With the Christmas season now past us, the decorations are coming down in millions of homes and businesses. Amongst the many ubiquitous images, the one of the baby Jesus in a manger is one of the most beloved representations of Christmas. As I surveyed the transition, a thought occurred. What if Jesus was not born as a baby to Mary and Joseph? What if Jesus came to earth as an adult?
What? No Baby Jesus? No manger scenes to adorn our homes and display windows? No Christmas carols like, “We Three Kings”, “Noel”, and “Away In a Manger?” There would not even be “A Charlie Brown Christmas!” How can we even conceive this?
God is omnipotent and He certainly could have sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, as a fully grown Man. Yet, a critical tenet about salvation would be lost. The Apostle Paul explained this in his letter to the Galatians.
But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
Galatians 4:4-5 (NKJV)
Jesus Christ was sent by God the Father to redeem mankind of our sins. In order to do this, it was necessary for Him to be born of human parents, sinners like all of us. He lived and experienced all of the same wants, needs, and emotions that all of us encounter. He faced the same temptations but never succumbed to them. He lived a perfect sinless life from His miraculous birth to His death on the Cross and His glorious resurrection. He conquered death and proved to all Creation that He is worthy to receive our faith and trust, that all who confess and repent of their sins and accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior will receive salvation and eternal life.
What if Jesus came to earth as an adult?
Thanks be to God that He was born to human parents as a baby, our gift from God. He is our perfect example of how to live a full life in complete obedience to God.
Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.
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