Jesus is Always in the Picture

    Last night when I came in from work I was greeted by the usual enthusiasm of my seven year old daughter, only in addition to the joyful cry of “Daddy!  You’re home!”  She added to the sentence, “...and I want to show you the picture I drew.  It’s a picture of what Christmas means to me!” 

    She pulled the picture out from behind her back and proceeded to explain the various elements of the picture.  First she pointed to the most obvious, the man in the red suit and hat, then she named  each person in the family, colorfully illustrated with wonderfully creative hair.  She pointed to a present and explained that Christmas is a time to share gifts, and then she pointed to a heart, which she told me was a reminder that Christmas is about love.  Finally, she pointed to something that I at first didn’t see, and as she did she said, “And this is the baby Jesus.  You can’t have Christmas without the baby Jesus.”  It seems like an obvious statement that we can’t have Christmas without Jesus.  After all, it IS Jesus birthday, and Jesus really IS the reason for the season, and yet how easy it is for Jesus to get lost in the shuffle of the season.
   This past Sunday began the season of Advent.  Part of the reason we celebrate this season is to remind us that Jesus is the focus of Christmas, and from the very beginning the early Church mothers and fathers understood how easy it is for Jesus to not be the focus.  Thus, a season of preparation, reflection, and prayer was instituted by the Church so that, like the nine months of preparation in anticipation of any child’s entry into the world, we too prepare.  We get ready for THIS child to come again into our hearts.
    “You can’t have Christmas without the baby Jesus,” my daughter said, and as I’ve thought about that statement my mind has expanded the concept.  I started thinking about other things that can’t be without Jesus, like grace, salvation, or even Christian worship.  I got a little less theological and thought about how we couldn’t experience true Joy without Jesus, and at least from my experience, we can’t experience the fullness of life that God intends for us.  As I thought about the context of the statement and I was reminded that Jesus is always in the picture.
    We United Methodists have this understanding of God’s love which is centered around “grace.” This understanding is based in a belief that God loves everyone and God’s grace is available for everyone.  The technical/theological term for this is “prevenient grace,” and it implies that God’s love is always there.  God goes before us, holds us up, and pushes us to live into that same love.  In a nutshell it means that Jesus, God’s gift of love, is always in the picture.

    St. Matthew ended his Gospel with something called The Great Commission (Matthew 28: 16-20), and it gives instructions, even a command, for the disciples to go out and tell Christ’s story to the world.  It is referenced as a key part of evangelism as well as our call as Christians, and rightly so, but it ends with an interesting phrase.  Matthew ends the whole book with this interesting phrase...”I am with you, even to the end of the age.”    It’s easy to read these verses as a rallying cry to get folks out of their comfort zones and into the streets, sharing the love and Word of Christ, and miss the power of such a phrase.  “I am with you, even to the end of the age.”  Some translations even say, “I am with you ALWAYS, even to the end of the age.”
    God, with US always, or to be more relevant to the season, “Immanuel, God with us,” IS with us always, even to the end of the age.   As shared by the presentation by my daughter, Jesus is always in the picture.

    The term “Advent” is translated, “coming,” and it describes this time in the Church year when we prepare for Christ’s coming at Christmas.  And yes, it may feel and sound a bit odd to prepare for someone to come who has already come, died, rose, again, and whom we expect to come again, one whom we know is still with us every day, and yet we celebrate this season as a way to remember who Christ is and to be reminded of the power of Christmas.  We go through Advent so that Advent might go through us and remind us of the gift given.
    And as we do, we discover (or discover again) that Christ really is always in the picture.  That Christ shows up in places that where we might not always see Him clearly or neatly, and yet when we see Him it makes all the difference.
    It’s sort of likes seeing a picture and there is something drawn that is easily missed.  Though easily missed, it is the most important element, and one might not see it if it weren’t for someone...a child...to point it out and say, “and this is Jesus.  You can't have _______________ without Jesus.”

Where do you see Christ in the picture of your life?
Where have you missed seeing Christ in the picture?
How might Advent be a time for you to look for Christ in everything?