By Doug Redford
On February 20, 1962, John Glenn became the first American to orbit the earth. A few minutes after liftoff, Glenn’s Friendship 7 capsule reached orbit. At one point Glenn commented, “Capsule is turning around. Oh, that view [from outer space] is tremendous!”
This past April 8, a total solar eclipse moved across North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. Millions watched that very special event, using the precautions given for looking at the eclipse with the special glasses provided for the event. People used words like joy, awe, wonder, unforgettable, and magical to describe what they saw that day. “My heart was beating so fast,” said one boy. Hundreds of couples exchanged wedding vows as the eclipse took place so they could make the day even more special. There was a sense of urgency about viewing the eclipse, because the next solar eclipse that will cover the United States like this one did will not happen until 2099!
While thinking about viewing earth from the heavens and the heavens from the earth, consider what it was like to view the Creator of both the heavens and the earth when “the Word [who was God] became flesh and lived among us” (John 1:1, 14). That is what happened on the night Jesus was born. Consider what it was like for Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds to go to Bethlehem and view the child about whom the angels had spoken. They could have used words like “joy, awe, wonder, unforgettable, and magical” to express what they were privileged to see. And John Glenn’s words would have been more than appropriate: “Oh, that view is tremendous!”
There were other tremendous views of Jesus that followed his birth, including hearing his teachings and witnessing his miracles. His death, while heartbreaking at first, was not the final viewing; the resurrection followed three days later. That was another tremendous view to which the aforementioned five descriptions would have applied.
At Communion, we are given another tremendous view: to look at and remember Jesus’ body and blood, represented by the symbols of the bread and the juice. We are privileged to take in the view beyond the manger and to remember why Jesus came: to “save his people from their sins,” as the angel told Joseph (Matthew 1:21). And we look forward, as Paul said, to the return of Jesus (1 Corinthians 11:26). There is no doubt that view will be tremendous indeed!
Doug Redford has served in the preaching ministry, as an editor of adult Sunday school curriculum, and as a Bible college professor. Now retired, he continues to write and speak as opportunities arise.
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