He Moved Into Our Neighbourhood

‘They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know?’ (John 6:42 NIVUK)

When people made this comment about Jesus, they were implying that he is one of us. And in a sense, they were right. Jesus is like one of us. He knows what it is like to grow up in a home. He knows what it is to be single and have friends. He knows what it is like to learn and to work. When we think about Jesus, we remember that he knows what it’s like to do the mundane things of life like preparing breakfast, doing the washing up, and making the bed. He knows what it’s like to enjoy a sunset or to be hungry and cold. He knows what it’s like to have relationships. He had close friends he could trust, he also had friends let him down. Jesus enjoyed going to dinner parties, but he also suffered physical pain and even knows what it’s like to go through the experience of death.

Eugene Peterson translates John 1:14 in this way: ‘The Word [Jesus] became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighbourhood.’ (John 1:14 The Message) The eternal Word, by taking on flesh and blood, moved into our neighbourhood, not as a mighty spirit-being untouched by physical things, but as a tiny helpless and vulnerable baby that needed changing regularly. He knows what it is to be a toddler and a child. He knows what it is to be a refugee. He knows what it is to be weak and at the mercy of others.

Jesus set up home in our neighbourhood to enter into the human experience in order to be able to empathise with us and to taste death for us so that we could be reconciled to the Father (Hebrews 2:9–11).

I’m glad Jesus has moved into my neighbourhood because one who was willing to go through all this to be identified with me, is someone I can trust and rely on to care for me. Why don’t you take some time to get to know your neighbour?

Have a good week trusting Jesus.

Pastor Barry