understated incarnation 1 Kings 19:1-15, Luke 8:26-39

When Jesus walked on earth God's kingdom came with even if it didn't appear so. Most people saw a man as they looked at Jesus; but those who needed him most, the hurting and the lost, knew there was something more to Jesus.

Luke says when Jesus traveled through the country of the Gerasenes a naked daemon possessed man came towards Him.

What business do you have messing with me? You’re Jesus, Son of the High God, but don’t give me a hard time!” (The man said this because Jesus had started to order the unclean spirit out of him.) Luke 8:28 The Message

A man who most needed Jesus met him and knew who he was. He was the Son of God most High. Maybe to others he looked ordinary; but the hurting man knew Jesus as the one who came to bring healing. Maybe instead of expecting God to come with legions of angels we should look and see when He's come incarnate into our world. Dietrich Bonhoeffer observed,

When God's Son took on flesh, he truly and bodily took on, out of pure grace, our being, our nature, ourselves. Dietrich Bonhoeffer Life Together page 24

Believers often experience God working in smaller ways than expected. Perhaps this is really God's nature. When we need God the most we see him come--and when we are sure of ourselves; when we mistakenly believe we don't need a savior we don't see him moving in our lives. The Good News is that God is always present--incarnate in our world. When the prophet Elijah met God it wasn't in the rock splitting wind, the earthquake, or consuming fire; rather God came in still calm 1 Kings 19:12.

The incarnation conceals Jesus' power and glory. He comes unexpected today in the church, His body, serving mutually with those in need. In an interview Father Greg Boyle reflects about how God moves through gang bangers he's worked with in Homeboy Industries. Boyle reflects on the mutuality of God moving and changing lives his and the gang members seeking to start over. God works in and through us. He comes in the care and concern of others. God comes in the still small voice, often surprising us by working quietly in our lives.
Peace, and thanks for reading. John.