The God of the Small

One of the ladies I work with asked me to speak to her nephew, who is a professed Atheist.  At one point he said to me:

“This universe is absolutely huge.  Our solar system is only one of millions in the Milky Way.  The Milky Way is just one of millions of galaxies in the universe.  The planet earth is a tiny speck tucked away in a cold, dark void.  You are a speck on that speck.  And you believe that God notices you and thinks you are important?”

 

It was a challenging question.  But after a while of thinking it over, I realized it wasn’t really an argument.  It was disbelief.  Not the sort of disbelief that one has for the tooth fairy or unicorns.  It was more like the disbelief someone has after seeing something preposterous and mind-blowing.  The kind that makes people say, “I can’t believe it!”

Or perhaps something more like this.

The answer to the young man’s question is found in Paul's letter to the Philippians.

“Christ Jesus who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness.” - Philippians 2:5-7

It is helpful to remember that most of Jesus’ life is not found in Scripture.  For the first thirty years of Christ’s life, He was a humble carpenter working for a living in small town in the corner of the Roman Empire.  He took care of his mother, He attended the synagogue, and was just another unnoticed peasant in a world that couldn’t care less.

My coworker’s nephew made the mistake of assuming that God thinks the way we think.  We believe things are important because they are big and powerful.  So he looked at the vast scope of the universe - with its immensity and magnificence - and concluded that humans are insignificant.

But what is that to God?  Two binary stars might spend billions of years revolving around one another… but do they know friendship?  A galaxy might be home to hundreds of solar systems… but does it know a mother’s love for her child?  They are, in the end, just lights and props.  They are signs pointing to the real things of significance:  Souls.

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus shows complete disregard for power and size.  But He was eminently preoccupied with the lowly, the humble, with love and faith.  He came in search of humanity – those lost creatures who are infinitely more valuable than the cosmic light show.  By becoming man, God set aside his crown for the crown of humility.

He stepped off his eternal throne to ascend the throne of your heart.
 

Thanks for joining me.  And Merry Christmas!