Picture
the Master sitting by the seaside as the sun sets; in a boat
a little way out, speaking to the multitude on the shore;
on the side of a mountain, alone in prayer; going out of the
city’s dust and clamor to the peaceful beauty of Bethany;
winding his way through a golden cornfield; withdrawing to
the wilderness to pray.
Now
hear the imagery of his words:
“How
often would I have gathered thy children together, even as
a hen gathereth her chickens under
her wings” (Matthew 23:37)
“Consider
the lilies of the field, how they grow … even Solomon in all
his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” (Matthew 6:28-29)
“The
wind bloweth where it listeth.” (John
3:8)
“Her
branch is yet tender, and putteth
forth leaves.” (Mark 13:28)
He
spoke of putting “a new piece of cloth unto an old garment”
and of “children of light” (Matthew 9:16; John 12:36).
All
that the Lord did has a clarity,
a beauty, a sensitivity, and harmony with nature and earth.
All that he said had the poetic qualities of awareness and
vividness.
How
in tune the Lord was! How in touch, how in time!
I
wondered for years why it was that his sensitivity and love
for the earth went so far beyond that of any man. Then one
day I heard the phrase, “We love what we have made.” The Lord
saw beauty in all things partly because he put beauty
in all things.
He
loved nature – the fresh, the good, the pure, the
majestic. He went alone to the mountains, to the seashore,
to the deserts to regenerate, to be recharged by the calm
serenity of his earth and by the peace of its spirit.
Ponder
how such retreats could precede great outpourings of the Holy
Spirit. (From the desert he comes, preaching with new power.
Form the seaside he comes, curing and healing. From the mountains
he comes, walking on water.)
It
has been said that poets can speak with true beauty only about
the things they love. The Master loved all, and loved us all,
and therefore was the most sensitive and beautiful poet of
all time.
Be
with us here at this column next week when we thing together
about the “extra-centeredness” of Christ.
