Grace Made Flesh:Receiving God's Greatest Gift

Introduction

Last week we began our Advent season in which we will be examining the concept of God being among us. We are doing this by concentrating on the first chapter of the book of John.

John does not begin in Bethlehem, but in eternity so that we can see that the baby was not the beginning. The beginning was not even the beginning for He was present before there was a beginning:

John 1:1–5 LSB

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. 5 And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overtake it.

We examined this passage within the context of Scripture as a whole. We used sample Scriptures that show us what all of Scripture teaches us about the nature of the Word.

We went to Genesis, we looked at what Micah and Isaiah said, we examined Paul’s writings and we even stepped into Hebrews.

Through this passage and the corroboration of the rest of Scripture we arrived at 5 undisputed realities that form an important pillar of Christian thought:

1. The Word is eternal

2. The Word is personal

3. The Word is divine (is God)

4. The Word is Creator

5. The Word is life and light.

All of these themes constitute the entire Gospel of John in its embryonic stage.

Having shown us the eternal origins of the Word, John now brings that eternal Word into history—into the birth of Christ whom we celebrate this season.

We will examine John’s eye witness testimony in the 4 assertions he makes:

I. The Word Became Flesh: God Dwelt Among Us (v. 14a)

II. We beheld His Glory: The Glory of the One and Only Son (v.14b)

III. He Was Full of Grace and Truth (vv. 14c-17)

IV. Jesus Made the Father Known: The Gift We Could Not Reach (v.18)

I. The Word Became Flesh: God Dwelt Among Us

A few weeks ago we studied Israel’s exodus from Egypt. It is one of the great mass migrations of history. Over two million people left their bondage in Egypt. At first glance this was glorious.

They left as a great caravan laden with Egyptian treasures. But before long in the desert, they would have looked more like refugees than a great overcoming nation. They were dirty, displaced, and disorganized.

Even then Israel possessed a glory that made them the marvel of the world. Even now we still stand in awe of what they had.

At the center of their camp was the tabernacle of the Lord. Contained in it was the glory of the Lord which filled it to capacity.

Likewise, we as Christians are unimpressive pilgrims journeying through the desert of the world. And like Israel, the Christian church has the glory of God in its midst.

“And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us” (v. 14a)

The Bethlehem account of our Savior’s birth is compressed into its truest essence by that simple clause. Do not miss what John has done here:

John has taken us from eternity past (v. 1) to the act of creation (vv. 2–3), to the life-giving, darkness-shattering work of the Word (vv. 4–5).

But now, in verse 14, John brings that eternal, uncreated, life-giving Word down into our world. The Word whose existence is outside time and space became a three dimensional, breathing, eating, bleeding man.

The Word—who always was—became what He never was—and what He will always be.

He did not change into flesh, as if exchanging one nature for another, He did not simply put on flesh like a garment, an analogy that can easily mislead. And He certainly did not just appeared in the flesh.

John uses a word that leaves absolutely no wiggle room “ginomai” which means to become or to be. The eternal God truly became human

This was not an illusion or apparition or disguise. True deity united with true humanity in one glorious Person.

The One who spoke galaxies into existence took on lungs, nerves, and a skeleton. The One who was face to face with the Father stepped into a body that could be bruised, pierced, and crucified.

We call this miracle the incarnation. A latin word meaning “in the flesh”. Nothing like this exists in any religion on earth. This only exists here within the Scriptures within the tenets of Christianity.

In every other system, humans attempt to climb upwards to God which is impossible if indeed He is God. In Christianity, God descends to reach man.

In Christianity, God descends to reach man. Jesus said,

John 3:13 LSB

13 “And no one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.

Paul explains,

Ephesians 4:9–10 LSB

9 (Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.)

This not only describes the miracle of the incarnation but the condescension of the Son in his quest to redeem us. The infinite became finite; the eternal was conformed to time

The invisible became visible; the supernatural became natural. However, the Word did not cease to be God but became God in human flesh.

