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Marvel of the Heavenly Hosts, January 30
But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a
servant, and was made in the likeness of men.
Philippians 2:7
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It is important that we each study to know the reason of the life of Christ
in humanity, and what it means to us—why the Son of God left the courts
of heaven—why He stepped down from His position as commander of the
heavenly angels who came and went at His bidding—why He clothed His
divinity with humanity, and in lowliness and humility came to the world as
our Redeemer.
It was the marvel of the heavenly hosts that Christ should come to earth
and do as He did—that His life here should be one of poverty, in such
incomparable contrast with His glory in the heavenly courts. He might
have come attended by the angelic throng....
Before the universe of heaven, Christ condescended to take upon Him
the form of humanity, and stand among the lowly ones of earth, that He
might reach them where they were, and by precept and example teach them,
that though among the poor and oppressed they might be pure, and true,
and noble. He came to reveal to the world that the life and character need
not become contaminated amid poverty and lowliness. The lily that rests
upon the bosom of the lake may be surrounded with weeds and unsightly
debris, yet, unsullied, it opens its fragrant white blossom to the sunlight. It
strikes its channeled stem down through the mass of rubbish to the pure
sands beneath. Refusing everything that would defile, it gathers to itself
only those properties that will develop into the spotless, fragrant flower.
The lily is a representation of Christ among men. He came to a world
all seared and marred with the curse, but He was not polluted by His
surroundings. He was the Light, the Life, and the Way. He voluntarily
became an inhabitant of earth, that He might grasp the whole world in His
merciful arms and lay it in the arms of His heavenly Father. What love is
manifested in this sacrifice, that the Lord Himself should come to the help
of the fallen sons and daughters of Adam
[37]
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The Youth’s Instructor, January 21, 1897
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