Tuesday, May 18, 2010

The First Blessing..."I am on your side!"

Jesus has just gone down to the Jordan to persuade John to baptize Him. It wasn't required, but He was being supremely obedient. John hesitates, not wanting to baptize the man who should be baptizing him instead. But Jesus insists and John relents.
Jesus is baptized and as he comes up out of the water, the heavens open, (Mark' gospel renders it "torn open" Mark was dictated by Peter and Peter had that sort of extreme view of things...I always loved him for that) and the Holy Spirit descends on Jesus in the form of a dove. Why a dove? I don't know. (How's that for exposition?)
What I do know is that Jesus received the ultimate gift from a father to a son...his everything. The Greek word for "spirit" is "pneuma". It connotes breath. Not just breath, but the breath that gives life. It is the same word that would be used in the story of God breathing life into Adam. The Holy Spirit is the very power of God Himself. Only the essence of God could make a dirt-man come alive.
God took that power and let it rest upon His son Jesus. That gift was the ultimate statement of "I am fully on your side" from a Father to a Son.
As dad's, our children desperately need to know we will be there for them and we will do everything possible to see their dreams come true and their vision complete. In Jesus' case, of course, it was God's vision but still the father opened the very heavens and poured His spirit on His Son.
My daughter has dreams that are changing and evolving as she grows older. She wants to sing and write and create. She wants to be a veterinarian too. My job is to harness my power and my resources and pour them on her in order to see those dreams come true. It isn't about money necessarily. It's the statement that says "My Child...I see the dreams in your heart and the visions for your life. I know the things you lay awake at night hoping for. I am "All In" where those dreams are concerned. You have everything I have, I will open every door, call in every favor, do anything I can to see your life become what you dream of it becoming."
Just as our children desire this from us, we desire it from God. Our heavenly father has said "If God be for me who can be against me?". He has poured out the very same Spirit on each of His children. The first thing our kids want to know is that they have the best efforts of their daddies in their corner.
The dad-shaped hole starts to fill when we begin to understand that God is fully on our side.

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