Colossians 2:9 LSB

9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells bodily,

Hebrews 1:3 LSB

3 who is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power; who, having accomplished cleansing for sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

Philippians 2:6–7 LSB

6 who, although existing in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a slave, by being made in the likeness of men.

“…Christ according to the flesh, who is God over all…” (Romans 9:5)

“…our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:1)

And on, and on the Bible goes declaring Jesus as God.

“And dwelt among us” — He Tabernacled Among Us

The word dwelt literally means to pitch a tabernacle or live in a tent. John intentionally reaches back to the OT. And we studied this deeply just weeks ago.

Exodus 25:8 LSB

8 “And let them make a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them.

This was the tent of meeting , the place of God’s presence. John is saying that the true tabernacle has now arrived, not made of fabric and poles, but of flesh and bone.

Revelation 21:3 LSB

3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,

What Israel saw in shadows, the world now sees in substance. What the tabernacle previewed, Jesus fulfilled. In Christ:

God is not far – He is near

God is not hidden – He is revealed

God is not visiting – He is dwelling

God is not behind a veil – He is face-to-face

The presence of God is no longer found in a place, but in a Person. This is why the incarnation is the first and greatest gift of Christmas.

Before the cross, before the resurrection, before the miracles and the incredible preaching, there is the gift of God dwelling among us, Emmanuel.

If God truly dwelt among us in human flesh, then the next question is: What did we see when we looked at Him?John gives the answer on our second point

II. We beheld His Glory: The Glory of the One and Only Son (v. 14b)

“…and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father…” (v. 14b)

John tells us that when the eternal Word stepped into humanity His divine glory was not hidden. He saw it. He and others “we” witness the glory of God the Son.

There is a couple of ways we can take this. Considering that John has already connected God’s presence in the Word with God’s presence in the wilderness

One might think first of the physical manifestation of glory — the shekinah — that radiant, unbearable light that filled the tabernacle.

And yes, the disciples did see glimpses of His glory on the Mount of Transfiguration:

“And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light…behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!” And when the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified.” (Matthew 17:2-6).

However, John refers not only to his visible glory. John and the disciples saw Him display the attributes and characteristics of God they saw:

The glory of compassion toward the outcast. The glory of mercy toward the sinner. The glory of authority over demons, disease, death, and nature.

They saw the glory of truth spoken with unmatched clarity. The glory of holiness displayed without arrogance. The glory of love poured out without condition

They saw the glory of obedience unto death. This was undeniable glory that could not be explained apart from His divine identity. even the people recognised this:

“…the crowds were astonished at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.” (Matthew 7:28-29)

This is why John chooses the word monogenēs — “the one and only,” “the one-of-a-kind Son,” the Son who shares the very nature of the Father.

He is not merely like God. He is God. He is God the Son, unique, incomparable, and unparalleled.

The glory of the Incarnation is the glory of God made visible. Jesus Himself said:

“He who has seen Me has seen the Father.” (John 14:9)

When you look at Jesus, you see the heart of God. When you hear Him you hear the voice of God. When you follow Him you are walking in the will of God

When you trust Him, you experience the glory of God which is why the incarnation demands out worship.

The glory that once dwelled behind the veil now dwells among us un the face of Christ. This is why we gather to behold the glory of the God who came near.

III. He Was Full of Grace and Truth ( vv. 14c-17)

The last part of verse 14 says that he was full of grace and truth. Immediately this should call to mind Moses’ request that God display His glory for him.

Exodus 34:6 LSB

6 Then Yahweh passed by in front of him and called out, “Yahweh, Yahweh God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth;

John wants you to see that what Moses heard in words, the disciples saw in a Person. Grace and truth are not only attributes. They are the essence of His glory revealed in Christ.

The word grace (charis) speaks of favor we do not deserve, goodness we could not earn, and kindness we could never repay.

