This morning I awoke 2 hours before the alarm sounded. I began thinking about Jesus and the season of advent. I started paging through my Bible and found a couple of verses that made me appreciate Jesus even more. And it made me meditate on whether I am enjoying all He has done.
Check these out:
Philippians 2:7 ‘[Jesus]…emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.”
and
Galatians 4:5 “[God sent Jesus]… to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.”
Note: Let me try to remove a stumbling block before I go forward. “Adoption as sons” in that day meant that men and women were given the place and privilege of the son that would inherit all of Dad’s stuff. So, instead of relegating women to an inferior status, the promise lifts all of us to equal footing in our relationship with Christ.
In reading these two verses together, we see the means and the meaning of Jesus’ coming.
THE SON BECAME A SERVANT, SO THE SERVANTS COULD BECOME SONS.
I love that line! Sit on it for a bit. What is the difference between a servant and a son (or child with full status)? Servants are humiliated, their lives are sacrifices, their lot is suffering. Children belong, their hope is inheritance, and in the household they are free.
What a wonderful gift, that the Son of God would become the servant, so we could become real children in the household of God.
I don’t know about you, but this makes me wonder why I’m not aware of this gift more often? How is it I feel more like a slave? I feel like I don’t belong. I often feel like I’m just trying to get it right so God will like me. How do we move from the slave-life, to the life as His child?
- Don’t live at a distance from God. Come to him. Trust in what Christ did for me, for the world – everyday! Turn, repent, confess, call, trust, pray, listen, follow. In other words, reorient your thoughts and ways around Him.
- Be lifted by the hope he gives. The kingdom is yours in Christ. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who mourn, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:5). It IS! Not, it will be. It belongs to you, if you belong to Christ.
- Don’t ensnare yourself again to the things that want to keep you enslaved. Steer away, let go, run from the demands, and the expectations, and the empty promises of the kingdoms of this world.
Jesus came, humiliating himself. He served our needs. He opened the door. He called us to follow. Embrace Him and the life He gives. The Son became a servant, so the servants (like you and me) can become sons.
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