Advent Devotional from our DS's wife Robbie Craker

Monday, Second Week of Advent 2009

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. –Colossians 1:15-17

Last week we looked at Jesus, the image of the invisible God – He is stamped with the image of God; He is the exact representation of God; He is the mirror image – reflection of God. And who is this Jesus? He is the one who healed the sick and fed the hungry. He is the one who chose 12 ordinary men to be his intimate followers. He is the one who valued everyone from the poorest to the richest. He comforted those who mourned. He met people where they were, not where they should be. So this is what the invisible God is like.

He, Jesus, is the firstborn over all creation. This weekend my husband and I have been visited by our firstborn son, Mick. It is his position in the family – it will never change. When he was born our lives were changed drastically. No more doing whatever we wanted whenever we wanted. We had someone else to care for. Was this a burden? No, it was a privilege. Was it a sacrifice? Yes, but one we willingly made. Our love for each other was not diminished by his birth, it was increased and deepened. We had a tangible expression of our love for one another. Mick’s birth helped me understand on a very small plane what it meant for Abraham to be willing to sacrifice his one and only son in obedience –

Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."

I never read that scripture in Genesis 22 in the same way since the birth of my son. Of course we all know that God provided a ram for the sacrifice and Isaac was saved.

Jesus is the firstborn over all creation. Now this doesn’t mean He was the first created person – we know that Jesus is one with God and existed before creation. In Jewish tradition and many other cultures around the world, the firstborn, by position, had all the rank and privilege in the family. And so in many respects, Jesus fits this pattern. He is above all – He is ranked above all creation. This firstborn, Jesus, stepped out of His privileged position and was born into our world – the world He created.

He came down to us so that we might know and be in relationship with Him. He was born into a family – just like our families. He went to school. He went on trips with his family. He learned a trade. He had emotions - just like our emotions. He wept. He laughed. He was angry. He suffered – just as we suffered. He was mocked. He was an outcast. He was treated cruelly. He was betrayed by His friends.

In these ways He is the firstborn among us showing us the Father and showing us how to live in relationship with the Father in the midst of our current realities. So as we celebrate the precious, tiny baby born in Bethlehem, let’s not get sentimental about it all. Let’s allow this birth to change us drastically. No more doing whatever we want whenever we want. We have a new birth within us. We must care for that life – nurturing it through prayer, scripture reading, meditation, acts of service.

Father, we want to allow Your Son to be firstborn in our hearts and lives. He will have the first place in all we say and do. Amen

4^th verse of the carol, O Little Town of Bethlehem

O holy Child of Bethlehem
Descend to us, we pray
Cast out our sin and enter in
Be born to us today
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell
O come to us, abide with us
Our Lord Emmanuel