Luke – Moment to Moment (Bible blog)

For you

For a child will be born for us,
a son will be given to us,
and the government will be on his shoulders.

He will be named
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)

“A child will be born for us.”

As I reflected on those words, I thought about what the angels said to the shepherds on the night of Jesus’ birth.

Today in the city of David a Savior was born for you, who is the Messiah, the Lord. (Luke 2:11)

I can’t help but wonder. Did the angel say what he did with Isaiah’s words in mind? I think he did.

He could have simply said, “A Savior was born.”

Or, “A Savior was born for Israel.”

But he says, “A Savior has been born for you all. Not just for the influential and powerful. But for the ordinary person as well. He is born for you.”

And then he invites these shepherds to be the first visitors to the newborn King.

This King was not in a palace surrounded by soldiers. He was accessible to even the shepherds, lying in a manger in Bethlehem, surrounded only by his father, his mother, and perhaps some animals.

A Savior has been born for you.

You may feel like the shepherds. You may feel insignificant. Unimportant.

But Jesus was born for you.

For you.

Self-centeredness, pride, and complacency

This passage reminds me of the parable that Jesus told in Luke 12:13–21.

In the story, a man had a rich crop, and he soon realized that there was no place for him to store all the food.

So what did he do? Did he reach out to the poor and needy in the area? Was he thankful for God’s blessings, and wondering how he could use those blessings to touch others’ lives?

No. Rather, all he could think of was himself. He said,

I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and goods.

And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”

But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?”

This is how it will be with anyone who stores things up for himself, but is not rich toward God. (Luke 12:18–21)

Jesus could very well have been talking about the Israelites of Amos’ time.

The rich of the land were feeling complacent, secure in their wealth, and proud of all they had, not even considering the poor, nor the evil and corruption that was in the land.

And so God told them,

Therefore, you will be among the first to go into exile; your feasting and lounging will end. (Amos 6:7)

How about you? Are you proud of what you’ve accomplished? Of all that you have? Do you think to yourself, “I’ve got it made?”

Be careful that you don’t become like the rich man in Jesus’ story or the Israelites.

Don’t focus merely on yourself, but on God, and the people around you. God has blessed you for a reason. And it’s not simply to indulge yourself and your lusts.

He’s blessed you that you might be a blessing. And to make a difference.

Whether you’re rich or not, powerful or not, God hates self-centeredness, pride, and complacency.

He calls us to stop looking at ourselves and to look at the world around us, and to be God’s hands, feet, eyes, and mouth to them.

Lord, it’s so easy to just focus on myself. Forgive me.

Lord, what resources you’ve given me are really yours, not mine. Help me to remember that.

Help me to focus not on myself, but on you, and the people around me. Let me not live for myself, but for your kingdom. In Jesus’ name, amen.