The Simplicity of Christ

Ponder this: Arguably two of the greatest gifts God has given us that help lead us to an intimate relationship with Him are His Word and His sacrifice on the cross (His grace).

In an effort to help draw a picture of God’s intent, consider the following. Imagine, if you will, that you are a husband, and you want more than anything to let your wife know how much you adore her. Additionally, you wish to provide her with a glimpse into who you are. So you decide to write her a love letter, sharing your most passionate feelings, holding nothing back, and exposing yourself by becoming tremendously vulnerable—all for the sake of greater intimacy. This heartfelt love letter is much like the one God has written for us in His Word.

Also, as your bride, she has been given a ring that not only reflects your unconditional love for her but also represents a commitment. It is a symbol of your everlasting love and a promise that the two of you belong to each other. Similarly, Jesus ensured that we were given access to Him. His commitment to us on the cross is a symbol of His everlasting love.

It pleases you that every evening she sits on the floor by the fireplace reflecting on both. She reads and rereads the letter you painstakingly wrote and gazes at the ring, which symbolizes your commitment to her. Now imagine, as the evening comes to a close and you head upstairs to your bed, she opts to sleep on the couch instead. Also, when she has something incredible to celebrate or when life sets in front of her unbearable challenges, she reaches out to her best friend but never shares these moments with you. What is wrong with this scenario?

You see, the point of the letter was indeed to let her know how much you adore her and to provide her with a glimpse into yourself. And the ring was to reflect your love for and commitment to her. But the greater intent of both was solely to draw her closer to you and to strengthen the bond that the two of you share. To miss out on this intent would be tragic. The Bible definitely shows His love for us, and the sacrifice made on the cross truly covers a multitude of our wrongdoings. However, the more demonstrative aim of both is to bring us to His feet, to grant access to and time with Him. Our affections for His gifts—the Bible and the cross—were never meant to be greater than our affections for the gift giver and should only stir up a desire to draw us even closer to and to engage more intimately with Him.

Another example of God’s desire to interact with us is offered in the way He lived. Most know how God humbled Himself by becoming flesh and eventually gave His life by dying on the cross, making it possible for us to bypass the ultimate penalty from the fall and be reunited again and forever. Although we love and appreciate the way God died for us, what is often overlooked—but I believe is equally as impressive—is the way He lived for us. Did God have to come down from heaven and reduce Himself to our level and live a sacrificial life to the point of humiliation and even death to redeem us? Could an all-powerful Creator and preeminent being have found another way to do so? Absolutely. But the fact that He chose to become vulnerable and subject Himself to the rigors of life as a mere human allows Him to say two simple words: “I know.” I know how you feel. I know how hard it is. I know the hurts. I understand. He can relate to us in every situation that we find ourselves faced with. He, Himself, has lost loved ones, been betrayed, been rejected, felt anxious. And despite handling all this in masterfully perfect fashion, He does not hold it over us and ask us why we are unable to. But in contrast, He offers us comfort, understanding, and reminds us that this too will pass. Sure, Jesus used His time here to provide a look into the kingdom of heaven and to be an example of how we should live as His children. But Jesus also went through the entire gambit of emotions. But why? Surely the God of the universe never needs to subject Himself to the experiences, which He did, and still accomplish the task of salvation and instruction. I suggest that He lived in a manner that exposed Himself to all emotions and allowed Him the means to empathize with us. This lets us know that He paralleled what we are going through in every aspect of our own lives and that He’s been there Himself. He is relatable.

When we look for comfort or advice, or when we just need to be listened to, we usually reach out to those who can best relate. God makes Himself available to be just that for us. When we look at all the ways in which God asks us for and makes it easy to have a relationship with Him, it becomes clear as to His intentions from the beginning and foreve