When I was first saved, friends would ask "What changed the most?" Beyond the newfound righteous standing, my answer was always the same. "The definition of certain words. Joy, peace, hope, love; they're no longer defined by me, the world or Webster's dictionary. They've been reauthored and underwritten by the creator of the world Himself. They don’t suffer my limitations." My countenance assured most listeners this was very real. The kingdom does that, it changes everything. The kingdom flips the script. The unusual becomes the powerful.
In the kingdom...
We take our greatest stand... on our knees.
We bow our heads... to connect upward.
Our strength comes... from our weakness.
We are fullest... when we are empty.
We are most alive... when we live crucified.
And when we lay down the nets of our lives forsaking all things and seek first the kingdom of God, the fullness of the provision and the purpose of life is multiplied beyond what we could ever imagined on our own.
This is Kingdom dynamics 101. Empty to fill. Give to receive. Let go to attain.
On this day, some 2023 years ago, when the world had no hope, when the bill for our sin was beyond anyone's means to pay, God decided to send help. In the face of a mighty dilemma who would He send? Would He raise up a standing King? A warrior? A powerful strategist? No, He sent the child. A baby in fact.
When it mattered most, God sent His son incarnate, not as a fully grown, ready for ministry 30 year old, or as a young man teaching in the temple. He could have done that, but He didn't. He sent Him as a baby so He could live the life that we live. So He could overcome what we could not, demonstrate a model for love that we could never have imagined and provide an opportunity for salvation that we could never have earned on our own. He would do this work from the cross. But it started in the manger. It started when God sent the child.
Seems like such a quaint tale to tell. A child in a manger saves the world. But this is how we know it is Him. He didn't send the powerbroker to overcome, He sent the compassionate. He sent the King in swaddling clothing to begin the reign where the unusual is the most powerful solution. He sent the child.