Jesus gives us an explicit reason for his coming to earth in John 10:10. It is in his great lesson on the sheep and the Good Shepherd, and he says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” His purpose was to give us something: life. But note, it’s not just any kind of life. It’s an abundant life. Whether we are consciously aware of it or not, we are all on a search for “the good life.” We are all after that person, place, or thing that will make us satisfied, someone or something that will give us meaning in this world.

The entire life and ministry of Christ was one of apparent weakness, and this began at his birth. The King of the universe born in a cattle stall? That’s a hard sell. Therefore, the great question posed to the human race has always been: Do we have the faith necessary to rest in such a Savior? Do we trust that a strong and sure salvation can come from one who seems so small and so inadequate?

Tragically, the majority report on the answer to that question has been “no.” It’s especially tragic this time of year to see the whole world searching for some kind of happiness and fulfillment and love, and yet they look right past Jesus who alone is able to provide all of those things in the fullest. 

Are You Looking Past Jesus for Your Happiness and Fulfillment?

Dare we do the same? As we look through the pages of Scripture, we know that Christ is not small or inadequate in the least:

He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. (Heb. 1:3)

He is, as Samuel Rutherford puts it, “bottomless and boundless.” Even when Jesus was a helpless infant, the government rested on his shoulders (Isa. 9:6). So we are to look past the apparent weakness and see the underlying glory and wonder that is our Savior. Thus, Rutherford writes:

O, pity for evermore that there should be such a one as Christ Jesus, so boundless, so bottomless, and so incomparable in infinite excellency, and sweetness, and so few to take Him!

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