Today through Wednesday we are going to nerd it up and unpack the theology of the incarnation a bit from John 1. First, why bother with this nerdy theology stuff? There is, of course, a good deal of mystery in the incarnation. We cannot fully understand the nature of God since he is transcendent and beyond our finite comprehension. That said, we shouldn't just throw up our hands and leave it to the theologians to debate. What the Bible does reveal to us I think we need to know and speak on with clarity and truth. This is one of those concepts that for some is too far fetched to believe and therefore becomes a hinderance to faith. Whether that is you yourself or someone you are sharing Jesus with.
On the Incarnation Frost and Hirsch write "This 'enfleshing' of God is so radical and total that it qualifies all subsequent acts of God in his world." [emphasis mine] The incarnation carries the theology of salvation and redemption. It is the beginning act in the drama of God's ultimate deliverance though his Son. It is God's identification with humanity. It is the heart of his revelation of himself to humanity. These, among others, are not small things. These we should reflect on every Christmas season with wonder, joy and thankfulness.
So let's begin by exploring this beautiful verse on the incarnation of Jesus from John 1. This verse is full of imagery that is really quite common to John and his writing.
John 1:14 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.
First, John says "The Word became flesh...". What does he mean by, "The Word." You'll likely notice that this is capitalized in your Bible and if you're familiar with this verse at all you'll know that this is a reference to Jesus. The Word is personified in Jesus.
If we rewind a few verses we see that John begins his gospel with a reference to the Word.
John 1:1 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
This is a profound statement and clear reference to the beginning of the Bible in Genesis 1:1. In this simple, concise statement we see the doctrine of the Trinity taking shape. The Word was with God—that is a person other than God—but the Word also was God—that is a person who is still God as well. This is a mind-bending concept that is one of the more controversial teachings in all of Scripture. In fact both the Jewish and Muslim faiths reject Christianity on this assertion alone. Both find the incarnation of Jesus incomprehensible, absurd and indefensible. Yet when we read this statement, among many others made by Jesus himself throughout the gospels, there is simply no other way to understand the nature of Jesus. This we will explore further tomorrow when we discuss the Word becoming flesh.
The Word analogy finds its roots in the Hebrew Bible, does so many of John's analogies and word pictures. The Word, generally in the Hebrew Bible carries 3 different meanings:
1. Power - God's word was the agent of creation. He created the cosmos by his word (see Genesis 1 and the repeated use of "God said" in the creation narrative)
2. Revelation - God's word, primarily spoken through the prophets in the OT, revealed who God is and what God wants to the people. (See Heb. 1; Isa. 38:4)
3. Salvation - God's word is often tied to salvation as well. (See Ps. 107:20; Isa. 55:11)
It is likely that John has all three of these connotations in mind when he chooses to personify Jesus as the Word.
Additional Content
Reflection
Pick one of the meanings of "The Word" to chew on today: power, revelation or salvation. Consider the power of God's Word in creation. Consider the power of his word in Jesus as he healed the sick, spoke truth to power, taught his disciples the way of God. Consider the revelation of God in Jesus. That God chose to show us who he is through a person who lived and walked among us. Consider the salvation that God brought through Jesus. The spiritual salvation from sin and the physical salvation from religious ritualism and the promise of new creation.