The Promise Of Human Life
Born thy people to deliver, born a child and yet a King,
born to reign in us forever, now thy gracious kingdom bring.
There is nothing like a baby, is there? You can bring a baby into almost any setting and the faces of everyone change. They begin to goo goo and ga ga at the baby. They tickle and giggle and smile and try to get the baby to smile and laugh. If they succeed, it is as if they reached a major milestone for the day. Babies are transformative.
I believe there is something deep within each of us that makes us realize a baby is a promise. The baby is a promise of the future. The baby is a promise of a new generation. The baby is a promise of better days to come.
God’s people waited for a special child to come into their midst. For generations after the fall, they waited for the coming of a Messiah. He was promised to come to them in the person of a child. To think that the all-powerful God would empty Himself and come to us in the lowliness of human flesh is just mind bending. What must it have been like to see that special child?
We read about how the angels proclaimed Jesus’ birth. We read about Magi coming to Him and bringing great gifts. We read about how His birth would change the world. Immediately, His birth brought division. Some wanted to see Him, some wanted to kill Him. That would follow Him until they finally crucified Him on Calvary.
Children are a promise to us and yet not all are welcome. Some children never see their birth. Others are born into abject poverty and die very young. Still others are cast aside because they are unwanted. We have to quit treating the promise of God in such a manner and, instead, cherish our children. Jesus, born a child and yet a King, would want it no other way.
FAITH ACTION: Pray that all life from conception to natural death will be respected, cherished, and protected.