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humble
stable, and lived in despised Nazareth? How the devil does becloud
these mysteries! Think a moment. Christ was the only one who,
before conception, ever chose His mother, chose His place of birth, chose
His residence. He left God's glory for one purpose, that He might
lay "God's axe at the roots of man's pride." In His very birth He would
incarnate all that He would later teach. At every step of His de-scent,
He "made Himself void by His own act" (Moule). Job was stripped involuntarily.
Christ stripped Himself. He chose to lay down His life "of Himself."
Would He bring many sons unto glory? God's selfless "Corn of Wheat"
fell into the ground and died. Now note how God begins to reverse
His descent. From those unplumbed depths of death He "Wherefore God
also hath highly exalted him"--to the very heights of name, and fame, and
rank, and rule. And not because of His eternal glories but solely
because He humbled Himself as a man. In His in-carnation, Christ
added "a life that stooped to the lower part of the earth to that which
filled the highest heavens. He has thus lifted up our degraded nature,
and in Himself crowned it with many crowns. . . . Hence it is, that forevermore
Christ's glory must be measured by the depth as well as by the height;
for the depth has increased the height" (Gracey). In speaking of
the glories of the God-man, the same writer says, "Our humanity rises,
rises to the right hand of the eternal throne; but ever amid the burning
splendours of that throne is still true humanity."
The
throne on which He now appears
Was
His from everlasting years!
But
a new glory crowns His brow,
And
every knee to Him shall bowl
--F. M. Pitt.
And he that is joined to
the Lord is one spirit. Listen, fellow believer. You and I
(let us say it reverently) are blood brothers with the King. He is
near of kin. We are "joint-heirs with Christ." He says to you and
to me, "My Father and your Father; My God and your God."
Child of the Eternal Father,
Bride of the Eternal Son,
Dwelling-place of God the
Spirit,
Thus with Christ made ever
one;
Dowered with joy beyond
the Angels
Nearest to His throne,
They, the ministers attending
His beloved one:
Granted all my heart's desire,
All things made my own;
Feared by all the powers
of evil,
Fearing God alone;
Walking with the Lord in
glory
Through the courts divine,
Queen within the royal palace,
Christ forever mine;
Say, poor worldling, can
it be,
That my heart should envy
thee?
--Ter Steegen.
Little wonder that when the
suffering Simeon of Cambridge read the words, "They found a man of Cyrenc
... him they compelled to bear his cross," he said, "Lord lay it on me."
Henceforth he bound persecution about his brow as a wreath of victory.
The Saviour promised: "To
him that overcometh will I grant to sit down with me in my throne, even
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