Search for Significance

“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.  “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.  (John testified concerning Him. He cried out, saying, “This is the One I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.’”)  Out of His fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made Him known.” Key Points: • What did becoming human all involve for Jesus – God the Son? • Why did Jesus become human? • Did Jesus have the ability to sin? • What did becoming human all involve for Jesus – God the Son? For the next few minutes, I want to encourage you to consider what becoming human was like for Jesus. He had to leave His home - The Creator became the created - He had to enter the womb of His creation - He had to develop and grow, and had to be born - Unlimited power - now fully dependent on His mother & earthly father to feed and tend to His every need - He was hungry for the first time, tired for the first time, and He would experience physical bumps and bruises like any child would as He played with His siblings - He took on on our human limitations and all that it is to be human - He even was tempted - YET Never sinned.   Philippians 2:6-8 tells us so much about heart of Jesus. "Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross." Isaiah 9:6-7,  "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,     and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called  Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne     and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty."   I wonder what He and His Father felt, thought, and said to one another as Jesus prepared to leave for Earth? What about the Holy Spirit- as He prepared for what was to come. They shared perfect love, glory and eternity, now Jesus was leaving all this. We can only imagine how awful it was for all of heaven to watch Jesus go through what He must go through for mankind to be reconciled to the Father.   As He cried out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?,” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” Matthew 27:46. Oh the Father's heart ... • Why did Jesus become human? Jesus being two natures can cause much confusion and many to doubt in Christianity. Many agree that Jesus was a good, wise, loving and honorable man - but to accept that He was also God in human flesh is simply impossible and untrustworthy. "A legend of old - a simple man made into hero by the love of His followers" - but indeed not God. In Matthew 21:44, Jesus says, "Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed." What is Jesus trying to tell us here? The "stone" refers to Jesus. It is a warning to those who choose to not fully accept Jesus for whom He says He is. It is a call to put your faith in Him and trust that He is our Rock of salvation, while at the same to understanding Jesus is an immovable stumbling stone for those who choose not to believe. But for many, Jesus is a stone they will stumble over because they can't get over His claims of being the Son of God. While on the other hand, for those who put their trust in Jesus, He will be their rock and their salvation. Romans 8:3 tells us, “The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So, God did what the law could not do. He sent His own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving His Son as a sacrifice for our sins. 4 He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.”  Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." What Jesus left and what He gave is something we may never fully grasp - but the full extent of God's love and goodness was fully displayed, and no one can dispute that. “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” Philippians 2:9-11.   • Did Jesus have the ability to sin? When we think about what it all meant for Jesus to become human, many thoughts can enter our minds - Did Jesus have two minds? Were His thoughts divided between human thoughts and divine thoughts? Did He struggle with His emotions? Did these two natures war against each other? Can one nature trump the other?   When I was a child, I remember thinking that Jesus was "humanlike" and that He didn’t "really" feel pain like we did but simply lived among us living the “roll of a human” without experiencing the realness of our pain and suffering. I suppose my thinking was that, "This is God's Son, there is no way would He allow His Son to experience real pain, when He does not deserve to experience it as we do." But as we learn from scripture, Jesus is one person with two natures—a human nature and a divine nature. He is both God and Man. They are perfectly united, causing no need for confusion, warring or disconnect.   Jesus being divine does not minimize His humanity, nor does His divinity minimize His humanness. 1 Timothy 2:5, "For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus..." Philippians 2:7, "But emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men." Colossians 2:9, "For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily..." John 10:30, "I and the Father are one.” John 8:58, "Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” "We have One who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet He did not sin. Hebrews 4:15     Some scholars may argue that Jesus did have the ability to sin, but do to His love and commitment to His Father, He never did.  