December 2 Christ
“For Christ is born”
Pray
Lord Christ, Master and Maker of all, Pioneer and Perfecter of my faith, You gave everything for me; may I live for You alone. Amen.
Read – Mark 8:29
"But what about you?" Jesus asked. "Who do you say I am?" Peter answered, "You are the Christ."
Reflect
For centuries the Jews had waited for the coming of the Messiah, the anointed One. Greek-speaking Jews looked for Him as the Christ, the One on whom God’s Spirit had fallen. He would be the Overcomer, the One who would destroy the citadel of evil. He would be the One who would restore the Kingdom of David; Israel would be great once more. No longer would the children of Abraham be forced to march to the drumbeat of a foreign oppressor. It was, ultimately, a dream of freedom, of the restoration of a sovereign nation, and of a unique, covenant relationship with the God of Jacob.
In their political dreams, the Jews failed to see that the oppression Jesus had come to destroy was the stranglehold of sin. The Kingdom, which the long-awaited Christ would re-establish, was not Solomon’s empire; it was the City of God. The irony is, of course, that if Jesus had been successful as a freedom fighter in first century Palestine, His name would be no more than a footnote in the pages of history. Christ came to do so much more than to liberate a slice of real estate. He came to overcome the oppression and alienation of sin, and to reconcile our hearts to the living God. That’s why our response to His call is so vitally important today.
No comments:
Post a Comment