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The Incarnation: The Word Became Flesh

  • James Ward
  • Dec 24, 2017
  • 10 min read

"I will make My dwelling among you, and My soul will not reject you. 'I will also walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people." (Leviticus 26:11-12)

God promised His people that He would walk among them, 1400 years before the birth of Christ.

"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14)

Immanuel means "God with us" or "with us is God".

700 years before the birth of Christ, Isaiah prophesied that the Lord would give the sign of a virgin birth, and her child would be God in flesh. Jesus is Immanuel, "God with us". Jesus is "the image of the invisible God". (Colossians 1:15)

700 years before the birth of Christ, these words were written by Isaiah:

"The people who walk in darkness Will see a great light; Those who live in a dark land, The light will shine on them.

You shall multiply the nation, You shall increase their gladness; They will be glad in Your presence As with the gladness of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.

For You shall break the yoke of their burden and the staff on their shoulders, The rod of their oppressor, as at the battle of Midian.

For every boot of the booted warrior in the battle tumult, And cloak rolled in blood, will be for burning, fuel for the fire.

For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this."

(Isaiah 9:2-7)

There is only one Person this can be describing. Only Jesus can be called such things as "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace." Only the Son of God can be called these names. Christ is God the Creator. Don't be confused by the word "father" here. This verse is not teaching that Jesus is God the Father. This verse is often used against the doctrine of the Trinity, and always because of an assumption that the word "father" must mean God the Father. But "eternal father" could be translated "father of eternity", or even "Creator of eternity". Since Jesus is God the Creator, that title fits Him perfectly and there is no contradiction. (Colossians 1:16)

His virgin birth was told ahead of time, as well as numerous additional prophecies about the coming Messiah, so that everyone can know for certain that Jesus is the One.

"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus." (Matthew 1:18-25)

The name Jesus is a cognate of what Mary actually named Him. She named Him Yeshua, which means Savior, Deliverer, Rescuer. Sometimes it's translated as "He saves". So here we have the fulfilment of the prophecy of a child born from a virgin, whose name is Savior, who is God in flesh. The birth of the God-man, is the single most miraculous event to ever take place. The universe was created by Him, so that He could enter into it. Everything that exists is about Him.

"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 came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it." (John 1:1-5)

"There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 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." (John 1:9-14)

The Word of God, who created everything, became flesh and walked among men. The Creator of eternity condescended and humiliated Himself by making Himself a humble servant. When He walked the earth, He would've had every right to establish Himself as King over the world whenever He wished. He could have chosen to not veil His Godhood from them. He could have walked around glowing like the sun if He had wanted to. He could have forced all of humanity to worship Him right then and there. He could do that and be completely within His rights as Sovereign King of creation. But instead He washed the dirty feet of His disciples. Instead He allowed Himself to be treated like trash, beaten, and killed. He did that out of His astonishing love for His children. He demonstrated ultimate humility. He did these things because God's plan was in action. His death on the cross provided atonement for those who would believe in Him. (John 3:16)

"Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 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. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:5-11)

"For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven." (Colossians 1:15-20)

When we celebrate Christmas, if we celebrate Christmas, we need to keep in mind that this is who we're celebrating. The baby who slept in a manger is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He's the Judge and the Savior. He is to be honored, praised, worshiped, and yes He should be feared. Too many people have an image of Jesus locked into their mind as forever being a baby in a manger, or the happy smiling peasant who loves everyone and never has anything negative to say, or the emaciated weakling on the crucifix. But you should lock into your mind the biblical picture of Christ. He was a baby but He grew up. He did walk the earth as a humble servant, but that part is over. He did suffer on the cross, thank God. But He's not on the cross anymore. He accomplished His earthly mission and went back to heaven, and He is coming back one day. When you think of Jesus Christ, think of Him the way the Bible describes Him.

"Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands; and in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash. His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters. In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength. When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades." (Revelation 1:12-18)

"The sky was split apart like a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. Then the kings of the earth and the great men and the commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains; and they said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; for the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” (Revelation 6:14-17)

"And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, 'KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.'

Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds which fly in midheaven, “Come, assemble for the great supper of God, so that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them and the flesh of all men, both free men and slaves, and small and great.”

And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.

And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh." (Revelation 19:11-21)

This biblical portrayal of Christ goes directly against the popular image of Jesus that we tend to see in movies about Him. The pop-culture Jesus is weak, effeminate, helpless, just a victim of circumstance, merely a spiritual teacher who wanted the world to be a better place, a social revolutionary. This Jesus is not portrayed as the sovereign King of everything. The fullness of His Godhood is never displayed in these depictions. He is limited to a 2-dimensional image of the loving peasant who just wants you to give Him a chance. The rider on the white horse who slays His enemies could never be included in these pop-Christian movies because that makes people feel bad.

Is Jesus a loving merciful Savior? Yes, absolutely, and amen! To us who believe, He is a loving Savior, full of grace, mercy, and patience, our Rock. But for those who are not His, it's a different story. Notice in the above scripture, He does not invite anyone to make Him their Lord and Savior. He doesn't try to convince them that He has a wonderful plan for their lives. They come against Him and He destroys them. He's the conquering King. We need to know the correct Jesus, the Jesus of the Bible, not the Jesus we want to imagine. The Jesus of the Bible is to be revered and worshiped. When you celebrate Christmas, make sure you're celebrating the birth of the real Jesus, the Jesus of the Bible.

Thanks for reading. God bless.

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