Incarnation

My first real update to the church blog is about my favorite Bible verse, John 1:14: "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory of the only-begotten Son of the Father, full of grace and truth." The Word, of course, is Jesus Christ. The beginning of John's gospel tells us the Word has always existed; the Word created all things; the Word is light and life; and the Word is God (1:1-13).

But the real beauty of the Word, of Jesus, for me is there in verse fourteen. Christ is God and has always existed, but he didn't just stay in a distant heaven. He didn't see the sin and suffering of the world and remain content to watch it all transpire. The Word didn't notice the perversion and abandonment of the word, Scripture, and think it was alright for false teachers to lead people astray from a holy covenant with a loving God.

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

God put on skin and bone and muscle and sinew. He lived with His people as an historical, physical human being -- a perfect, sinless human being, to be sure, but a human being nonetheless. I know it's June, but this is a Christmas message: God walked among us. He loved us enough to step into our shoes and die a physical death to unite us to Him. He still loves us enough to send His Holy Spirit to live within every baptized believer. He loves us enough to keep the world spinning long enough for us to have a chance to accept His offer of salvation, a salvation made possible because the Word became flesh.

And that is good news!