The Perfect Human was a Poor, Marginalized Victim

As I have discussed the last three weeks, Christ was a victim of torture and unjust conviction and execution, a refugee who spent part of his life homeless and dependent on the generosity of others. He was fond of associating with social outcasts, and he was himself marginalized because of his place of origin and executed because of his lack of citizenship. Apparently proud of his multi-ethnic heritage, Jesus’ ministry was marked by care for the poor and for outcasts. In all of this, he remained “perfect human.” The Bible clearly depicts Jesus as the “one man” in whom God’s grace was brought to us (Romans 5:12-20), the “last Adam” whose likeness we will bear at the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:45, 49), one who is not only perfect, but “perfect through suffering” (Hebrews 2:10). The claim that Jesus is the perfect human requires that we look to Christ to see what human perfection is. Looking to Christ, the church must condemn as un-Christian any human ideal put forward by elitists who claim the wealthy are intrinsically superior to the poor, by racists who claim that those who are ethnically mixed are contemptible, or by classists who would suggest that the oppressed suffer because they are inferior, less naturally able to survive social conflict. Instead, turning to the “author and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2), we must affirm that the truth revealed in the Bible: the perfect human being was a victim, poor, and marginalized, so we can never conclude from the fact that someone is a victim, poor, or marginalized that they are necessarily inferior in nature.

Jesus Christ was perfect God and perfect human. In his life as a poor, marginalized victim, we learn what human perfection truly is.