“Lord Jesus, you who were immeasurably rich in all things became incomprehensibly poor for us, so that we, who were desperately poor in sin, might be made inconceivably rich in grace.”
I came across this incredible fragment of a prayer by Scotty Smith and was immediately captivated and humbled, as I often am, by the divine paradox that is Christ.
“you who were immeasurably rich in all things became incomprehensibly poor for us”
Christ was wholly God, yet wholly man. He was the Lion of the Tribe of Judah; yet he was a Lamb sent to be slaughtered. He was the King of Kings; yet he came as a servant. He never sinned; yet he suffered a criminal’s death
“we, who were desperately poor in sin, might be made inconceivably rich in grace.”
I am familiar with the paradox of Christ; yet, it was not until I read this prayer that I fully recognized that he has extended his own paradox onto us. That is, when we became new creations in Christ, we inherited a piece of his paradox. I had never really considered myself to be a paradox. In 2 Corinthians 5 Paul writes, “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself…For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor 18, 21). The word “reconcile” (katallasso) is an old word for exchanging coins, pointing us to the conclusion that we have become part of a divine exchange. The righteous son bore the sins of man so that the sinner could inherit righteousness. Our paradox is exactly opposite the paradox of Christ – it is quite beautiful and quite humbling. The extent to which we cannot fathom the brutal sacrifice Jesus made parallels the extent to which we cannot fathom the tremendous grace that we received . It is a paradox that was completed at the cross.
Over the past couple weeks, the following has been weighing heavy on my heart: God did not put me here to be perfect; he put me here so that others could come to know the One who is perfect. This prayer was a reminder for me to step back from the expectations my type-A personality likes to create and instead just stand in awe of the perfection that is in Christ and the richness of grace he has bestowed upon me.
A divine paradox and a divine exchange – how beautifully intricate. Give Him thanks.