The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"The Seeker and the Savior"
"The seeking and saving continues in this present hour, whether of unbelievers needing to enter the fold, or of wayward saints requiring repentance and return to faithful fellowship with God. The Good, the Great, and the Chief Shepherd, now wounded for the sake of the sheep, presses on in His mission of mercy."
Two of His sheep had wandered. The Good, the Great, and the Chief Shepherd set forth to find and return them to His fold.
"And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?" (Genesis 3:8-9).
The same Shepherd continues His searching and finding of sheep descended from the original Two, all who bear Adam and Eve's tendencies to wander.
"The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which is lost" (Luke 19:10).
Note that the Lord Jesus Christ refers to Himself as "the Son of man" regarding His seeking and saving. He had to become as one of us in order to rescue us from our headlong flight into darkness. God could not save us by mere fiat or decree. He rather had to enter into life as we know it, living as a man, and ultimately dying as a man on the cross of Calvary.
"Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For verily He took not on Him the nature of angels; but He took on Him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people" (Hebrews 2:14-17).
Seeking and saving required living and dying in a condescension beyond all imagining. We do not consider enough that the title "Man of sorrows" solemnly attributed to the Lord Jesus by the prophet refers not only to the death of Calvary, but also to an earthly lifetime of limitation (Isaiah 53:3). In simple terms, what would it mean for an infinite, eternal Being to take upon Himself a humanity bound by space, time, and the realities of a fallen world? We cannot possibly know. No personal frame of reference exists in our hearts and lives for such a sacrifice. To leave the perfections of Heaven for the deficiencies of earth must surely boggle the mind and humble the heart of all who contemplate the Christ who seeks and saves thereby. "Great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh" (I Timothy 3:16).
The seeking and saving continues in this present hour, whether of unbelievers needing to enter the fold, or of wayward saints requiring repentance and return to faithful fellowship with God. The Good, the Great, and the Chief Shepherd, now wounded for the sake of the sheep, presses on in His mission of mercy. Wondrously, He will forever wear the garb of humanity for us, while also remaining divine. "There is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (I Timothy 2:5). Indeed, a man now appears in the presence of God for us, the only man who could rescue us from our sin, and the only man who can eternally mediate the vast chasm between the divine and the human. In both Heaven and earth, there is no one like the Lord Jesus, the God who became man, and the man who remains God. He is the Seeker and the Savior, and He is so at the highest cost to Himself and the greatest sacrifice we can imagine. Or rather, we cannot imagine such a wonder of glory, grace, and grandeur of the mystery… God was manifest in the flesh.
"The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."
(John 1:14)
"Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all."
(Isaiah 53:4-6)
Weekly Memory Verse
Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.
(Matthew 6:33)
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