This morning, there’s a chill in the air and the sun is shining. That’s one of my favorite combinations. It would be even more favorable to me if there was snow on the ground. Yes, I’ll admit it, I like the white stuff. When I see snow covered ground and roofs, i see possibilities for new beginnings. It’s like the snow makes everything look fresh and new again. Now, I have many friends who would rather see 85 degrees than snow and they have the right to their own opinions. I like warm weather too. But, on days like today, you can step outside for a breath of fresh cool air and then step back inside in front of a window and feel the sun’s heat soaking deep into your muscles. You may wonder, did Jesus ever come in from the cold to warm His bones? Let’s look at a few scriptures and see if we can find an answer:
Isaiah 1:18 reads, “’Come now, let us settle the matter,’ says the LORD. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.’” Apparently Isaiah and his readers were familiar with snowfall deep enough to cover over the ground. And in Jeremiah 18:14 God asks, “Does the snow of Lebanon ever vanish from its rocky slopes? Do its cool waters from distant sources ever stop flowing?” Job recounts, “He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth,’ and to the rain shower, ‘Be a mighty downpour.’ (Job 37:6) The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 147:16, “He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes.” And who can forget the wife of virtue in Proverbs 31? Verse 21 says, “When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet.” And while there are many more references to the heat and drought, there are several additional references to the white stuff as well.
So, since unlike the foxes and birds, the Son of Man had nowhere to lay His head, there were probably many nights when He and His disciples slept out in the cold or searched for any available shelter from the wind and cold. What difference does it make? Why does it matter enough to write about it? Because it is just another way that God demonstrated His love for us. By becoming one of us, Jesus experienced the same things we do. Whether it was biting cold, or hot summer days, or even a broken heart because of a friend’s betrayal, He went through the same things we do. So, He understands. God could never experience our pain and weakness from up in heaven. So He came down to experience our lives. So, the next time you feel a chill in the air and wrap up a little tighter before ducking into a warm place, take a moment and thank God for His most wonderful gift.