Waiting for Messiah - The Word Became Flesh

Making sense of a plan - Read John 1:1-14

John 1:14 NASB95

And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

C.S. Lewis:

Lying at your feet is your dog. Imagine, for the moment, that your dog and every dog is in deep distress. Some of us love dogs very much. If it would help all the dogs in the world to become like men, would you be willing to become a dog? Would you put down your human nature, leave your loved ones, your job, hobbies, your art and literature and music, and choose instead of the intimate communion with your beloved, the poor substitute of looking into the beloved's face and wagging your tail, unable to smile or speak? Christ by becoming man limited the thing which to Him was the most precious thing in the world; his unhampered, unhindered communion with the Father.

Jesus asked His disciples an important question:

“Who do YOU say that I am?”

Who He is is directly related to what He does.

Christmas - just the beginning, the introduction to the account of Sacrifice, Redemption, Reconciliation

The Incarnation - God in Flesh

Necessary for Redemption, Salvation

CREATION - GOD SPOKE

SALVATION - GOD SPOKE - “It is finished”

TO BECOME FLESH - GOD SPOKE - Through the angel Gabriel - His Word became flesh

I have 2 Questions, then, about this “God in flesh”

1) WHY in the flesh?

A) Jesus took on the seed of Abraham, to redeem the descendants of Abraham

And who are they? Hebrews, Gentiles alike

Hebrews 2:14–17 NASB95

Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. For assuredly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the descendant of Abraham. Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.

Angels are not redeemed, HUMANS are (at least they can be)

To redeem us, He had to become like us - flesh

To become like us, He had to be fully human/flesh

Hebrews 10:5 NASB95

Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, “Sacrifice and offering You have not desired, But a body You have prepared for Me;

B) Jesus came to break the curse, to defeat Satan, and to reveal the Father

To break the curse, the Law had to be kept perfectly

Galatians 3:24 NASB95

Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.

God gave us the 10 Commandments, the Law, for our good, AND to show us that we could not keep it, that we needed a Savior

A human (Adam) sinned, thus the curse, thus the Law

A human had to keep the Law for it to be be fulfilled

Jesus, fully human, perfectly fulfilled the Law

Jesus perfectly fulfilled the Law, breaking the curse

Defeating Satan in the process

Jesus did what we cannot do - we can resist the devil, yes, but we cannot defeat him, and he knows that, and wants to keep others from trusting Christ

C) In person - to point us to the Father

John 17:25–26 NASB95

“O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me; and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

Jesus’ sole mission was to reconcile the lost to the Father

As a person, Jesus had to fulfill the Law perfectly, to meet all the requirements of a holy God...

…then He could be an acceptable sacrfice

(and why sacrifice?)

2) Why in the FLESH?

A) The Law always required a blood sacrifice

God even showed this to Adam and Eve when He made them clothing from an animal

This was to atone for sin, to “cover” the sin - and people showed their faith by sacrifice

Until Messiah came - the perfect sacrifice

Messiah came - in flesh

He had to be flesh to bleed and die (and no, He couldn’t just bleed, the sacrifice had to die)

And He had to die as a perfect sacrifice

The ONLY way to be right with God was with the blood (death) of an innocent sacrifice

Lev 19:2, Num 28:19, Deut 15:21, Heb 9:22

Hebrews 9:22 NASB95

And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

To be forgiven, and reunited with the Father, an appropriate sufficient sacrifice had to die

Jesus was divine - fit to be redeemer

Jesus was human - allowed Him to shed His blood and die

NO OTHER PERSON - no “good man” could do this (sin nature)

B) Jesus came in flesh to be our perfect High Priest

He fully identified with us - still does

He was tempted, tried, emotional, knew joy and sorrow, betrayal, love, compassion...

Hebrews 4:14–16 NASB95

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

C) Jesus pointed the way, as our example

1 Peter 2:21–22 NASB95

For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth;

NOW - there are no excuses to not obey the Gospel, and to serve God

He kept His promise to all who waited for Messiah

And there are still people waiting for that Messiah

CLOSE

Satan was not aware of God’s wisdom, His divine plan

Made his foolish plan

Couldn’t get Jesus to sin

So he prompted Judas to betray Jesus

Energized the Jews to crucify Him

BIG MISTAKE - HUGE!

In the flesh - this is how He came to save us - you and me

Philippians 2:6–8 NASB95

who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Jesus added humanity to His divinity (He willingly let go of His heavenly place, to come here)

So He could come and do what we could not - to be the righteousness that the Father sees in everyone who trusts in Jesus for forgiveness

That’s the gift we enjoy at Christmas!