God's Incarnation
We are in the midst of the Christmas and advent season which gives us a natural time of considering the coming of Jesus. A few weeks ago Pastor Jonathan preached on the Transfiguration of Jesus in a sermon from Mark 9 and also reflected on how Jesus’ divine nature encourages us to put heaven in our hearts.
While Jesus was fully God, when he came to earth he was incarnate or simply he took on flesh. This is why one of the names ascribed to him is Immanuel, which means God is with us. As we read about the baby born to Mary in Bethlehem and laying in a manger we are seeing God himself, but also a very human baby, who needs to be taken care of by his parents, fed, and changed. Consider some of these ways that we witness Jesus and his humanity:
He grew physically (Luke 2:52)
Jesus had a human mind that needed to learn (Luke 2:52; Mark 13:32)
Jesus would get tired (John 4:6), thirsty (John 19:28), and hungry (Matthew 4:2)
On the cross, his human body died (Luke 23:46)
Seeing Jesus as fully human should have an impact on how you live your life. Consider just these few ways:
Jesus has done the work for your salvation, so you don’t have to. Since Adam and Eve, who first failed to obey God, we also have all disobeyed. Through Jesus' obedience though we are all made righteous (Rom. 5:18-19) and since Jesus was a man he was also able to take our place and pay the penalty that was ours to pay (Heb. 2:16-17). There is nothing you can do to gain favor from God, instead all that is needed is belief and faith in the one who came to accomplish it for you.
Jesus is now our example and pattern for our lives. If you are a Christ-follower then you “ought to walk in the same way in which he walked” (1 John 2:6). Jesus is to us a model and evidence that with God all things are possible.
Recognize that Jesus is able to sympathize with our human struggles. “We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way just as we are - yet was without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus’ human nature means he has faced everything you have. He knows the temptations that the world and culture present you with. He has experienced how it is easier to be tempted to sin when you are tired or hungry or stressed, yet didn’t sin.
All parts of us, body, mind, and soul will be redeemed. Some argued in the past that when Jesus became man that he simply took on a human body but not a human mind or spirit. This simply isn’t what the Bible teaches. Earlier we saw that Jesus grew in his wisdom. Also, Hebrews 2:17 teaches “he had to be made like his brothers in every respect.” Jesus becoming human in all ways means his redemption is for all of us. Physical illness and disease will be redeemed but also mental illnesses, depression, and anxiety all come under his lordship.
The human Jesus enables our prayer and worship. Hebrews 4 calls Jesus a great high priest and that through him we should draw near to God’s throne. Psalm 24 asks “who may ascend the hill of the Lord?” Effectively, the answer is no human because all of us are unrighteous. But, Jesus is the visible image of the invisible God (Col. 1:15) and the radiance of God’s glory (Heb. 1:3). Jesus is the only human who has the right to approach God and is now the “one mediator between God and men” (1 Tim. 2:5). Rejoice that through Jesus becoming man he made it possible for you to boldly go before God in prayer.
These are just a few of the ways in which God coming incarnate to live among us on the earth affects how we live today. This Christmas season, marvel and be amazed that in the incarnation we now have the fullness of God and the fullness of man. Remember that he came for you “for from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace” (John 1:16).
