THE FINGERPRINT OF GOD

We are all unique.

You know that, right?  

And I'm sure that most of you know that every single person has a unique and different fingerprint.  No two are the same.  But, did you know that although identical twins share the same DNA profile, they do not have the same fingerprints?  Yes, though they are similar, they are still different, unique to each.

I find this fascinating.

What I also find fascinating, and this is something that I just recently learned, is that no two dogs have the same nose print!  Yup, a dog's nose print is just as unique as a fingerprint, and no two dogs have the same pattern of ridges and lines.  Even puppies of the same litter are not the same when it comes to noses.

Interesting, huh?!

So, I've been pondering.

Since Jesus was born a human, then He must have had fingerprints.  And His fingerprints were unique to Him.  So, in all reality, He literally had the fingerprints of God!!

I wonder what His DNA profile was like.

We each have a unique DNA makeup, composed of chromosomes inherited from our mother and our father.  Since Jesus' father was God, I wonder if His profile looked different from a normal human being.

I know these questions have no real practical use, nor do they have any impact on faith, but I still find it intriguing to think about.

Everything that Jesus touched had the fingerprint of God on it.

He was literally made up of the very *stuff* of God.

No wonder He was so different, so unique, so perfectly tailored to become the Savior of the World!

And in every real sense of the word, because we are the image-bearers of the Creator, because we possess the Holy Spirit living within us, we are also stamped with the fingerprint of God upon our lives.

Thrilling, isn't it?!


I'm recalling the very beautiful work of Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel.  There is one section that shows God reaching out to touch the figure of Adam.  It's called "The Creation of Adam."  Though I am not a huge fan of Renaissance art, there's no denying that this famous image is spectacular.

But you know the reason I like it the most?

It's because the painting captures a moment, just as the fingertip of God is about to touch Adam.  

I ponder the posture of Adam's hand – it looks rather weak and powerless.  Contrasted to that is God's finger – as it reaches out for the hand of man with great intention.

I get the feeling of *spiritual electricity* surrounding this moment.

I get the feeling that in the very next second, something of tremendous meaning and purpose and power and glory is going to be released as Creator makes contact with creature.

BOOM!

Man becomes alive, touched by the finger of God.  Irrevocably stamped with the fingerprint image of the Almighty.


It's the same with us.  You know why?

Because a little over 2,000 years ago, the hand of God reached out once again.

It reached all the way down from Heaven, and touched this earth with His Presence.

When I think about the birth of Christ, I am reminded of this painting.

Can you place yourself there in the manger?  Mary has strained and strived for a long time to birth her child.  She knows this child is different, but I wonder if she fully comprehends the impact of the whole story.

Tired, sweaty, in pain, she works so hard to have this baby, this boy, this child whom God has promised.

Think of the moment just before Jesus appears.

Something of tremendous meaning and purpose and power and glory was about to happen.  

The Almighty is on the brink of entering His creation, full of great intention.  The angels stand on tiptoes to see an extraordinary mystery.  And the heavens are hushed in awed silence.

And then…

The Child, the Son of God, makes His appearance.

The fingertip of God makes contact with humanity, with a lost and broken world, and with every single soul that will ever be born.  

God's fingertip reaches down for the rest of eternity to His creation – in love, and grace, and mercy, and hope, and redemption.

I kinda get chills thinking about it.


So, here I am.  Here you are.  All these years later.

Pondering the mysteries of the nativity.  Contemplating the miracle of the manger.

Reaching our weak and powerless hands to the Almighty.  Stretching our fingers of faith to Him.  Seeking the contact of the Great One.  Waiting for the incredible encounter with His power and glory.

BOOM!

Heaven reaches down, and we are touched.


So, as we spend this Advent season remembering and preparing, let's never forget this.

We are stamped with the fingerprint of God.

We are connected to Him in the very *stuff* of which we are made.  We are united to His Spirit.  New creatures.  Each uniquely printed with our own individuality, but part and parcel of the Creator Himself. 

It's a wonder, and I find it fascinating.


Take a moment right now, look at your fingerprints.  (Or look at your dog's nose!!)

Think of Jesus, and His uniqueness.

Think of Jesus, and His humanity.

Think of Jesus, and His glory as God.

Think of His love, and grace, and mercy, and hope, and redemption.

Think of Jesus, and know…

You belong to Him.  

His fingerprint is on your heart.  


BOOM!

So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them.
And the LORD said,
"I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love.
With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself."

*****(Lots of Scripture - but read and let The Story unfold!)*****

"Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.  And God blessed them." (Genesis 1:26-28, ESV)

"When God created human beings, he made them to be like himself." 
(Genesis 5:1, NLT)

"When Adam sinned, sin entered the world...But there is a great difference between Adam's sin and God's gracious gift.  For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many.  But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ...For Adam's sin led to condemnation...But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:12, 15, 16-17)

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16, NIV)

"Now search all of history, from the time God created people on the earth until now, and search from one end of the heavens to the other.  Has anything as great as this ever been seen or heard before?" (Deuteronomy 4:32, NLT)

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.  And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6, NIV)

"'Don't be afraid, Mary,' the angel told her, 'for you have found favor with God!  You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High.  The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David.  And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!'" (Luke 1:30-33, NLT)

"Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.  He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see...Everything was created through him and for him.  He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together." (Colossians 1:15-17, NLT)

"No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known." 
(John 1:18, NIV)

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.  We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14, NIV)

"Jesus shouted to the crowds, 'If you trust me, you are trusting not only me, but also God who sent me.  For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me.'" (John 12:44-45, NLT)

"He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.  After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high..." 
(Hebrews 1:3, ESV)

"Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures." (James 1:18, ESV)

"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature...[and] put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator." (Colossians 3:5, 10, NIV)

"For we are God's masterpiece.  He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." (Ephesians 2:10, NLT)

"We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us." (2 Corinthians 5:20, NIV)

"He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less." (John 3:30, NLT)



What does it mean to you to bear the fingerprint of God?



Linked with:

SHARING HIS BEAUTY, PLAYDATES WITH GOD, UNFORCED RHYTHMS, MONDAYS AT SOUL SURVIVAL, MONDAY'S MUSINGS, MAKE A DIFFERENCE MONDAYS, TELL ME A TRUE STORY, GOOD MORNING MONDAYS,SOLI DEO GLORIA, UNITE, TITUS 2 TUESDAYS, TESTIMONY TUESDAY, WHOLEHEARTED WEDNESDAYS, CAPTURE YOUR JOURNEY, TEACHING WHAT IS GOOD, A LITTLE R & R WEDNESDAYS, COFFEE & CONVERSATION, SO MUCH AT HOME, WINSOME WEDNESDAY, WORD FILLED WEDNESDAY, THREE WORD WEDNESDAY, TELL HIS STORY, COFFEE FOR YOUR HEART, WISE WOMAN, THRIVING THURSDAY, THOUGHT-PROVOKING THURSDAY, SHINE, EVERYDAY JESUS, HEARTS FOR HOME, GRACE AT HOME, LITTLE THINGS THURSDAYS, THOUGHTFUL THURSDAYS, FRIENDSHIP FRIDAY, LIGHT FRIDAY HIT LIST, FELLOWSHIP FRIDAYS, A GROUP LOOK, MISSIONAL WEEKEND, SPIRITUAL SUNDAYS, FAITH FILLED FRIDAY, COUNTING MY BLESSINGS, FELLOWSHIP FRIDAY, MAKE MY SATURDAY SWEET, WEEKEND BREW, SATURDAY SOIREE, RECOMMENDATION SATURDAY, SUNDAY STILLNESS, GIVE ME GRACE



BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"