He wasn’t coerced, manipulated, bribed, or threatened to leave his lofty throne and live among a bunch of peasants.
This wasn’t some slapdash, haphazard, last minute plan to save humanity. There was no plan B, no alternate ending.
Our Immanuel was not the victim of some cosmic bait & switch in which He would unwittingly become a reluctant sacrifice for all sin. Nor was He some shrewd operator who was promised Universal Kinghood in exchange for His blood.
He was not a Heavenly escapee who would eventually be executed by a vengeful God for His crime.
Israel’s Messiah was not some imitator whose lofty words & claims couldn’t be substantiated.
He didn’t shed His Godhood as a prerequisite for His demotion to earth.
There was nothing spectacular about His earthly parents, His place of birth, or His upbringing.
There was no person, palace, or playground worthy of His presence.
Yet, He came.
In His Heavenly role, there were no restrictions of time and space. On earth, a suit of flesh physically limited His comings and goings.
He was the embodiment of the Word of God¬ spoken from eternity past–ageless, pre-existent, eternal in nature.
He was present at creation.
He walked with Adam, spoke face-to-face with Abraham, wrestled with Jacob, and had conversations with Moses.
He encouraged Joshua; spoke to Job out of a whirlwind, and walked in the midst of a fiery furnace with three Hebrew boys.
However, it was His ministry as the God-man that changed the course of human history.
That was the plan all along.
An angelic host, a handful of shepherds, and some wise men from a far country lauded his incarnation. His very presence threatened governments, religion, and evil.
His adolescence and early adult life are never spoken of, but the world could not contain the amount of books chronicling every event of His final three years of life.
Many celebrated his death, but His resurrection over 2,000 years ago is still the hope of the entire world.
The story didn’t start in a manger. And it didn’t end with an empty tomb.
This Saviour-Messiah’s story is far from finished.
Just as they waited for His first appearance, so we wait with bated breath for the encore.
The next time around, He won’t come to a stable. He won’t be an adorable baby lying in a feeding trough. It won’t take angels, shepherds, or wise men to publicize the event.
The first time He came as Immanuel. The next time we see Him, He’ll be King.
This Christmas, keep Him central. Tell His story. Celebrate His first coming.
But don’t forget, this story is to-be-continued.
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