The Word Became Flesh
Notes
Transcript
The Word Became Flesh
The Word Became Flesh
James B. Irwin, Apollo 15 astronaut once said, “I believe Jesus Christ walking on the earth is more important than man walking on the moon.”
Why would this man who was strapped to a rocket and shot off into space put this perspective on his experience?
I would like to ask you a question “How do we express ourselves” How do we express our feelings and ultimately who we are? It most often comes from the words that we says.
We say things like “I love you,” or “I don’t like them.” Each one of these expressions shows our heart during certain situations or events. The Bible says that “out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:45) What is in our hearts in revealed through our words.
How does God express Himself? Through His word. How do we know God and His character? It is through His word, and it was when the world was in the darkness of not knowing God, not knowing the truth of God, and stuck in sin that God sent His word revealing His heart for the world and His character.
John begins gospel with
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
and says in John 1:14 “and the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only son from the Father full of Grace and Truth.”
The Word reveals
The Word reveals
The Word became flesh and proclaimed some amazing things of God. The word Jesus Christ said things like, “If you have seen me you have seen the Father” John 14:9. Claiming to be God, He also showed the heart of God when He proclaimed, “For God so love the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”- The Motive for God sending Jesus, the only Begotten Son, the preexisting Word, was love.
The Word reveals God, because the Word is God. In the midst of darkness light had shown who God was, and His mission.
The life of Jesus Christ is the testimony of God the Father to this world, to you and to me. It speaks of God’s great plan of redemption for those who are condemned in sin.
My Favorite Illustrations The Need for the Word
The Need for the Word
If truth be not diffused, error will be; if God and His Word are not known and received, the devil and his works will gain the ascendancy; if the evangelical volume does not reach every hamlet, the pages of the corrupt and licentious literature will; if the power of the gospel is not felt through the length and breadth of the land, anarchy and misrule, degradation and misery, corruption and darkness, will reign without mitigation or end.
—Daniel Webster
This is world that Jesus the word came into. A world were truth was suppressed and corruption and darkness reigned.
The Romans social economic structure was setup to keep the rich rich and the poor poor. Jesus came and brought the Kingdom of God which proclaims “blessed are the poor in spirit, blessed are those who mourn.” Or “whoever is the greatest in the kingdom of God is a servant of all.” Or when Jesus says to the religious leaders, “I came not to call the righteous but sinners.”
It goes even more against the Kingdom of this world, The King is washes His disciples feet, and even dies for His enemies. The contrast between the King of God and the kingdom of this world is seen in the John’s use of Light shining and Darkness not overcoming it.
Daniel Webster’s quote speaks of the this dark world when Jesus came, it was not only the worldly kingdom that was in contrast to the Kingdom of God, but the religious leaders also were darkened, stained ith greed and power so much that when God in the flesh stood before them they couldn’t even recognize Him.
Light had come and shown the true of who God is and Jesus gives this damning statement in John 3:17-19
English Standard Version Chapter 3
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”
Jesus reveals that God sent Jesus out of Love because the world stood in condemnation because of sin. These religious leaders stood condemned and rather then running to the light, which give life to all men, they hid in the shadows of the earthly kingdom that they had established.
The Word Reveals our Hearts
The Word Reveals our Hearts
He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.
The Pharisees were exposed because the light of God had shown. The gospel of John does an amazing job of documenting the constant confrontation between Jesus who proclaims the true words of God and the teachings of the religious leaders. Jesus uses words like “hypocrites, white washed tombs, Self-righteous.”
Jesus tells this parables to show the darkness of their sinful hearts, and the light that shines in the heart of one who realizes the weight of their sins and turns from the life of sin to the grace of God.
He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
God sends the true light
God sends the true light
The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.
Only God can send the true light, because God is light. There is no darkness in Him.
This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
A life that is changed is one that acknowledges the light of the Gospel of God, and it is God’s Gospel because He was the one who accomplished the work of redemption.
Contrast this with the hearts of man. The Bible says in Jeremiah 17:9, “ The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?”
The worst advise that can be given is to tell someone to “trust your heart” When we look at our own lives and actions we might say, “well I’m not that bad,” or “At least I didn’t do such and such.” All of these types of statements are just us trying to remain in the shadows. We know the light, we see the light that comes from God, and yet sometimes we recoil back to the comfortable shadows.
As followers of Christ we are now The Children of God.
But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
Children carry their parents traits. Often times when someone see one of my own kids they say things like, “Oh they look just you.” If they didn’t carry any of my traits, well then there are questions to be asked. But just as my kids carry my traits, so do believers carry there heavenly Fathers traits.
for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light
Just as Jesus was sent into a dark world and showed the Light of God, so we who have come to put our faith in Jesus Christ and His atoning work of salvation of the cross are now children of God and have taken on the same trait as being light in this dark world.
Jesus said it like this in Matthew 5:14-16
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
We shine the light of Christ in the darkness of this world. The Apostle Paul goes further and calls us ambassadors of Christ.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
It is because of the work of Jesus Christ that we are a new creation. We are no longer children of Darkness, but now have become children of the light of God and we shine, just as Christ had shined. We continue the ministry of reconciliation as ambassadors.
An ambassador is a representative, meaning then go in the place of a king of government and represent them to those whom they are sent to.
Just has Christ spoke the words of the Father and reveal the nature of God, so we as children of God reveal the truth of God.
How much does this dark world need the light of life to shine? The only thing that will bring true healing and peace in the light of God. We live in a world that doesn’t have a skin problem, but it does have a sin problem, and we the church have the answer. We hold the message of hope. The very message that has taken us out of darkness and made us children of light. Will we shine? Will we proclaim the message of reconciliation? We like Jesus go into the darkness and shine the light of the gospel?
The Preacher’s Notebook: The Collected Quotes, Illustrations, and Prayers of John Stott Prayer for the Church to Be Salt and Light
Lord Jesus, you have set your church in the world as salt to hinder its decay, and light to illumine its darkness. Forgive us for our failures to be the new society you intend, and renew us by your Holy Spirit. Grant that in a world of alienation your people may offer reconciliation; in a world of oppression, righteousness; and in a world of competition and greed—the freedom of unselfish service. Help us to bring friendship to the lonely, support to the weak, deliverance to the slaves of passion and fear; and to all those despised and rejected by men the steadfast love of God.
For then the people who walk in darkness will see a great light, even yourself, Lord Jesus, the light of this dark world, for your name’s sake.