God for Us

Title: God for Us

Series: The Good News about God for All Humankind

Text: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” (Luke 4:18–19).

Introduction

Christmas answers the question “What is God like?” but it does so in a manner that we would not have expected—neither how we would have expected nor why. Most of us would have expected the coming of God to be like the coming of an unexpected parent when we are caught with our hand in the cookie jar. That would not be good news! We picture God as a “resident policeman” who snoops around to find illegal activities. Or we see God as a “cosmic killjoy” who is up in the sky sniffing out where anybody is doing anything fun and then snuffing it out. Or we see God as the “big boss” who controls everything and everyone as pawns. In other words, we see the coming of God as bad news.

I. God Became Flesh

But things are not as we would expect. When God came to earth, he did not come as a proud and arrogant ruler. He came in weakness and dependency as a tiny baby. We would not have expected the incarnation—God becoming flesh.

II. Why God Became Flesh

Nor would we have expected the favor of his coming. We expect punishment.

We feel that we deserve no better, and we are right. We deserve to perish in flames, but Jesus came not to condemn but to redeem, not to punish but to forgive, not to intimidate but to inspire, not to sacrifice but to be sacrificed, not to be feared but to be loved. He came not as adversary but as advocate, not as foe but as friend, not as enemy but as brother, not as condemner but as savior.

A. The Lord had anointed Jesus, first, “to preach the gospel to the poor.” The poor are the socially inferior. Jesus proclaimed that the poor, those persons who view themselves as inferior and are treated as such, are to hear the good news of wholeness, equality, and authenticity.

B. Jesus was further anointed to proclaim the “recovering of sight to the blind.”

Here blindness is used in both a literal and figurative sense. People are blind to God’s words and deeds, and Jesus has come to open their eyes to see what God is really like. The Son wanted to communicate to “Pharisee types” who felt that God was holy and moral and had to be bought off with good behavior, and to “publican types” who felt that God was so holy and moral that there was no possibility of a relationship with the “Holy One of Israel.” To these people Jesus proclaimed the good news that God is for us and that we do not have to earn his favor.

C. The Anointed One also proclaimed “the year of the Lord’s favor,” which was begun in the person and work of Jesus. All that Jesus has proclaimed is based on the fact that it is the year of the Lord’s favor. Inferiors are given significance, prisoners are released, and blind sinners see what God is really like, because it is the year of the Lord’s favor. God is for us. He is on our side. That is good news indeed!

III. What the Incarnation Means Today

What does all of this ancient history have to do with us today?

A. The incarnation means, first, that humankind is guilty. The presupposition of the movement of God to man is that there is a gulf between God and man because of our sin. Therefore, God comes. Sin is taken seriously. The mighty gulf of estrangement, alienation, fear, resentment, and guilt that exists between God and humankind can be dealt with in only one way: the incarnation of the Word. Our guilt made incarnation necessary, and incarnation makes our guilt obvious.

B. Incarnation means, second, that humankind needs God, that people cannot move to God or attain the majesty of God on their own. The self-movement of God to humans is needed because people at their own initiative will never move toward God. But God did not wait for people to seek him. God moves to people first; he seeks rather than is sought.

C. Incarnation further means that humankind is loved by God. God’s love is constant, not conditional. Witness his love for the rebellious children of Israel. Remember Romans 5:8: “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

D. Incarnation means that humankind is summoned to return. The “coming” of God to humans always involves the summons of a person to return to God. God did not become flesh for thrills or kicks, to masquerade or to play a game. He came to redeem, and thus he demands a response.

Conclusion

So Christmas answers the question “What is God like?” Christmas did not happen how we would have expected—a baby; nor why we would have expected—to proclaim God’s favor. With notes loud and clear, the manger proclaims that God is on our side! Hallelujah!