The Word Made Flesh (Day 12)
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. ~ John 1:14
Back in 1986, Michael Jordan had an epic playoff performance while scoring 63 points in a game against the Boston Celtics. While the Celtics won the game, Jordan’s star was on the rise. After the game, NBA legend Larry Bird had high praise for the young budding superstar saying, “That wasn’t Michael Jordan out there. That was God disguised as Michael Jordan.”
I admit Jordan had some “other-worldly” performances, but there is only one man who can lay claim to truly being divine – Jesus Christ. Jesus was not God disguised as a man, nor was he a man who was impersonating God. He wasn’t half man and half God, but theologians tell us that He was fully man and fully God. Jesus is the GOD-MAN! We have seen that the disciple John has declared Jesus to be the “Word of God” who was God and was with God in the beginning (John 1). John’s Gospel opens
with the claim that Jesus Christ is the Eternal Son of God who had his hand in the very creation of the World.
As John continues in the opening of His Gospel, he reveals another powerful truth – “the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14). We often hear this classic verse each year at Christmas. THE WORD became FLESH! This is John’s way of describing that Jesus, the eternal Son of God, became a human being. The Son of God slipped out of his heavenly garbs and exchanged them for human flesh. We call this the doctrine of the Incarnation – God’s son becoming incarnate in human form. It is truly a miracle, and each Christmas we celebrate the powerful and pivotal truth that God visited our planet in the form of a human being. God had sent prophets to speak on his behalf, calling the people back to Him, urging them to hear his voice and turn back to their King. Eventually God did not send another messenger with another message; but Jesus the son of God literally became the messenger and the message. Jesus is the “Word of God,” who became flesh. God was speaking in the arrival of Jesus. God was revealing Himself and His heart fully to humanity. Do you want to know God? Do you want to know what our Father in heaven is really like? Christmas is the perfect place to begin the quest to truly see the heart and character of God. Listen, look, and learn from the One who is the Word Made Flesh!
Questions:
·What does it mean to you that God would actually come in the form of a human being?
·Have you ever considered that Jesus is the actual Messenger and Message from God to us? What
do you think God is saying to us in the person of Jesus?
Activate your Faith:
Can God use you today to be His messenger to convey His message of love and grace to another person? Who can you reach out to, and what is a step you can take to make the message of Jesus known to them?
Prayer:
Ask Jesus to make Himself known to you, and to reveal to you the heart of the Father. Pray also that God will use you to make His message known to others.