TEXT: John 1:9-14,17-18

Christmas Day – December 25, 2022

9 There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. …18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him. 

Our first scripture reading is called the prologue, or introductory section, of the Gospel of John.  John provides an account of Jesus’ birth, like Matthew and Luke, but it is from an entirely different perspective than their angels, shepherds, wise men, manger, and swaddling clothes.  John tells the story of Jesus’ birth from an eternal and godly perspective.  John also gets at some of the questions of ‘WHY’ alongside Matthew and Luke’s ‘WHEN’ and “WHERE’ perspective. John’s prologue also talks about Jesus’ involvement in creation and the LIGHT and LIFE he brings into the world.  John describes the human situation of sin as darkness to describe how, from Adam to the present, men and women have turned away from God and closed their eyes to God’s plan and purpose.

All that is the context John gives us for the birth of Jesus into the world.  With today’s text, especially verses 14, 17, and 18, John explores with us the meaning and the mechanics of that birth.  Let’s look at that briefly, and we will end with God’s gracious invitation through His Son, Jesus.

Incarnation (v. 14)

John has given us the “big picture” overview.  Now, in verse 14, he tells us how that eternal, life-giving, light-bringing Word meets humanity in the dark world and circumstances in which they live.

          And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us…

The Word is Jesus, the eternal Son of God who is at the same time God, who was in the beginning creating the world.  In him is light and life.  And THAT is the Word that “became flesh.”  With that one phrase, John covers all the narrative in Matthew and Luke about Mary’s pregnancy, Joseph’s conversation with an angel, the ride to Bethlehem for the census, no room in the inn, and the birth in the manger!  The Word “became flesh.”  He was born into the world as a tiny baby, made of human skin and bones, with blood, cartilage, hair, fingernails, and a hungry tummy.  Matthew and Luke want us to revel in the narrative details, though they don’t at all shirk his divinity – after all, angels sing and kings bring presents.  But John wants us to see the bigger picture – God has put on human flesh!  God has come down – all the way down, to be one of us. 

Let us not miss the enormity of the Word becoming flesh – theologians call it the Incarnation, which simply is a Latin word for “putting on flesh.”  But the meaning of the event – that is full of mystery and weight.  Throughout the history of God’s people, God had appeared as Spirit, or fire, or cloud, or wind, or voice.  But now, this was God with skin.  You could touch Him, speak to Him, and hug Him.  In fact, in the mystery of this birth, Mary would swaddle and cuddle the baby close and nurse Him.

Let us also not skip over the second phrase of the verse:

          … the Word dwelt among us.

With that, John covers a lifetime of God-in-the-flesh living in the world.  For thirty-three years Jesus would live and walk among us before he was crucified.  John will go on to give us details about that, but all his accounts of Jesus come back to these few verses.  Jesus is God-in-the-flesh, come from eternity and heaven among us, not just to visit, but to live… and to ma