In the Gospel of John, the wonder of Christmas begins when God’s Word becomes flesh and lives among us, full of grace and truth. God’s desire to be our companion runs so deep that it involves God coming among us – being born a baby, growing up in a carpenter’s house, sharing the village dramas of Nazareth, facing challenges in ministry in Galilee, and eventually enduring betrayal and death in Jerusalem.
That is God in human form, in Jesus. That's what we call the incarnation. It is a life, as John says, that is the light of the world; in fact, John goes on to say that the world cannot put out such light. God has come to pitch his tent among us in our darkness and live with us.
But let’s bring the lens closer. Let us also see that the light of God’s presence comes in a defenseless baby. If Jesus were simply a superhero, why would he need to undergo the trauma of birth at all? You would think that he would just show up fully grown in Galilee, good to go.
And yet, God doesn’t work that way. God comes into the world differently: God comes in the flesh as the most vulnerable person imaginable, a baby – all at the mercy of inexperienced parents, clumsy animals, dangerous buildings, and hostile rulers. How much more vulnerable can you get?
There were a hundred ways the birth of Jesus could have gone wrong. That is to say, if this is God’s masterplan to fix the world and set it to the right, you have got to say the risk register on this one is bursting.
The life of God in Jesus is the light of the world revealed in a vulnerable baby. On Christmas, we realize once again how far God will go to stoop to save us. Love in human form. Merry Christmas!
Pastor Andy Kinsey
That is God in human form, in Jesus. That's what we call the incarnation. It is a life, as John says, that is the light of the world; in fact, John goes on to say that the world cannot put out such light. God has come to pitch his tent among us in our darkness and live with us.
But let’s bring the lens closer. Let us also see that the light of God’s presence comes in a defenseless baby. If Jesus were simply a superhero, why would he need to undergo the trauma of birth at all? You would think that he would just show up fully grown in Galilee, good to go.
And yet, God doesn’t work that way. God comes into the world differently: God comes in the flesh as the most vulnerable person imaginable, a baby – all at the mercy of inexperienced parents, clumsy animals, dangerous buildings, and hostile rulers. How much more vulnerable can you get?
There were a hundred ways the birth of Jesus could have gone wrong. That is to say, if this is God’s masterplan to fix the world and set it to the right, you have got to say the risk register on this one is bursting.
The life of God in Jesus is the light of the world revealed in a vulnerable baby. On Christmas, we realize once again how far God will go to stoop to save us. Love in human form. Merry Christmas!
Pastor Andy Kinsey
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