What we do know is that Jesus came to earth fully united and obedient to His Father - Jesus made it very clear that His focus was on obeying His Father. “The one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases Him,” John 8.29. Jesus’ human nature was never a sinful nature. He was never at war with His divinity or at war with God. Yes, He was tempted, and He experienced the weight of what comes with being tempted, but He never sinned against His Father. As I was thinking about how I once viewed Jesus as this “human actor” – it dawned on me that we humans can also do this – by playing the role of a Christian. It’s easy to fall into playing the role of a Christian – because we either don’t understand what it fully means to be a Christian or we don’t want to take on the burden of what God truly calls us to. We play the role of being morally good, we learn Christian lingo and know how to use it, we do good works, and we tell others we will pray for them – but then often times don’t. When we have trusted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we are made new. John 3:3-7 tells us that we are born again. There has been an actual death to our former self, we have been adopted into the family of God and are in the process of becoming more like Jesus by the regenerating, inner working of His Holy Spirit that resides within us.  2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” God’s Spirit is working within us transforming our thoughts and desires from what they once were. He has breathed life into our dead hearts, He is growing in us a genuine love for others, a desire for unity with other Christians and to seek reconciliation when there is division and growing love and for Him and His word.   Let’s stop playing the role of a Christian and let His Spirit have His way in our heart and mind and truly become like Christ. “Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ…” as Romans 13:14 tell us.  "We must never forget that though our Lord was God and man at the same time, the divine and human natures in him were never confounded. One nature did not swallow up the other. The two natures remained perfect and distinct. The divinity of Christ was never for a moment laid aside, although veiled. —J. C. Ryle

The Word Became Flesh “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made."   Key Point: Jesus is the Word: John 1:1 states that "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."  • Jesus is the Word If you were to ask people who Jesus is, you would hear statements like "He is the Son of God, Savior of the world, or that he was a good man who lived a long time ago, a prophet, a wise teacher, a miracle worker, and a holy man.” Question • Would a good man make the claims that Jesus made if He was not in fact God? • Would he be a good man if he were lying? It’s important to really think about who Jesus is because He made some really big claims. He could not be a “good/wise/holy man” and a liar at the same time. If Jesus claimed to the be the Son of God by making claims like this, “I and the Father are one.” John 10:30, then He is either a liar, lunatic, or truly Lord, as C.S. Lewis stated.   “What about you?” Jesus asked. “Who do you say I am?” Matthew 16:15  If Jesus were to ask YOU who you thought He was, how would you answer? • How can this verse help us have a better understanding of what the Word is and who Jesus claimed to be?   In John 1:1 it reads, “In the beginning was the Word...” • Why does John not just say Jesus instead? John knew his audience that he was addressing when he wrote the “Word.” In Greek “logos:” means “Word.” Logos was used by the Jews and Greeks. 1. For the Jew – The “Word” pointed to their God who they knew to be incredibly powerful, creative, and a personal God who had communicated to His people throughout time. 2. For the Greek philosophers – The “Word” gave reason to concepts pointing out reasoning, thinking, or a mind of divine authority since words are used to explain how one is thinking and how best to use those words. 3. For John to use, the “Word”,  in this manner made perfect sense to them. 4. For us then, when we read John 1:1 we can read it with a fuller sense of both,        “In the beginning was the Word/Jesus, and the Word/Jesus was with God, and the Word/Jesus was God.” If Jesus has been with God since the beginning and is the Word of God, than we can better understanding that: 1. Jesus is the Divine who came in human flesh. 2. Jesus is the Intelligence and Rational to life itself. 3. Jesus is the Truth – the “Word” in flesh. Who not only came to speak God’s words to us - but who is the living Word.   In Genesis 1, the Creation account, we read how God spoke all things into existence. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth….”  Psalm 33:6 says, “By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of His mouth all their host.”  Creation was brought about through the Word of God, just like John describes Jesus as the Word – John 1:3 “Through Him (Jesus, The Word = God) all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.”   Reflect: Libraries around the world are filled with books, that are filled with pages, that are filled with words – written by thousands of authors all trying to understand who the Real Jesus is. The Bible is a library as well, filled with books and pages and words pointing to the person of Jesus and who He is. IF Jesus was with God in the beginning - and If Jesus is the Word - then Jesus is God - Thus Jesus is ultimate Author of life itself.   • Have you ever read a book and disagreed with what the author wrote? Either by how they chose to write in a character, how they depicted a character, how the story line took an unexpected twist, or how the book ended? • Does it matter if you agree or disagree with the author? Why or why not? It does not really matter what you think or feel about the book, because you did not write it - The words on the pages are not yours – You are not the author - they are the words of the author.    1 John 1:1, also begins his letter by using the similar phrasing, “We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning,[a] whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. 2 This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy.”    The “Word of life” refers to Jesus, and can also refer to the gospel, which is the message of salvation and reconciliation made possible by the Son of God …”continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. 14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky 16 as you hold firmly to the word of life.”  Philippians 2:16   Whether we choose to believe or put our trust in the words written on the pages in the Bible or not - 1. God is ultimately The author and God spoke these words for us to know Him. 2. God is revealing to us whom Jesus truly is – God who came to earth in human flesh and lived as a human. 3. Jesus is the “Word” of life.

