A borrowed womb in which to arrive fully human
A borrowed cradle in a borrowed manger at birth
A borrowed country—Egypt—for safety
A borrowed earthly mother and father
A borrowed boat from which to teach
A borrowed coin from the mouth of a fish for taxes
A borrowed colt on which to ride
A borrowed upper room in which to commune
A borrowed crown upon the head
A borrowed cross on which to die
A borrowed tomb in which to lie
All to become a freely given sacrifice for me
Sometimes words come to me, and they rattle around in my mind—shaking me until I put them down on paper. About a month ago, as I lay in bed thinking before I got up that morning, the word “borrowed” kept hitting my spirit. I thought of the things that Jesus borrowed here on earth, and yes, the thought came to me that He even borrowed Mary’s womb to make His appearance. It was necessary for God to arrange the arrival of His only Son in that manner for He was to be fully human, fully God.
We don’t know of any earthly possession that Jesus owned except the clothing on His back that was gambled for at Calvary. Every time He was fed in the Gospels, it was because someone invited Him to his or her home, or He walked through a field taking the heads of the grain, or He encountered a fig tree that actually had figs—or He borrowed some fish and loaves of bread to help feed others. His places of rest were a desert, a boat, and a garden. The desert and garden were also His places of prayer. The desert and the garden are a picture of the times in life when we pray.
Jesus seemed to have had no transportation of his own—no donkey, no camel. He walked His walk! When He had to cross over water, there was always a boat that He could use because He was a friend to the fishermen. His first four disciples that He called were fishermen. But, when He missed the borrowed boat, He walked on water. When He was ready to enter Jerusalem to ultimately go to His death, He sent His disciples to borrow a colt—a young, supposedly untamed horse or donkey that had never been ridden.
But for all that Jesus borrowed, it is what He gave that is so important. He gave His life for our salvation. His Father gave Him to us, and He died for our sins becoming our borrowed sacrificial lamb. When all the borrowing and giving was over, He went back to Heaven so that some day we would be with Him in His home. It will not be a borrowed home. It will be our permanent residence. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Beautiful! And when you think about it, we don’t OWN much! When our time is up here on earth, we’ll only take with us our redeemed soul. “All to Jesus, I surrender…”