Why the Nativity? by David Jeremiah

Author:David Jeremiah [Jeremiah, David]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: RELIGION / Holidays / Christmas & Advent, RELIGION / Christian Living / Spiritual Growth
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
Published: 2021-09-07T00:00:00+00:00

Question 13

WHY DID JESUS COME

AS A BABY?

In those first speechless moments, new parents gaze with fascination. They lovingly examine every inch of their newborn child’s face.

No matter how we prepare ourselves, the reality of new birth astounds us. Here, nestled in our arms, is a brand-new member of the human race. Here is the future in flesh; our legacy to the world. We check eyes, mouth, ears for telltale family resemblances; we marvel at the delicate dewy skin. Most of all, we silently thank the Lord over and over for a gift so unimaginably wonderful.

Can you imagine how intently Joseph and Mary must have studied the Child who came to them in Bethlehem? His coming had been foretold not by physicians but by angels. If those angels were right—and how could they not be?—here in the starlight was a Messiah who had been the subject of poems, songs, and dreams for a thousand years. Messiah: perhaps the couple stammered when they tried to speak the M-word aloud. It was just so hard to imagine such a magnificent personification when they looked at the sleeping infant.

After all, everyone knew (or thought they knew) that the Messiah would be the ultimate military commander. He would arrive on horseback, with sword held high, crying out for vengeance and redemption in the name of the Lord and his favored nation. The Chosen One would have the wisdom of Solomon, the charisma of David, the godliness of Moses, and the military genius of Joshua.

Yet here was a baby—just a baby. Joseph and Mary had to admit that here was a baby who seemed, at first glance, like any other newborn child. He cried in the middle of the night. He hungered for milk. He needed fresh “swaddling clothes” every now and then. If this was just an ordinary child like cousin Elizabeth’s new addition, how could he be “one whose origins are from the deep past,” as the prophet had insisted? How could an infant be the Son of God?

Or for that matter, why would the Son of God be an infant? The need of crumbling, dying Israel was urgent. First the Greek and now the Roman influence was wiping away a bit more of the legacy of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob each day.

Why, indeed? Why did Jesus come as a child?

Jesus is the one like no other, for he was fully human and fully divine—simultaneously. Nothing about his humanity could detract from his godliness; nothing about his godliness could detract from his humanity. Only because this is true can he reconcile the Father in heaven with his children on earth. He is the Man of both worlds; he is the bridge by which God comes to earth and people come to heaven.

In that regard, we have seen that the Virgin Birth is the sign of his divinity. He comes to the earth from outside, pure and clean, and he is in no way a product of this world. Now we see that, in the same way, the infancy of the Child is the sign of his humanity.

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