A Megadose of Hope
By Sed Charic
Luke 2:52 (NIV): "And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and [people]."
I know that many of us can look at the world around us and find it hard to find hope. This is not too foreign a feeling for those who were living in Judea and Galilee at the time of Jesus' birth: they were under the control of an occupying power, their homeland was divided, and there was no temple (though it was under construction). They had plenty of reasons for despair.
Enter Jesus, who is introduced as a megadose of hope! See, in the early days of Israel the prophet Samuel was considered one of the great leaders of their nation, and was instrumental in helping them to turn back to the Lord and experience God's favor once again. In Luke's Gospel, we get very clear comparisons to Samuel that show us how much better Jesus is! With Samuel, there was one unexpected pregnancy (1 Samuel 1:1-20); with Jesus, there are two (Luke 1:5-25,26-38)! With Samuel, there's one song to celebrate this miracle (Hannah's song, 1 Samuel 2:1-10), but in Luke, two miracles means two songs: Mary's (Luke 1:46-55) and Zecharaiah's (Luke 1:68-79)! And this is just the start; if you have time, I highly recommend reading the first four chapters of 1 Samuel and then the first two chapters of Luke and see what jumps out to you (I'm confident the Spirit will aid you in this).
So what does all of this have to do with the verse at the beginning? Well, first off, if you suspect I'm grasping at straws, that verse is almost identical to 1 Samuel 2:26: "And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the Lord and with people." Secondly - and just as important - as followers of Jesus, we are empowered to become more like Jesus through the Holy Spirit, which means we too can continue to grow in wisdom, stature, and favor with God! In a world where the church continues to strive towards this goal, that is a reason to hope because goodness will continue to increase. That increase may look (or be) inconsistent at times, but I firmly believe it is the key to God's will and kingdom being done here on earth, just as it is in heaven.
Lord, thank you for sending Your people - and us - a megadose of hope in Your Son, Jesus Christ. Help us to grow in wisdom and stature and favor, so that we may use these attributes to influence those around us as a force for good in this world that you have entrusted to us. Amen
Sed Charic is a St. John member and plays in the worship band.