I've seen it a hundred times: the nativity scene with Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus lying in the manger. This year, I look at that scene very differently. I can empathize with Mary's pain that night. I can hear Joseph's panic. I can imagine them trying to clean and make comfortable this newborn baby. "No crying he makes?" Yeah, right!
And I can picture God in heaven observing the scene. I can imagine the bittersweet smile on his face. His Son has been born...to die. Oh, the joy of life--Jesus, fully God and fully man. But oh, the sadness and the pain of knowing this precious, innocent baby's fate. The love of God to send his Son willingly to this earth, willingly to the cross, astounds me. The love I feel for my son is nothing compared to the love of the Father for his. I can imagine it. And the driving force behind his decision is an intense love for all of his people.
I cannot imagine anything happening to Will, especially an early, undeserved, brutal death. I cannot imagine how God could send his Son for that purpose. As much as I think I know what love is, God's love I cannot grasp. That is the glory of Christmas.
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