Each year around Christmas I use my daily reflection time to think of something especially pertinent to the miraculous arrival of Jesus to earth as a babe in Bethlehem and His subsequent impact as the Saviour of the world.
In previous years I have written about the Santa deception, God's plan and provision to take away the sin of the world, the use of BC and AD to divide our calendar, and so on.
This year my Christmas thoughts have focused on another purpose God had in sending His Son, Jesus Christ, into our world - to show us what God is like.
Jesus himself declared this aspect of his role:
"The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me."
[John 12 : 45 NIV]
This was affirmed by other writers in the New Testament:
The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being,
[Hebrews 1 : 3a NIV]
The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
[Colossians 1 : 15 NIV]
Even so, some close disciples were slow to grasp this. Here is part of a 'Jesus-disciple' conversation recorded by John:
Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?"
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
"If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him."
Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."
Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time?
Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?" [John 14 : 5 - 9 NIV]
Prior to Jesus' arrival on our planet, people had mixed views about what God was like. The Law and the Prophetical writings in the Old Testament provided some insights but were limited and sometimes quite inconsistent.
To demonstrate the superior witness of Jesus over that of the Old Testament writings, we could look at that miraculous event played out on what we often call Mount Transfiguration, recorded in Matthew 17, Mark 9 and Luke 9.
Moses (representing the Law) and Elijah (representing the Prophets) were seen with Jesus on the mountain by Peter, James and John. When Peter offered to build shelters for Moses, Elijah and Jesus to show equal honour and respect for them, a cloud removed Moses and Elijah, and a voice from the cloud declared:
This is my Son, whom I love; with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him!
Matthew 17 : 5 NIV]
Equal honour was not to be assumed or given. Jesus is the Son.
No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.
[John 1 : 18 NIV]
Listen to him! He knows God perfectly, far better than Moses and Elijah.
Although the Bible teaches us much about God, it really is pointing us to Jesus who is "the exact representation of his being".
This Christmas let's offer God thanks for his Son, the Bethlehem babe, who takes away the sins of the world, and resolve to listen to him as he reveals the God of love and mercy to us.
Blessings, Barry
