The King of Christmas: the Servant of the Lord

Today is the beginning of Advent: the celebration of the God who humbled Himself and came to seek and save the lost.

And we are all lost without Him! We are lost in our sin, unable to help ourselves and unwilling to submit ourselves to the rule of our rightful and gracious King. But the most wonderful thing about Christmas, the heart of the whole season, is God Himself. God in the Person of the Son came down to earth, was born as a real baby, grew up and lived His perfect life in our sight, and then died to pay for our sins and to provide a way for the holy, pure God to reconcile with unrighteous sinners.

Jesus came to us as the Servant of the Lord.

Behold My Servant, whom I uphold,
   My Chosen, in whom My soul delights;
I have put My Spirit upon Him;
    He will bring forth justice to the nations. (Isaiah 42:1, ESV)

God sent His Son, His Chosen, to bring justice to all the world. He sent Him quietly, humbly to a little, no-account town, to be born in a rude stable, attended only by His earthly parents, some animals, and poor shepherds.

Behold, My Servant shall act wisely;
   He shall be high and lifted up,
   and shall be exalted. (Isaiah 52:13, ESV)

All His life, Jesus would act wisely and in accordance with His Father's will. Jesus would teach sinful people what it looked like to live wholly dependent upon God, trusting Him fully, and living sinlessly. And indeed, Jesus is high and lifted up - at the moment in Heaven and by His chosen people, but in the future He will be esteemed and worshiped by all tribes and tongues and nations.

Who else has been called "the servant of the Lord"? Moses, of course. Moses, who left the riches and privilege of being a prince of Egypt and became a humble shepherd in the wilderness - just like Jesus, who left the glory of Heaven and came to live among us. David, too, was called the servant of the Lord - a poor, unknown shepherd boy, who God raised up to be the king of Israel, a man after God's own heart - just like Jesus, who lived in poverty, died an ignominious death, and is now raised up to sit at the right hand of the Father in Heaven, and who is the King of kings. Both Moses and David pictured the coming Christ, the Promised One, in their lives. Both men pointed to the coming glory of Immanuel - God with us.

But there is one more servant who should be mentioned. One more person who was a humble servant, submitting to God's will even though she didn't completely understand it: Mary.

And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."

And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?"

And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy— the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." And Mary said, "Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her. (Luke 1:30-38, ESV)

I don't understand it all, God. I cannot begin to grasp the width, height and depth of Your love for Your people. But I do see that You love a humble, willing servant. You cherish Your Son, who descended from Heaven to live among us as a servant to all, loving us, healing us, saving us. Father, please let Your Spirit have His way in my heart. Make me like Your Son, serving in joy, humility and patience, so that I may earn Your "Well done!" in Heaven when You call me Home. Thank You for Your wonderful salvation that You have worked in my life. I pray that You will call many of Your children to trust in You this Christmas season so that Your name and Your grace and Your love may be proclaimed throughout the world. All glory to our Savior Jesus, Servant of the Lord Most High!

The King of Christmas, Advent series for 2009 - next post... final post