The Christmas story is often mistaken by modern people. For many of us, Christmas is our time to find some love, peace, or joy, as if those things are far away. The true story of Christmas is that we don’t have to reach anymore—we can touch, feel, and embrace the reality of God with us!
If we read the Biblical narratives of Jesus’ birth, we hear of angels proclaiming, shepherds searching, and wise men traveling just to touch the face of hope. And then, suddenly, there He was laying in a manger. Stop! Hope is...a little baby in a manger? It’s far too easy to ignore all this and to tuck the Christmas story away alongside other tales. The angels who announced the arrival of God in flesh did not think it a tale or a nice story of "once upon a time." “God is among you!” they declared. But so often, this falls on deaf ears and we keep on looking. But Jesus is right here with us. So how do we keep missing him?
In our passage this week (Mark 1:35-45), we find Jesus’ disciples looking for Him. Where was Jesus? What was He doing? He was praying by Himself to His Father. Jesus created a cycle of dependent prayer. He lived on the fellowship of the Father and Holy Spirit. Does that surprise you? While people are looking for Him, He is away praying.
When He goes back to His disciples, He keeps moving to other towns—" that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out." On the way, a leper came looking for Him. And what he found out was that Jesus was ready to heal him if he was ready to ask to be healed. So the twist is not that we are to look for Jesus. As this leper shows us, Jesus is the one looking for us.
Let’s be found by Jesus!
Pastor Briant