 |
| (Baby feet family photo) |
Ecclesiastes
is an odd place to find Christmas.
Yet
that’s where my chronological Bible reading took me this week.
This
morning I turned the page to chapter three where Solomon’s familiar
list reminds the reader that there is a time for everything.
Time.
An earthly concept.
In
chapters one and two, Solomon seems mentally stuck in time. And that
very focus leads to despair.
Granted,
we are bound to this earth by time, yet our hearts yearn for
eternity.
Enter
the God who placed that longing within us.
The
God who always was ushered in time via creation, stepped into time
via the cradle, and gave us eternal life via the cross.
He
willingly entered the mess of the manger—our mess—to
become Messiah (Savior) for us.
“Now
this is eternal life: that they know you, the
only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” John
17:3
While
we celebrate Christmas with family and friends, may we remember that
the babe born in time and who died in time--indeed in the fullness of
time, notes Paul in Galatians 4:4—is eternal and invites us into a
forever relationship with Him.
This forever relationship begins in
time but extends beyond the limits of this life into a place where
time is no more. This eternal perspective brings meaning and purpose
to this life and to the next as we love the Lord Jesus Christ and
share Him with others.
