To me the incarnation is unfathomable. Yet I believe it. God, the maker of the Cosmos and the sustainer of all its dynamics is also the maker, creator and sustainer of each part and parcel of that cosmos and that includes individuals. God came to earth in the person of Jesus not just to live among and care about humanity, but live among and care about people in particular. The mind blowing teaching of the bible is that the God of the cosmos knows and cares about you, not only you “in general” but you in particular.
For Christians this must also mean that we care about people in particular, not just humanity as a whole. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said it perfectly (paraphrased), “a love of community becomes dangerous, even evil, if it does not elicit love for each individual community member”. I even heard a democratic pundit say about his party that they “love humanity, but hate people”
Paul wasn’t just focused on “getting ‘anonymous numbers of people’ saved”, rather he met persons, people, individuals he knew by name and came to love each.
This challenges me greatly. The salvation message falls short when it becomes a mechanism by which people get in on eternal life. I’m not even sure it can work that way at all. God cares about individual people and loves them individually. So must we.
This focus on individuals is well illustrated in Matthew 25: 31 to 46 where the King emphasizes His connection with each person when He states in verse 40 "...to the extent that you did it (the good works referenced in verses 35 and 36) to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me".
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