In the World/Not of the WorldSample

Divine Feet in Our Dirty World

Over the centuries, there have been many different beliefs about God around the world.

Who is He? Is there only one? How does He behave? And so on.

However, one commonly held belief was that whoever God was, He did not live among humanity.

In Daniel chapter 2, there is an interesting statement. King Nebuchadnezzar has a dream that needs interpretation, but since he doesn’t trust his own magicians, he demands they tell him the dream. Their response?

“There is no one on earth who can do what the king asks…No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among humans” (Daniel 2:10-11, NIV, emphasis added).

It was a strong statement based on their belief that the gods of the heavens would never dare to enter the lowly world of humans. The idea that divine feet would touch our dirty world was beyond ridiculous.

I wonder if they had an image of what they thought this would look like.

Maybe the god would be huge, have long hair, and an angry face. Perhaps he would be in a horse-drawn chariot or ride a lightning bolt. But no matter what he did, I’m sure they felt they would recognize a god when they saw him.

A few centuries later, a fisherman by the name of John writes down his experience with his Rabbi. And how does he start?

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:1 & v.14, NIV, emphasis added).

After three years of walking with Jesus and seeing all the things he did, John came to a profound realization: God did live among humans.

That means He left His world and came to ours. His divine feet touched our dirty world.

John adds this: “He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him” (John 1:10, NIV, emphasis added).

This week, we will spend some time looking at Jesus, the God who lived among us, and see how He lived in this world but was not of the world.

Prayer: Jesus, thank You that You came to live among us and that You know what this world is like. Help me to follow You this week and learn a bit more about what it is to be in this world but not of it. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Reflection: What do you think John felt when he came to believe that Jesus is God? Take some time to consider that thought, and let Jesus show you a bit more of who He is.