Theme: It can be darkest just before the light!
According to a local Mississippi newspaper story, “A Civil War Era, corked glass vial, less than 2" in length, containing a mysterious coded note, sat undisturbed on a shelf of the Museum of the Confederacy since 1896. Catherine M. Wright, the museum's collections manager, could no longer keep her curiosity at bay. With the help of a local art conservator, a retired CIA code breaker, and a Navy cryptologist, the vial has now been safely opened, and its cryptic message deciphered. Dated July 4, 1863, the message was sent from a Confederate commander in response to a plea for help from Lt. General John C. Pemberton.
Pemberton was doing his best to defend the besieged city of Vicksburg, Mississippi, against the press of Northern troops. Should the town be lost, it would mean the beginning of the end of the War for the South. Ms. Wright summarized the message of the note sent to General Pemberton with these ominous words, ‘I cannot help you. I have no troops, I have no supplies, I have no way to get over there.’ On that very day, Pemberton surrendered to Grant's army.”
Pemberton's troops must have felt hopeless when they discovered no help was coming. Despite their best efforts, they could not withstand the crush of the opposing forces.
Compare that story to that of the Jews right before Jesus’ birth. The poster of their lives could have read, “It always gets darkest just before it fades to complete blackness.”
They had been a privileged people, one of the only groups allowed to self-rule, self-tax, and be free from military service in the Roman Empire. A reference book said, “Julius Caesar had granted these rights because Judaism was older than Rome. But then came Octavius, who instituted a census to occur every 14 years, and it did for the next 2 centuries.” So, what is the big deal about a census? Ancient Empires took censuses to tax or to conscript.
This simple event was a signal to the Jewish people that their favored status was being revoked and that they, like everyone else, were nothing more than a conquered, subjugated people. Having Romans in the land would have seemed dark but having them prepare to tax and conscript would have felt pitch black. It would be a return to slavery, a proverbial return to Egypt.
Unlike the note sent to General Pemberton, God's message to the Jews of that day and to us could have read, “I love you more than you can know and have never had you out of my reach. I know things look bleak in your eyes, but I have always planned to send you a Savior, my own Son, to lead you out of your darkness and bring you hope far beyond what you could ever imagine. That day is here.”
We, born in the flesh, often believe that our brief life is all there is and that we need to be rescued from only our current situation. Like Colonel Pemberton and the Jews of Octavius’ times, we want relief now and now and now. God’s eternal plan was always much more significant than ours. He knows that our battle is against an enemy much more fierce than the Union Army or Rome and that the outcome has forever consequences. He also knew that the struggle could only be won by Him leaving His throne, assuming flesh and suffering death to conquer it.
What’s more, God knew that once the sin that saturates our nature was subdued, and with it the power of death, the battles of this life that used to seem so significant would suddenly fade. In Jesus, we have the ultimate win-win. In a few days, we will celebrate God’s “always” plan, the birth of our Savior for today, tomorrow, and forever. Yeshua, Jesus. What a Glorious name!!!
Scripture: John 8:12 (NIV)
“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”
Prayer:
Father, right this moment I am contemplating our lives and yours, the life we believe we have, and the life you have planned for us. I am considering our temporal and your eternal, and how we can go from seeing only now to seeing what the reality is in you. As we take one day to celebrate the miraculous birth of Jesus, we also need to see that His birth spans all eternity, from Genesis to Revelation and beyond. Jesus was born in the flesh on one day, but His life was always and for always. On the day we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, please illuminate our sight to see beyond this day, beyond our daily needs and desires, to eternity and life eternally in you. Let this world fade as your vision is opened in us. Because He was born a man, and lives as Lord, we too shall live. Amen!
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