Occasionally, modern translators miss the obvious when they fail to approach the Scripture text canonically. And unexpectedly, the older translations may connect better with the original text and its intended message.
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“Hearts are broken in ten thousand ways, for this is a heart-breaking world.” Charles H. Spurgeon
Few can travel through the path of life without heartbreak. Spurgeon was right. We are journeying through a heart-breaking world.
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Have you denied the Savior by your lifestyle? Ever deny Him because of your concern for your image in front of friends? “What would they think of me if I refused to take part in their activity?” “What would they say about me?” Perhaps, you even cursed Jesus. Perhaps you are worried that you committed the unpardonable sin? Take hope. Failure is not final for genuine disciples of Jesus. He remains unflinchingly loyal to His own, even when they are disloyal to Him, even when they damn themselves.
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Men and women were designed by Jesus our Creator to be equal in gifting. Imagine the fresh wind in women’s hearts. Imagine the new confidence, sense of worth, and significant value they would feel. Imagine the infusion of fresh grace into your faith community. Imagine Jesus’ pleasure at seeing His grace-gifts being valued and utilized in His Body. But we shouldn’t have to just imagine it. Jesus meant it to be an operative reality.
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You can make a difference this New Year, but not if you pursue the American Dream. Live a comfortable life, work at a good job, enjoy good health insurance, own a two-car garage, provide a good education for the kids, and then enjoy a retirement program that will allow you to kick back and take it easy. That is the typical American Dream, but it is certainly not God’s plan for Jesus’ followers. Yet, the vast majority of professing Christians choose this plan as their life’s goal. The contradiction with Scripture is real. Jesus’ life contradicts it at every step. The Savior invested His energy, His days, and heart into a small group of people. Jesus was the trainer of the twelve, the discipler and equipper who consciously poured His life into a small group. After His ascension, that well-trained group would continue His unfinished task. Leaders, life-changers are not born. Leaders are made. Life-changers are developed.
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No one this Christmas, I suggest, would be willing to sing, “Away in a feeding trough.” “Way too crude, coarse, and inelegant,” you might say. But Luke would sing it for sure. Crude and coarse is his precise message. The traditional wording, “she laid him in a manger” masks humility and the smells of Jesus’ birth.
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