A Lion in a Manger

So, at church this morning, I was overawed at the profound implications of a song that the choir sang.

"There's a baby in Bethlehem, a Lion in a manger.
There's a baby in Bethlehem, a Lion in a manger."

I sat in the pew and reflected on the richness of that image. A baby, helpless and scrawny to the eyes of the world, and yet at the same time, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, as described in Revelation.

Revelation 5:5

"But one of the elders said to me, 'Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals."

How often we fail to see things through God's eyes, and are instead distracted by what seems to be true. It is sometimes hard to think of a Christian in a Chinese "reeducation camp" as a victorious saint who is ransacking the house of the evil one. Or of a starving Christian in North Korea as one who has been fed with oil, milk and fatness. We don't always see the elderly man in church as a mighty warrior, wielding weapons of battle: truth, righteousness, peace, and most importantly, a two-edged sword sharper than any surgeon's scalpel.

But so they are.

I was enthralled by the baby in a manger who was really a roaring Lion, ripping the power of the evil one to shreds and claiming His righteous bride.

Then I listened more closely to the lyrics of the song realized that I had it all wrong.

"There's a baby in Bethlehem, a lyin' in a manger.
There's a baby in Bethlehem, a lyin' in a manger."

Hmph.

I liked my version better...