"The Word was with God..." The Word Became Flesh “1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning.   Key Points: • What does “with God” mean? • What do you think pre-Creation looked like? • Was God lonely before our beginning?   • What does “with God” mean? When John 1:1 tells us that the Word (who is Jesus) was “with God,” it is communicating to us that there was a co-existing, co-equal relationship that pre-existed humans. This relationship has existed for all eternity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We call this the Trinity. This eternal relationship helps us to better understand that Jesus is divine and that His claims of being the Son of God can be trustworthy.  If you were to study the life Jesus, you would be learning who the Father is. Jesus is the visible heart and mind of God. John 14:9–10.  Jesus is the radiance of the glory of God. Hebrews 1:2–3 Understanding that Jesus was with God since before the creation of man helps us to better understand ourselves a bit more and our longing to belong, to be known, and to be loved. We may not be able to fully grasp or even know all what God was doing before He created time, matter, seasons, all living creatures, and humans. John 1:1 gives us a small window for us to glance into the Godhead. •  What do you think pre-Creation looked like? What does the Bible have to say about Who and What existed before creation? Genesis 1:1  Colossians 1:17  Hebrews 11:3  Romans 1:20  John 1:1  John 17:21–22 • Was God lonely before our beginning? God was not alone or lonely before creation. We live in a world where we are all on this quest to find our people. Technology promises to "help" us feel more connected with all the “friend requests" and having "followers." Because we are able to only see and understand the here and now, it makes it difficult for us to understand something so beyond us like God.   Before humans existed – God existed perfectly within Himself. He did not create us because He was lonely, bored, or looking for someone to fill a void that He somehow was experiencing. God has existed eternally within the Godhead of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – (and heavenly beings.) He had a divine and eternal life within this perfect “family” found from within Himself. Take a moment to reflect - this is beautiful yet heavy to understand   The Bible does not give us much information about what took place before the creation of the world, but it is clear that God that when God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like ourselves," Genesis 1:26  He was designing within each of us the same deep longing for relationships, just as God enjoys. Sadly, ever since sin entered the world out of humans disobeying God by looking for something outside of God to satisfy them, we will never fully comprehend or experience the perfect relationship that exists within the Trinity, on this side of heaven. One of the many realties of becoming a follower of Jesus is that when we receive Christ as our Savior, we receive the Holy Spirit. Take a moment to read this passage and write down some things that stand out to you that reflect similarities within the Trinity and what us being in a relationship with Jesus really means. John 15:5-17 The Vine and the Branches “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. 9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other. To be in a thriving relationship with Jesus we need to allow His Holy Spirit to work within us, and embrace all that comes with Jesus. As our relationship with Jesus grows we will begin to experience the true joy of what a relationship can bring, and we can experience God’s love by way of the Fruit of the Spirit— love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Galatians 5:22-23. God created us for one reason: to know Him and love Him and have fellowship with Him – Ephesians 3:16 - 21 reminds us of God’s great love for us so we can enjoy His love and remain rooted in His love – “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”   Knowing about God’s love is very different than KNOWING THIS LOVE – We can know God personally and intimately, because He created you to be a part of His eternal family.