Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given.
1 Samuel 17:41 Goliath walked out toward David with his shield bearer ahead of him, sneering in contempt at this ruddy-faced boy.
The suffering Jews had been disappointed when needing a champion and getting a child. “For unto us a child is born.” What? A child? The Roman Empire with their Caesar’s were a world power; wielding military, political and cultural power with incredible cruelty. Their own temple leaders were so corrupt that oppression and the unfair collection of the temple tax was their game too. What kind of strategy did heaven have in mind when they dismissed the idea of sending a King, a General or an Emperor? Why not borrow a page from the Greek mythology playbook and send a fierce Zeus like god to breath fire and wreak havoc on the abusers of the weak and marginalized?
This reminds me of an earlier time in Israel’s history when a Philistine giant named Goliath stared down Israel’s finest as they cowered in fear for their lives, shouting “Send me a MAN to fight!.” Goliath, the picture of Satan, who stands over us to condemn us was insulted when Israel sent a child to face him down. In the words of scripture, God sent a “ruddy-faced boy.” This is God’s way and, don’t knock it because it works.
A short cut for humanity would have been for God to send a warrior but God is not into shortcuts. God’s into everlasting solutions. Humanity needs a High Priest who can represent us before both heaven and hell to remove forever the threat of eternal annihilation. To be a priest, our savior had to grow up as we grow up, be small and vulnerable like us. God had to become one of us before we could become of Him. A military, cultural or political victory might have lasted a couple of hundred years or maybe even a thousand years but by this 21st century, anything but a God who became “us” would have been a mere memory with some relics to fill a museum. As it is, we don’t have a museum of a former dynasty called Christianity, but a living Church that will number millions which fill cathedrals, fields, and church facilities to worship “THE CHILD,” this Christmas Eve. Hallelujah!
So, the next time you pray for powerful miraculous deliverance and instead you get a small comforting presence, don’t take it as defeat, but rejoice that with God small is big. Celebrate again that a “child is born” and a “son is given.”
Merry Christmas Everyone!
Pastor Phil
