We have so much to meditate on and glory in with regards to the majesty of Christ!
In my current readings I came across these contrasts that reveal the beauty of the person of our Savior. We are able to behold some of the many facets of God manifested in the flesh.
*"we admire him for his glory, but even more because his glory is mingled with humility;
*we admire him for his transcendence, but even more because his transcendence is accompanied by condescension;
*we admire him for his uncompromising justice, but even more because it is tempered with mercy;
*we admire him for his majesty, but even more because it is a majesty in meekness;
*we admire him because of his equality with God, but even more because as God's equal he nevertheless has a deep reverance for God;
*we admire him because of how worthy he was of all good, but even more because this was accompanied by an amazing patience to suffer evil;
*we admire him because of his sovereign dominion over the world, but even more because this dominion was clothed with a spirit of obedience and submission;
*we love the way he stumped the proud scribes with his wisdom, and we love it even more because he could be simple enough to like children and spend time with them;
*and we admire him because he could still the storm, but even more because he refused to use that power to strike the Samaritans with lightning(Luke 9:54-55) and he refused to use it to get himself down from the cross."
"The list could go on and on. But this is enough to illustrate that beauty and excellency in Christ is not a simple thing. It is complex. It is a coming together in one person of the perfect balance and proportion of extremely diverse qualities. And that's what makes Jesus Christ uniquely glorious, excellent, and admirable. The human heart was made to stand in awe of such ultimate excellence. We were made to admire Jesus Christ, the Son of God."
(excerpt from "God is the Gospel" by John Piper)
3 comments:
Sunday I will be preaching from 2 Cor 8. Your post reminded me of:
2 Corinthians 8:8-9 MKJV
(8) I do not speak according to command, but through the eagerness of others, and testing the trueness of your love.
(9) For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, for your sakes He became poor, in order that you might be made rich through His poverty.
I was listening to Ravi Zacharias' radio broadcast about a week ago, and the guest speaker was talking about humility. He said it is the true mark of greatness. He remarked that to even see it as a virtue is a western trait, and that it started in the first century. Lets see, what happened in the first century to change that . . ?
Thanks Tom.
Craig
I appreciate the contrasts.
Our perfect God is also the perfect Man...
Heather
Craig & Heather,
I have often been comforted by remembering that we have a Great High Priest that can be touched wit the feelings of our infirmities and is able, and desirous, to come along beside and strengthen us in the way!
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