This Isn't Mr Roger's Neighborhood

“The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, generous inside and out, true from start to finish.”

During a bible study, a friend shared this reading of John 1:14 from The Message, a modern paraphrase of the Bible. While not a literal translation of the words of the original text, this version often does a pretty good job of putting the message of the Scriptures into a modern way of speaking.

One particular phrase captured our attention. The verse speaks of how the Word of God took on human form and “…moved into the neighborhood.” Think about that for a moment. Why didn’t the Son of God just remain in the heavenly realms and invite mankind to come to His neighborhood? Property values are obviously much better there. Crime is non-existent. There are no taxes. You will find no potholes in golden streets. On the other hand, why would Jesus leave the splendor of heaven to move to our side of the tracks? Talk about moving to the slums! Talk about the need for urban renewal! Our neighborhood is a good place to get mugged. Just ask Jesus!

Why did Jesus leave his neighborhood? Because it was our only hope of ever getting out of our neighborhood. “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Left to our own devices, we could not even dream of living in God’s part of town. But because Jesus came to live with us, we can live with God (John 14:2-3). From the projects to Park Avenue! From the ghetto to a gated community (Revelation 21)! To borrow the words of Paul in another context: “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15).

God loves you!
Mike