Praying for RefugeesSýnishorn

A Refugee, and a Refuge - Jesus

The course of history, and the fate of the world, was changed by a refugee.

When God became flesh, He intentionally became a refugee. Leaving heaven behind, He emptied Himself of His rights and privileges. Stepping into a hostile world that saw Him as a stranger, He entered a life of suffering and humility.

His physical life embodied that of the refugee. When Jesus was born, His parents were forced to search for accommodation in awful circumstances, in a barn, under Roman occupation. As a small child, He had to flee with His family to Egypt while Herod persecuted His people and tried to put Him to death. Even when He returned home, Jesus had “no place to lay His head”, travelling from place to place, facing rejection, discrimination and persecution. Throughout His life, he identified with the displaced in every aspect and endured until death.

Jesus knows what it means to leave home behind, to embark on a journey of hardship and heartbreak and to have to trust in God for the strength to continue on a daily basis. He knows loss, disappointment and loneliness. He Himself lived it in order to provide us with a home.

Adam and Eve, and all of humanity with them, had been driven from the Garden of Eden, but God’s love for us never stopped. He understands our vulnerability and, although we are no longer in paradise, He continues to care for us. We took a different path than the one God wanted for us, but He never abandoned us.

And so God became flesh, becoming one of the displaced. Jesus identified with humanity in every way, but even more, He identified with the most vulnerable members of humanity. He entered the shoes of the humble, the miserable, the afflicted, the oppressed, the desperate. Jesus became a refugee. Christ left His home in heaven in order that, one day, we may no longer be “foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household” (Ephesians 2:19).

For those who believe in Him, Christ is our refuge. As members of His family, He cares for us and urges us to do the same for those in need. That is why we seek, with joy and thanksgiving, to go the extra mile to meet those who suffer where they are. For Jesus, acts of compassion and helping those who are struggling are the benchmark for the Last Judgement.

So, we join in His calling to provide and care for those in need, knowing they are our fellow human beings, made in the image of God and worthy of dignity and respect. By following the example of Jesus, we shine His light until the day that Christ will return, and bring us all home.