Bridging the Gap

hid•den \hi-d n\ adjective 1 : being out of sight or not readily apparent : concealed 2 : obscure, unexplained, undisclosed

Who would wrap a flawless, exquisitely cut, utterly unique diamond in common newspaper? From the accounts of Jesus’ life, it appears that God would! He offers to humanity his Son—the most pure, precious, and priceless of gifts—wrapped in plain, nondescript paper. Then, along with the angels, it seems as though God watches history unfold like a parent with anticipation thinking, I can’t wait for them to realize what I’ve given them inside that package!

So Father God clothes his Son with human flesh, hosts the birth of the world’s Savior in a stable, and dispatches an elite angelic company to make the announcement of all ages before a small, somewhat less than internationally influential band of shepherds.

This was unexpected even by the devout. Diamonds are supposed to be displayed dramatically, not hidden discretely. All along, the people thought their promised Messiah would appear in convincing power to lead them spiritually and politically into a new day. They thought the packaging would be removed in a spectacular fashion before their eyes. Who would have guessed that God in his wisdom would conceal his gift for thirty years and then plan for the last shreds of packaging to be removed and the greatness of his Son to be fully revealed only in death?

Hence, this word hidden characterizes the vast majority of Jesus’ life on earth. Why? Why would Father God wrap the glory of heaven in plain paper, announce the birth of his precious Gift with a full angelic choir, and then hide this priceless package for three decades?

We certainly would not have permitted the Son of God to live in anonymity for 90 percent of his life! Every breath would have been monitored by the brightest minds in medical research. Every movement would have been captured by the media and analyzed by psychologists. Every word would have been weighed by theologians, recorded by historians, and printed on tastefully designed posters.

(...continued in part two...)

From anonymous: Jesus' hidden years... and yours
© Alicia Britt Chole

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• Series 1