December 12, 2107
“For a child has been born—for us! the gift of a son—for us! He’ll take over the running of the world. His names will be: Amazing Counselor, Strong God, Eternal Father, Prince of Wholeness. His ruling authority will grow, and there’ll be no limits to the wholeness he brings.” Isaiah 9:6-7 The Message
Why was Jesus such a threat? Everything written about him ends with hope .. a future .. redemption .. a fresh start .. restored lives .. forgiveness .. homecoming .. and promise. All injustices will be sentenced. Everyone and everything will receive what is due. What is owed is incalculable. You don’t have enough to cover what you owe. It doesn’t matter how well you have done or how much you have accumulated. God decided to level the playing field. It was just your normal ordinary miraculous birth. How could one baby expose such chaos? One child .. holding everything together .. holding you together .. defines what kind of life you are going to live. He grew up and conquered without an army. You never saw the battle but you’ve experienced and felt the war. It was inside you all the time. And if you multiply it by everyone you see, you begin to glimpse how this child-Son could threaten every system on earth. Something had to be done …
We had to have him put away, For what if he’d grown vicious? To play faith healer, give away stale bread and stinking fishes! His soapbox preaching set the tongues, of all the neighbors going. Odd stuff: how lilies never spin and birds don’t bother sowing. Why, bums were coming to the door— His pockets had no bottom—And then-the foot-wash from that whore! We signed. They came and got him.*
This Son is your hope .. future .. redemption .. fresh start .. restored life .. forgiven .. homecoming .. and promise. Believing makes you dangerous. It only takes a moment…
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For everything was created by him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and by him all things hold together.” Colossians 1:15-17 Christian Standard
Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent to Ordinary followers of Jesus. *A Scandal in the Suburbs by X.J. Kennedy
