or experiencing around us or in our lives.   Trials and persecution can make it difficult to see the whole picture, but I believe that it’s a gift of God to live with this perspective. Unbelief can hinder us from “seeing it all” and insecurities and weaknesses can also disable us from living with this certainty. Also the fear of death, or impending doom, can erase God’s perspective of the future, because our minds get clouded with fear, and we are not able to perceive reality prope
Post a Comment
Read more

Why has the church lost its capacity and power?

  The church has modernized itself and in the process has lost something very valuable. It has lost its capacity to be personable. The way we reach lost souls is by seeing them, by getting to know them, and by recognizing them, but people are getting lost in the church. The church has become a busy place and is also becoming a less holy place. To make disciples we have to get to know people, and technology in the church is depersonalizing souls, and depersonalizing God for them. Faith becomes a marketable commodity, whereas in the past, churches and their leaders nourished and valued personal faith. While faith is still valued, it’s becoming something that is marketable, which reminds me of the story of Jesus in the temple turning over tables (Matthew 21:12-17). The problem isn’t that the church doesn’t work or doesn’t want to share the gospel, it could be how we are doing it. The church is currently being run like a business, and each Christian metaphorically speaking has a profit val
Post a Comment
Read more