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.

John 1:14

God became flesh and dwelt among us. If you’ve grown up in church culture, those words are so easy to simply go through you like rays of sun through thin white curtains. But we need those words to pierce us, not pass through us. The One who said “light” and light appeared is the same One who became a man and lived with us, died for us, and was resurrected to be our only hope of having peace with a Holy God. 

It’s no surprise that Christmas comes to us year after year in the sparkle of silver, gold, and material decadence. From an early age, many of us remember with fondness and nostalgia the magical traditions our parents created for us: trimming the Christmas tree, filling out wish lists, baking cookies, making gingerbread houses, sledding in the snow, and watching holiday programs around the fire. You won’t hear me downgrading these kinds of memories because I carry many of them myself and try to recreate them every year. But these memories don’t quite capture what is being communicated to us in the first chapter of John’s gospel. 

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us…

I’ve heard it said that in this life we will never truly be able to comprehend the enormity of this statement, that Jesus humbled Himself, became flesh, and became the atoning sacrifice for our sins. The apostle John is giving testimony to the most remarkable of miracles, which is that the Creator of the universe became like one of His created beings so that all those God chose to save wouldn’t have to live separated from Him for all eternity. This idea that Jesus, the Creator of the universe, wanted to break into the universe to dwell with His rebellious creatures is something we need to pause and reflect on for the good of our souls.

Imagine wanting to get close to those who want to get as far away from you as possible. In our lives, we usually decide that the healthiest thing is to get away from those who are adversarial and don’t want to be anywhere near us. And for good reason. Our flesh is incompatible with their flesh. But then there’s Jesus. He clothed Himself with human flesh so that we might not be clothed in unrighteousness by our sinful flesh. Think of the kind of heart that would do what Jesus did. Think of the ruler of all things caring about us, of all people, with a love so full of grace and truth that our only response can be “GLORY!” 

Take good comfort that the One who came to dwell among you is the One who will not desert you on January 1st. 

Reflect

What comes to mind when you think of the ways Jesus decided to get close to you, though you were born wanting to be far? As you ponder this shocking reality, name some encouraging words that come to mind to describe Jesus.