Proverbs 8:27–32 (NRSV)
“When he established the heavens, I was there, when he drew a circle on the face of the deep, when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep, when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, then I was beside him, like a master worker; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always, rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the human race.
And now, my children, listen to me; happy are those who keep my ways.”
CONSIDER THIS
Proverbs 8 gives us an eloquent expression of a universal reality. This universal reality, which is seen as the vessel of God’s creative activity, has been called by many names. That’s partly because its essence transcends conceptual boundaries. Solomon refers to this reality as “wisdom,” but it’s difficult for me to read this proverb and not think of Jesus. In these days between Christmas and Epiphany, we focus on Jesus as the earthly manifestation of a primordial reality. While we rightly look upon his earthly life as our divine pattern of obedience, we remember that his life didn’t begin in the manger. He was with the Father from the beginning, joining with him in the process of creation. We can see Jesus just as clearly in Proverbs 8 as we can in John 1.
Jesus is at once the archetype of creation and the vessel through whom all things came to be. Colossians 1 tells us that the spiritual presence of Jesus is holding it all together. Subtracting the Spirit of Jesus from creation doesn’t lead to despair. It leads to complete disintegration. Jesus is our teacher. Jesus is our healer. Yet he is above all else a walking symbol of our connection with God. He is a reminder of God’s intense longing for intimacy and he opens the way for us to experience this intimacy for ourselves. He is the example, plus the energy to follow it. If we are wise, we will submit to his presence and we will seek to follow in his ways.
THE PRAYER
Open our eyes to the presence of Jesus within the created order. The reality of death and rebirth surrounds us, yet the awareness of Jesus eludes us. Give us eyes to see.
THE QUESTION
Where in creation do you see evidence of Jesus? What is the connection between the earthly Jesus and primordial wisdom? How does Jesus manifest this reality?
For the Awakening,
Josh LeRoy
Subscribe to get this in your inbox daily and please share this link with friends.
4 Responses
CS Lewis once said, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” Spiritually, and we all are spiritual beings, we replace the sun with THE SON!
God designed all life, from the cosmos to the tiniest, microscopic speck, with Jesus woven through its structure. HE IS THE WAY!
If life works in Jesus’s way, it works harmoniously and accurately. If not, life works its own ruin, destruction, and death.
Humanity is the living evidence of both ways.
Unfortunately, ruin is humanity’s natural condition until we individually change positions by being spiritually born again through Jesus.
John 3:3
Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Nicodemus didn’t understand it at first, nor did I, but when Jesus becomes real to you, everything else becomes second, third, and fourth fiddle!
Staying 💪’ n Christ
Ephesians 6:10
Finally, stay strong in the Lord and in His mighty power
In answer to the question, “Where in creation do you see evidence of Jesus?” The Bible states that God spoke the various parts of creation into existence; Jesus is the very mind and Word of God the Father. Secondly in revealing the creation of Adam (man), the Bible states that “Then the Lord God formed the man out of the dust from the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and man became a living being.” (Genesis 2:7) God the Father is described as Spirit. The formation of Adam, I believe was accomplished by the pre-incarnate Christ, who then breathed into Adam’s nostrils the Holy Spirit. And later, after the Fall, I believe it was once again the footsteps of the pre-incarnate Jesus who Adam and Eve heard, and attempted to hide from in the bushes. I believe that Jesus literally had His hands both in our creation and redemption.
“Jesus is our teacher. Jesus is our healer.”
I woke up with this poem forming in my mind this morning and completed it before coming to Wake-Up Call:
Every time I
Open my heart
To Jesus Christ
A quiet rush
Of holy hush
Surrounds me
And astounds me
As I gush
With the Spirit
Of the Lord.
This sentence also formed in my mind before I got out of bed: “The most effective leader is a living example of continually listening to and obeying the risen Jesus.”
Jesus has opened the way for ongoing intimacy with God. Let’s ever submit to His presence and always listen to and obey His still small voice.
I just now got this in my spirit:
Jesus is here now.
How now?
By the presence
Of His Spirit.
If we let Jesus
Now lead us
People will see
Christ working in us
And be changed.