17 Dec 2012

Christmas = ? (saying goodbye)

Christmas seems to be a time when you see a lot of people - there are generally gatherings of mulled wine and mince pies and it's great to catch up with people you haven't seen for a while. 

It's also a time when people might be assessing where they are going/what they are doing as they approach the end of the year.

My friends Jon and Sarah had their leaving party on Sunday. They are leaving to move to the states (San Fran) on New Years Eve. Leaving parties are sad. Thankfully the joys of modern communication means that hopefully I'll be able to stay in touch - and who knows - good holiday destination!

Saying goodbye made me think a little bit about Jesus - not to be overly theological but I wonder what it was like for him to leave constant community with God and the Holy Spirit and come to earth. Did he actually leave or was it more he was just in a different place but the relationship was still the same?

I am always moved by these verses in Philippians (2:5-8 Message)
Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.

They talk about Jesus totally giving up and saying goodbye to his "God" status and becoming just like us. That is insane when you think about it. 

I'm glad he did though. 

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