December 24
Word in flesh
John 1:14
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.
The Apostle John, writing his Gospel account, does not give us a birth narrative, and like Mark does not give us a genealogy in which to anchor this idea of the Incarnation. John was, at the time, writing an account of the life of Jesus, the Jewish Messiah, that could connect with the Greek context in which he wanted his gospel to connect. To connect with both Jews and Greeks John introduced the concept of the “Word.” The Word, Logos in Greek, had currency in both systems of thought as the foundation of everything.
So, John starts out with this big idea that, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:1. This one verse captured the roots of Jesus. John wasn’t giving us human lineage David, Abraham, or Adam, John declared that Jesus was God Himself.
Once that was established, John then moved to the very next thing that was important about Jesus, the Incarnation. The very God of heaven becomes a man for the sake of mankind’s fate. But John doesn’t get into the manger. The traditional birth narrative requires some religious background. It appealed to Jews because they were looking for a Messiah to be born, however, the Greeks had no such background. Christians later accepted these birth narratives because we have followed a Judeo-Christian tradition.
Just as John captured Jesus’ ancestry and heritage in one sentence, so too he handles this complex matter of the Incarnation in one sentence. “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. This remarkable and marvellous thing that is so fundamental to our faith John compressed into that one sentence.
We now have the pre-existing Word walking around as a human being in the person of Jesus. The Word took on flesh. The Word, that which was from the beginning, that which was with God and that which was God, took on human flesh and form and life cycle (conception, birth, growth).
John uses the word ‘flesh’ which the NIV Study Bible theologians refer to “A strong, almost crude, word that stresses the reality of Christ’s humanity.” The Apostles all had the challenge of demonstrating that this Incarnation was a real thing and not just a good story.
Later, in one of his letters to the churches, John reiterated this concept this way, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life—” 1 John 1:1.
The Apostle Peter made a case similar to the one John made in his letter. Peter wrote, “For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.” 2 Peter 1:16. The guys saw and heard, touched and held and beheld His majesty, in the flesh!
Today’s celebrations at Christmas, built as they are around the birth narratives found in the Gospel accounts of Matthew and Luke, often come across as an end in themselves. The merriment of the season seems to be the thing to be pursued. However, there remains a real challenge for us today presented by the Incarnation.
The Word dramatically became flesh then but must not just remain a matter of history. The reality of the Word becoming flesh must be perpetuated at a different level. Just as Jesus took on a body of flesh then, He still has a body of flesh now since “[we] are the body of Christ, and members individually.” 1 Corinthians 12:27.
In other words, the Word took on flesh in Jesus then, and the Word takes on flesh in us now.
Soon we will be looking back on the joys and challenges of the Christmas season now quickly coming to a close. We will see from that vantage point that we added together our belief, our culture, our families, commercial activities and other facets to the time of year when we commemorate and celebrate the birth of Jesus, the Incarnation, the Word becoming flesh. Many of us will say, upon this reflection, that we had a good time.
Let us, though, also look forward for every opportunity to “flesh out the word” as we go on in a culture that is constantly changing, where we are prepared to have Christmas without Christ, and even religion without God.
Think on these things:
- Do our Christmas celebrations actually distract from the real Christmas story?
- How can we do better at embracing our culture while maintaining a clear focus on the Gospel message?
- Can you think of any new ways that you could tell the story of the Incarnation to connect with people around us today?
Prayer focus:
Let us pray today that we, as the body of Christ, would live out the Word in the flesh that those around us would be able to behold His glory.
In His Grace
Pastor Alex