In the OT God repeatedly referred to Himself in the terms of grace:

Psalm 103:8 LSB

8 Yahweh is compassionate and gracious, Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.

The difference is that Jesus is the incarnation of this. Jesus is not grace spoken, He is grace embodied. He is not grace explained, He is grace extended. He is not grace defined. He is grace displayed.

You have to get this because John is saying the same things over and over again. Jesus is the physical, visual, tangeable manifestation of the heart of God, a heart overflowing with grace.

Jesus touched lepers no one would have ever even come close to. Forgave sinners others condemned. He welcomed children otherwise ignored and loved enemies others sought to destroy. This is why John says,

John 1:16 LSB

16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.

We have received grace after grace, mercies upon mercies. We’ve been forgiven over and over, and over again. We draw from a supply that never empties a fountain that never runs dry.

Ephesians 2:8 LSB

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;

But grace alone cannot save us unless it is anchored in truth. John continues,

John 1:17 LSB

17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

The law pointed to truth. What truth? the truth about us.

Romans 7:7 LSB

7 What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! Rather, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law. For I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “You shall not covet.”

The law condemned us because it revealed that we were enemies of God, unrighteous, unruly, unholy. It showed our utter darkness but that’s it. It did not lie it told the truth

But Jesus came with truth and grace. Jesus came and told us yep you are sinners but I have come to give you life. He said:

John 15:16 LSB

16 “You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would abide, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.

The law was like a mirror that tells you your make-up is wrecked, your hair is a mess, in my case the I’m bald. But it was powerless to fix the litany of things wrong.

But Jesus comes in seen your condition, your true condition and like a Beautician, a hair stylist, the president of the Hair Club for men, He offers the solution.

Unlike the law, Jesus doesn’t just diagnose the problem; He provides the cure — and unlike my examples, He does it freely.

This is why the incarnation is the greatest gift God has ever given: it is God Himself bringing grace and truth to earth through His Son.

Jesus tells you who God truly is, and He reveals who you truly are. Your soul was made for grace and your mind was made for truth and God in Christ has given you both

This is why John say His glory is unmistakable; why we worship Him at Advent, and why we run to Him daily.

Jesus is the fullness of grace, the embodiment of truth. He is the complete revelation of God’s heart toward us.

John moves from the revelation of what we today call Christmas to the explanation of Christmas with one astonishing statement which is our final point:

IV. Jesus Made the Father Known: The Gift We Could not Reach (v. 18)

John 1:18 LSB

18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.

This is a sobering statement that every Jewish reader would have known, that no one has ever seen God. Moses had the gall to ask to see Him,

Exodus 33:20 LSB

20 But He said, “You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!”

Isaiah saw a vision—a mediated representation of God’s glory—but not the fullness of God Himself.And even with just a vision he exclaimed, “I am undone” Paul explains why. He says that God

“…dwells in inapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see…” (1 Timothy 6:16)

So whatever Isaiah saw, it could not be the full unmediated essence of God. God is infinite, holy, and spirit so no prophet, priest, or king could break that divide.

“The only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him” (v. 18)

That is the “one of a kind” or “the one and only” GOD –the eternal Son—who is in the bosom; which is intimate, relational, eternal–He explains Him.

The Son who has always existed in perfect, uninterrupted fellowship with the Father. Face to face and heart to heart knows the Father fully, completely, and infinitely.

He has explained him. The Greek term is “exēgeomai” which is to reveal, unfold, interpret, make known. It is where we get the word exegesis;

Jesus is the exegesis of God

In Christ, the unknowable has been made known. The invisible has been made visible. The unreachable has drawn near.

The God no one could ever see has stepped into the world so we could see Him, hear Him, follow Him, and know Him.

“He who has seen Me has seen the Father.” (John 14:9)

The incarnation is the revelation of God. It is so fitting that it is John who also pens the book of Revelation. At any rate, the Father sent His perfect image for one reason

So that you might know Him and be brought back to Him.

This is the gift you could never reach. So God brought it to you. This is Christmas: not humanity climbing up to God, but God coming down to us in the person of His Son