The Promised Messiah
The promised Messiah, Jesus — the King above all kings. Born into a palace of gold, with floors that gleamed a colourful spectrum of priceless jewels. Diamond-set pillars and carpets woven from the thickest, softest fabrics. A cradle adorned with dazzling ruby, sapphire and jade. Chandeliers blazing light above his head as he lays under a blanket of finest silk, adorned with royal cushions fit for the king.
No. That’s not how it happened.
The arrival of Jesus to the world was cold, no room for Mary to give birth. A young couple, confused, trusting, and in lack and need. With no place to lay the Messiah, Jesus; he was put into an animal feeding trough.
Isaiah says: He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
— Isaiah 53:2–3 NIV
The way God chose to introduce his son to the world is echoed and mirrored in the way Jesus lived, walked amongst people, taught, spoke, died and rose again.
No luxury or easy ride, no special privileges or silver spoon. No fast track to the front in life. Jesus lived the real human experience, with all its beauty and savagery.
Here at CVM, we don’t try to be clever, with the best quirks and gadgets. We try and keep what we do honest, clear and unchanging. We want to introduce men to Jesus, no frills or cultural window dressing.
