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The Incarnation: Why would God do such a thing
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see,
Hail the incarnate Deity!
Pleased as man with men to dwell,
Scripture teaches that God purposed and planned the incarnation before
the foundation of the world (1 Pet.1:20; Heb.10:5). It even was foretold
in the Old Testament.
Isaiah 9:6 states that "a child" (Messiah) would be born, a reference to His humanity; but it also states, "a son is given," suggesting His purpose and divinity. Furthermore, this verse says this child will be called "The Mighty God" and "The Everlasting Father." Jesus Christ possessed a human body but one big difference: He was sinless. Scripture is clear that He came "in the likeness of sinful flesh" (Rom.8:3, italics added).
Hail the incarnate Deity!
Pleased as man with men to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel.
When Jesus Christ came to Earth to dwell among men, the greatest
one-time event in all history finally occurred-the manifestation of God
in the flesh. Jesus, the eternal second person of the triune God, took
on Himself humanity (Jn. 1:1,14). Incarnation is the term
used to convey the essential Christian doctrine, which has at its core
the fact that God so loves us that He condescended to become one of us
so He could do for us we could not do for ourselves.
Isaiah 9:6 states that "a child" (Messiah) would be born, a reference to His humanity; but it also states, "a son is given," suggesting His purpose and divinity. Furthermore, this verse says this child will be called "The Mighty God" and "The Everlasting Father." Jesus Christ possessed a human body but one big difference: He was sinless. Scripture is clear that He came "in the likeness of sinful flesh" (Rom.8:3, italics added).
The question often arises, Why would God take on the
frailty of human flesh and dwell among men? The Bible asserts three
major purposes for the incarnation.
To Redeem Sinners
(Jn 6:38-40) Remarkably, God wanted to identify with humanity in order to provide an effective sacrifice for our sin. A poet once said, "He forsook the courts of the everlasting day and took with us a house of darksome clay." Redemption was the divine reason for the incarnation.
(Jn 6:38-40) Remarkably, God wanted to identify with humanity in order to provide an effective sacrifice for our sin. A poet once said, "He forsook the courts of the everlasting day and took with us a house of darksome clay." Redemption was the divine reason for the incarnation.
Adam and Eve's transgression in the Garden of Eden doomed mankind with
an active sin nature (Eph. 2:1-3) and severed our relationship with God.
Then, to add more misery to man's hopeless predicament, Scripture
states that the payment for sin is death (Rom. 6:23).
Whether the world
knew it or not, it desperately needed a Savior.
In Old Testament times, animal sacrifices served as
short-term solutions. However, something far better and permanent was
needed. God became flesh so He could die a physical death as the final
sacrifice for our sins. Because Jesus is God, His onetime death and
resurrection were sufficient to pay for the sins of all humanity (Heb.
10:1-9), "once for all" (Heb. 10:10).
As Jesus said, "If any man hear my
words, and believe not, I judge him not; for I came, not to judge the
world but to save the world." (Jn. 12:47). Paul, the former rabbi of
Tarsus, left no doubt as to the intent of the incarnation: "This is a
faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came
into the world to save sinners" (1 Tim. 1:15). God became a man to
redeem lost sinners. An old hymn by Cecil F. Alexander aptly reflects
this sentiment:
There was no other good enough
To pay the price of sin;
He, only could unlock the gates
Of heaven and let us in.
To pay the price of sin;
He, only could unlock the gates
Of heaven and let us in.
To Regenerate Sinners
(Jn. 10:10) During World War II, a pilot on a bombing mission in the South Pacific got lost and could not find his aircraft carrier. His plane was low on fuel; and he knew the crew would have to land on one of the islands that dotted the ocean, many of which were inhabited by cannibals.
(Jn. 10:10) During World War II, a pilot on a bombing mission in the South Pacific got lost and could not find his aircraft carrier. His plane was low on fuel; and he knew the crew would have to land on one of the islands that dotted the ocean, many of which were inhabited by cannibals.
