December 3rd
Daily Reading
Malachi 4:5-6
“Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord arrives. His preaching will turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise I will come and strike the land with a curse.”
Matthew 11:13-14
For before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward to this present time. And if you are willing to accept what I say, he is Elijah, the one the prophets said would come.
Psalm 2:7
The king proclaims the Lord’s decree:
“The Lord said to me, ‘You are my son.
Today I have become your Father.
Matthew 3:16-17
After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”
(Readings taken from Bible Gateway, https://www.biblegateway.com/ New Living Translation)
This is my Son…
Child sacrifice is a horrific concept!
Especially to the people of a developed world; a time and culture in which we hold the rights and needs of children as paramount to how we function as a civilized society! The rightful value we endow upon children, however, hasn’t been echoed throughout history.
There are countless stories B.C. of cultures who believed their ancient gods demanded the highest sacrifice.
Moloch. Baal. Ashtoreth.
Supplicants were convinced the more important the object of sacrifice, the more devout they appeared to their god. This practice was wide spread throughout ancient middle eastern culture.
It is why the story of Abraham and Isaac both shocks us and assures us.
A god that expects the sacrifice of a child is astonishingly accepted by Abraham as he straps his son to an altar. But Yahweh is different. He is a God of love. Of provision. He quickly intervenes before Abraham strikes his child – providing another way. It is an unwavering precedent established early for the Hebrew people. Our God does not require this kind of sacrifice.
But He sent his own Son.
It’s a prophecy that is challenging to reconcile.
Partially I am astounded by a God who would balance the scales of injustice, reconciling the depravity of all mankind, through the judgement of His own. That our God, in His desire to restore with us, would go to such lengths.
Partially I am horrified. Is child sacrifice less disturbing because Jesus is divine?
The tension cannot be easily resolved.
As I ponder today, I am struck by two threads which help me to hold the tension of this dilemma.
First is the theology of the Trinity. That God and Jesus are in fact one. Grappling with this notion (as mind warping as it may be) helps me to remember that God didn’t sadistically sacrifice his Son, instead, that he lay Himself down in our place.
Second, the crucifixion of Jesus was never the finished plan. We are redeemed by the life, death AND resurrection of Jesus – a task that only the divine could complete in our place. Jesus rose again.
As I consider this audacious act of love, I am reminded of the lyrics:
“How deep the Father's love for us
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure”
There is much about God’s choice to send His Son I may never fully comprehend, but I do understand that when He made that choice, He made it for me. And He made it for you.
(Lyrics by Stuart Townend, 1995)
