Beautiful Savior

When they say the image on the Shroud of Turin is Christ’s, I think, “Wow, Jesus wasn’t very attractive.” But then it wasn’t His face I fell in love with.

Looks aren’t everything. What attracts me to Jesus is His never-ending mercy and unfailing love. Every adjective I can think of to describe Him doesn’t come close to doing Him justice. He is the most glorious person I’ve ever encountered. The very thought of Him can take my breath away or knock me to my knees!

This is why I write—to attempt to magnify Christ’s staggering beauty, so others will get a glimpse of His glory and fall in love with Him too.

It’s a humbling endeavor to try and describe the Maker of the Universe. Songwriter Mark Altrogge agrees:

You are beautiful beyond description
Too marvelous for words
Too wonderful for comprehension
Like nothing ever seen or heard
Who can grasp Your infinite wisdom?
Who can fathom the depth of Your love?
You are beautiful beyond description
Majesty, enthroned above

Long before Christ’s birth, the prophet Isaiah caught a glimpse of His beauty. He describes Jesus as a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief, pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, despised and rejected by man. He also says Christ had:

“no beauty that we should desire him.” Isaiah‬ ‭53‬:‭2‬ ‭

In a world that idolizes good looking people, God chose to show up as an undesirable, unattractive man. Where we tend to admire the outward appearance—God admires the heart—and there is no heart more beautiful than Christ’s.

To think that God wants to put this beautiful heart of Jesus inside you and me is mind-boggling. His divine heart implanted in us makes us beautiful. To be transformed into the image of Christ is God’s ultimate purpose for every person.

Imagine a nation where every citizen possesses the beautiful heart of Jesus. Can you picture a people who go around all day doing good, looking for ways to be a blessing to each other?

That’s the Kingdom of God!

Do you see why I keep magnifying the beauty of Jesus through my writing? How can I not? My grandson Boone said it best …

“Papa, we indeed HAVE to tell the world …not necessarily out of duty, but because love like His DEMANDS to be shared.”

That’s right, Boone. Jesus is too good and too beautiful to keep to ourselves!

So let’s obey the Psalmist who said:

“O magnify the Lord with me” Psalm 34:3