The Perfect Son
My Mom seems to have a terrible memory. She calls me "the perfect son". I say to her in response, "Don't you remember that time I pushed Ben down the stairs? He was in a neck-brace for weeks!" She just said, "Oh, that was an accident. You didn't mean it." Oh yes I did! Ben knew how to get me going. But being human implies imperfection. "Pobody's Nerfect" right? You can probably hear the voice of Marge in your head now saying, "That's cute, Lisa, like you."
We all want to think the best of people. My mom is well-intentioned. That's part of her job. Moms root for you when no one else will. But this selective memory of hers really goes too far. I was far from perfect. I like to remind her of the time I was in the back of a police car because my drunk friends and I were out vandalizing a restaurant. The girl I was with lied our way out of it and had us dropped off at some remote part of town. Not good.
But that makes me think of another son. Very different from me. His parents couldn't find him one day and looked everywhere for a whole day for him. They finally found him with some Bible teachers asking profound questions. His comment to his parents was, "Didn't you know I would be about my Father's business?" Mary's husband was Joseph, but that wasn't who Jesus was referring to.
Christ is the Son of God. Sons are like their fathers. I'm not about to get into the complexity of trying to understand what part Jesus got from Mary and how exactly the Spirit's "overshadowing" permitted Christ to enter into her womb. Honestly, these matters have split churches through the centuries and we don't need to major in the minors. The truth is, Jesus who was "with God in the beginning" became incarnated and was 100% God and 100% man. You can't refute that. Jesus is God in the flesh. And he's just like his father.
That being said, it's amazing how Jesus most often referred to himself. He didn't call himself the Son of God. He called himself the Son of Man. It's not that he ever disputed actually being the Son of God, but he preferred to be known as the Son of Man. What does that mean? We could talk about Daniel's prophecy and how this is a Messianic title, but when it comes right down to it, he was simply saying that he was really a man. He came to be a man. He had always been the Son of God in eternity, but now he had become human. That's a big deal. That was what he was emphasizing when he called himself, "The Son of Man".
Once again, we have this principle of humility in action. He did not assert his Kingship even in the words he used to express what he wanted to be known by. That was a mouthful. Christ came to simply be one of us, to represent us. There is a difference between him and us though, that should never be glossed over. He was sinless. You see, we are less than human. We are fallen. We have a sinful nature. We are not what Adam and Eve were at creation. Sub-human. Quasi-human. Use whatever term you like. We have fallen short of the mark. Our best just isn't good enough. Not so with Christ.
He is the perfect son. Do you want to see someone who never missed the mark? Look at Jesus. Do you want to see someone who always said the right thing? Look at Jesus. Someone who always did the right thing? Jesus. Always used every opportunity to better everone present? Jesus. The most efficient person ever? Apparently, effiency is measured by how little effort is needed to produce the most output. Jesus simply died, and millions of lives have been changed. That's efficient.
Christ is the human we can never be on our own. You can never emulate him enough or imitate him sufficiently to make any difference. His own words are, "You must be born again." You need to be a new creation. His life is meant to be fruit that simply grows out of you. He is life. He is perfect. He's perfect for me. He's in me. I guess my mom was right after all.
BJ
We all want to think the best of people. My mom is well-intentioned. That's part of her job. Moms root for you when no one else will. But this selective memory of hers really goes too far. I was far from perfect. I like to remind her of the time I was in the back of a police car because my drunk friends and I were out vandalizing a restaurant. The girl I was with lied our way out of it and had us dropped off at some remote part of town. Not good.
But that makes me think of another son. Very different from me. His parents couldn't find him one day and looked everywhere for a whole day for him. They finally found him with some Bible teachers asking profound questions. His comment to his parents was, "Didn't you know I would be about my Father's business?" Mary's husband was Joseph, but that wasn't who Jesus was referring to.
Christ is the Son of God. Sons are like their fathers. I'm not about to get into the complexity of trying to understand what part Jesus got from Mary and how exactly the Spirit's "overshadowing" permitted Christ to enter into her womb. Honestly, these matters have split churches through the centuries and we don't need to major in the minors. The truth is, Jesus who was "with God in the beginning" became incarnated and was 100% God and 100% man. You can't refute that. Jesus is God in the flesh. And he's just like his father.
That being said, it's amazing how Jesus most often referred to himself. He didn't call himself the Son of God. He called himself the Son of Man. It's not that he ever disputed actually being the Son of God, but he preferred to be known as the Son of Man. What does that mean? We could talk about Daniel's prophecy and how this is a Messianic title, but when it comes right down to it, he was simply saying that he was really a man. He came to be a man. He had always been the Son of God in eternity, but now he had become human. That's a big deal. That was what he was emphasizing when he called himself, "The Son of Man".
Once again, we have this principle of humility in action. He did not assert his Kingship even in the words he used to express what he wanted to be known by. That was a mouthful. Christ came to simply be one of us, to represent us. There is a difference between him and us though, that should never be glossed over. He was sinless. You see, we are less than human. We are fallen. We have a sinful nature. We are not what Adam and Eve were at creation. Sub-human. Quasi-human. Use whatever term you like. We have fallen short of the mark. Our best just isn't good enough. Not so with Christ.
He is the perfect son. Do you want to see someone who never missed the mark? Look at Jesus. Do you want to see someone who always said the right thing? Look at Jesus. Someone who always did the right thing? Jesus. Always used every opportunity to better everone present? Jesus. The most efficient person ever? Apparently, effiency is measured by how little effort is needed to produce the most output. Jesus simply died, and millions of lives have been changed. That's efficient.
Christ is the human we can never be on our own. You can never emulate him enough or imitate him sufficiently to make any difference. His own words are, "You must be born again." You need to be a new creation. His life is meant to be fruit that simply grows out of you. He is life. He is perfect. He's perfect for me. He's in me. I guess my mom was right after all.
BJ
posted by BJ at 11:09 a.m.
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