In The Chosen[1], there's a scene at the end of season one where the disciples have lost track of Jesus somewhere in Samaria and go looking for him. They finally find him underneath an ox cart, repairing a broken axle. Although the scene is an embellishment on what’s recorded in the Gospels, it is true to the character of Jesus that we see recorded there. I love this picture of Him.
God became a man. This fact is extraordinary by any definition. But the ‘God became’ part can sometimes obscure the rest of the sentence: ‘…a man.’ Not a wealthy and privileged man, not a priestly religious man, not a king. Just an average man – a guy who repairs chairs and wagon axles as a favor, fills boats with fish, and makes blind men see.
In every religion that men have contrived throughout history, there is one common theme – in one form or another, they all are about people reaching out to God. That is what makes Jesus’ coming as a man so unexpected and astonishing – it was God reaching out to people in the greatest act of humility that the world has ever seen.
“My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.”
~ John 5:17 NIV
Part of what Jesus revealed about God is His constant propensity to work. Stop and think of the work He has done in your life.
When times get tough, or discouragement creeps in, it’s incredibly encouraging to think of the work that He has done for us and in us. There is a lot of wisdom in that old chorus about counting your blessings… naming them one by one. Has He been with you in sickness? Has He comforted you in loss? Has He met financial needs when there seemed to be no earthly way? Has He worked in the heart of a child that you prayed for? Has He been your anchor in life’s most terrible storms?
When you’re going through a rough patch where everything in life feels upside down – when even your friends don’t know how to comfort you, you might be tempted to think that you’re not on God’s list of favorites. You begin to wonder if God even knows about the mess you’re in, the burdens you bear.
It helps to remember that God is a builder. His work never stops. Whatever you’re going through is on His blueprint for your life. Just look back at the work He’s already done and trust that the current demolition project will end in a glorious new structure – one that’s fit for Heaven.
[1] The Chosen – the TV series about Jesus’ life from Angel Studios, https://watch.angelstudios.com/thechosen