"The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." (Colossians 1:15-17 NIV)
I've shared this story before, but it fits so perfectly with today's name that I hope you'll forgive me a rerun.
A little boy was scared in his bedroom at night, and his mom was trying to comfort him. "Don't be afraid," she told him. "God is here with you." To which the boy replied, "Yes, I know, but I need someone with skin on."
Jesus—in His fully divine yet fully human form—was God with skin on. He made the Immortal Invisible visible.
In His raising of Lazarus from the dead, Jesus made God's power visible.
In His healing of the woman with the bleeding disease, Jesus made God's compassion visible.
In His feeding of the 5,000, Jesus made God's provision visible.
In His conversation with the woman at the well, Jesus made God's inclusion visible.
In His defense of the woman caught in adultery, Jesus made God's mercy visible.
And in His sacrifice on the cross, Jesus made God's love visible.
Journalists sometimes talk about the "so what" factor: what does an article or story have to do with a reader's life? What are readers supposed to do with the information that's been presented?
What is the "so what" of this name of God? What does it mean for you and me in our daily lives that Jesus is the image of the invisible God?
Maybe the answer lies here: we are image-bearers of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:49). If Jesus is the image-bearer of God, and we are the image-bearers of Jesus, we need to look like Him. We need to be Him "with skin on." We need to act like Him. We need to do what He did. We need to make God's power, compassion, provision, inclusion, mercy, and love visible (just for starters, and of course we don't do any of this in our own strength).
We need to show up in someone's night, and, by the light of the image of the invisible we bear, banish fear from it.
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I'd love to hear from you! Feel free to tell me what you really think. Years ago, I explained to my then-two-year-old that my appointment with a counselor was "sort of like going to a doctor who will help me be a better mommy." Without blinking, she replied, "You'd better go every day." All of which is just to say I've spent some time in the school of brutal honesty!