By Nathan Hart
I want to introduce you to somebody. You’ve probably already heard of him because he’s very famous, but there are some things you might not know about him.
He’s famous, yes, but not because he wrote a hit single that went to the top of the charts. Even so, more love songs have been written about him and for him than anyone else in history.
He’s powerful, but not because he campaigned for or held public office. However, from the moment he was born, many politicians felt threatened by him.
He’s an influencer, but he doesn’t have social media, never wrote a novel or an essay, a blog post or tweet. But the biography of his life is the number one bestseller of all time.
(I know that, by now, you know who I am talking about).
He never trained for a sport, was the captain of a team, or won a championship, but athletes around the world talk about how he inspires them.
He didn’t command a military or have bodyguards, and when he was attacked, he didn’t fight back. But the movement that was started in his name has toppled empires and has spread across all six inhabited continents.
Some of the world’s most grand, most beautiful, and most expensive architectural structures were built in his honor, but he never owned his own house.
We don’t have any photographs or videos of him, but he commonly appears in people’s dreams and visions and thoughts of the heart.
Even though his family was poor, he never asked for money; yet billions of people voluntarily give him a portion of their income.
(Shall I go on?)
He didn’t earn a medical degree but people call him their Healer. He didn’t go to law school but people call him their Judge. He didn’t attend any of the top name universities we strive to get our kids into, but when people hear his words they call him Teacher.
There is a timelessness about him, but the timeline of history has been divided into two chapters around his birthday.
In fact, almost everyone on earth knows his name. To some, it’s merely a curse word, but to others, his name is a light that shines in the darkness. His name holds the power to forgive, to reconcile, to save, and to give life. His name is whispered as a cry for help from the depths of despair, and shouted out as the name above all names.
His name is Jesus.
How did such a humble person become so profoundly famous, powerful, influential, and revered?
His life looms large over history, but his birth was unremarkable. His parents placed him in a manger—everyone knows that. But why do we remember the manger? Placing a child in a feeding trough, if you think about it, is a pretty forgettable thing. Back then, most houses included a room for the animals to sleep in. Jesus’ parents were visitors in a home in Bethlehem, and the guestroom was occupied so they had to stay where the animals were. It’s the kind of story that, if it happened to you when you were born, your parents might not even mention it to you later because it’s honestly a little embarrassing.
Indeed, the manger was forgettable and ordinary, except for the extraordinarily unforgettable person who was laid in it. The reason we remember the manger is Jesus.
The way he died, too, was supposed to make people forget about him. The Roman empire designed crucifixion as a way of erasing certain people (criminals) from the record of humanity. Among the thousands of people the Romans crucified, we only know one name. The crucifixion was supposed to eradicate Jesus and his influence. Yet, the symbol of the cross has become more common and recognizable than any brand or logo. Why? Not because the cross’s wooden planks were so significant, but because of the one who was hanged upon it. The reason we remember the cross is Jesus.
And then there was his tomb. History doesn’t remember Jesus’ tomb because his lifeless body was placed inside it. Lots of famous people have but because his resurrected body walked out of it. The reason we remember the empty tomb is Jesus.
The manger, the cross, the tomb. These are not the main characters of the story. Lift your eyes to see the one placed in, hanged upon, and walking out of these forgettable things.
The most unforgettable person in history is Jesus.
Why?
The only logical explanation is that he was not just another ordinary human like the rest of us. He is who he said he is, namely the Son of God, and who the Bible says he is: “God with us.”
If all this is true, Jesus at least demands our attention. And as we look at him and learn more about him, we see his birth as God’s greatest gift, his death as God’s means of forgiving our sins, and his resurrection as God’s proof of his promise to give us everlasting life.
“And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” Luke 2:7
“And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Philippians 2:8
“And [the angel] said to them, ‘Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him.’” Mark 16:6
“I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” -Jesus. John 10:10
“I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.” -Jesus. John 12:46
“Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” I Timothy 1:15
“The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45
The Rev. Dr. Nathan Hart is the Senior Pastor of Stanwich Church.
