The humble God revisited

I was watching a video the other day of a thinker that, once you got past his mannerisms, talked about the moment that God the Father turned away from God the Son. Now that is a profound mystery and I don't ever expect to understand it all (even in heaven). It reiterated to me how unique Christianity is among the belief systems of the world in that it is the only one which has the humiliation of its God as a central tenant. There is not a more loving God than the one revealed to us in the religion of Christ.

Then I got to thinking about the claims of deity that Christ made in the New Testament. Clearly the fact that the Messiah would be God in the flesh was foretold by the prophets in the Old Testament, but Christ came right out and said it in the Gospels. Now there had been people claiming to be God far earlier than Christ and there have been people since that have done that. But there is a difference I see in those people when compared to him.

Christ's claims to deity were not intended to make much of him so that he could be celebrated and paraded through the Jerusalem streets. Rather they were made to show the great love that God the Father has for us. And nowhere was this love more pronounced than in the fact that he humbled himself so much so that he became subject to everything that we experience here on this planet in our flesh.

He is God, but where is his house? He is God, but why is he hungry? He is God, but why is he sleeping? He is God, but why is Satan tempting him so? He is God, but why does he need to learn to obey his Father? He is God, but why does he cry? 

He is God, but why is he dying?

You are God, but why are you here? Why do you look like me?

I see a great and profound humility in Christ's claims to the divine nature. A claim that, maybe, he was reticent to make. If it weren't the truth why would he even want to reveal that? It is so audacious; so embarrassing.

I see his meekness in this claim. I see his eyes of love as he acknowledges who he is. But most of all I see him running after me yet again. Why God? Do you really want me that much? Why do you chase after me? Haven't I done enough damage to your Name?

Chase me, Lord. Chase me still. I need you to find me again today. No one knows that more than You.