The pilot was desperate. As they neared an island, the
navigator called out, "We're all right; there's a church steeple there. I
see a cross on the steeple!" Later, when remembering how relieved he
was to have seen the church, the pilot became a Christian.
The navigator knew the church meant that chances were good the
inhabitants no longer were cannibals and would be governed by biblical
principles. This account illustrates the second purpose of the
incarnation: to regenerate sinners and destroy the Devil's influence on
mankind (1 Jn. 3:2).
This world is governed by the powers of darkness (Jn.
14:30; 16:11; Eph.2:2; 6:12; Col. 1:13). The incarnation challenged
Satan in his own arena:
Forasmuch, then, as the children are
partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the
same, that through death he might destroy him who had the power of
death, that is, the devil, And deliver them who, through fear of death,
were all their lifetime subject to bondage (Heb. 2:14-15).
Since God incarnate took the initiative to redeem us back to Himself -
to purchase us out of Satan's clutches - He also had the prerogative to
bestow His holy nature on those who believe and are saved. To be
regenerated means a whole new life, one that reflects the image of God
and godliness.
God, having become flesh, made it possible for sinful
people to live "abundant" lives (Jn. 10:10), unfettered by sin and its
awful consequences.
Lew Wallace was a famous American Union Civil War general
and literary genius. He and his famous ungodly friend, Robert
Ingersoll, once agreed to write a book that would forever destroy the
"myth" of Christianity - the main "myth" being that Jesus was God in the
flesh.
For two years, Wallace gathered information from the leading
libraries of Europe and America. He got no further than chapter two when
he suddenly found himself on his knees, crying out, "My Lord, and my
God." He had found his evidence, and it overwhelming and conclusively
supported the deity of Christ. He could no longer deny that Jesus Christ
was the Son of God. So Wallace abandoned his project and became a
Christian. Later he wrote one of the finest novels ever written
concerning the time of Christ, Ben Hur.
Only the incarnation can make possible such a change and enable
sinful people to live God-filled, God-centered lives. Scripture states
that God "hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling ... hath
abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through
the gospel" (2 Tim. 1:9-10). God became flesh to instll a godly nature
into sinful man and crush the Devil's authority over humanity.
To Reveal the True and Personal God
(Jn. 14:9) The Bible says God created man in His image and likeness (Gen. 1:26). Yet many people probably would agree with the statement, "We created God in our own image and likeness." The Greek philosopher Aristotle felt that way: "Men create gods in their own image, not only with regard to their form, but with regard to their mode of life."
(Jn. 14:9) The Bible says God created man in His image and likeness (Gen. 1:26). Yet many people probably would agree with the statement, "We created God in our own image and likeness." The Greek philosopher Aristotle felt that way: "Men create gods in their own image, not only with regard to their form, but with regard to their mode of life."
People, by nature, are spiritual beings. Human history reveals their
quest to know God; but they often have been misled and confused,
worshipping "gods" of their own invention. The Assyrian and Babylonian
gods were barbaric and brutal. In contrast, the many Greek gods, such as
Zeus and Jupiter, were whimsical, often portrayed as constantly
quarreling with one another. Mars, Rome's harsh war god, incited the
soldiers to savagery.
How sad to think of the countless offerings of one
kind or another that were made to appease those neurotic, false deities
of the ancient world.
Even today, the personal God of Scripture is still
unknown in many societies. Perhaps Albert Einstein spoke for all
skeptics when he said, "The idea of a personal God is an anthropological
concept which I am unable to take seriously."
If only he and others
knew that God designed the incarnation for intimacy, so He could clearly
reveal His loving and caring character. The incarnation proves that God
does not hide Himself, hoping people will find Him.
Rather, He is the
God of revelation, who has made Himself known through Jesus Christ (Heb.
1:1-2).
Failure to appreciate the significance of the incarnation has caused
many people to customize their ideas about Jesus. Former Soviet dictator
Mikhail Gorbachev reduced Jesus to "the first socialist, the first to
seek a better life for mankind." People just find it difficult to accept
that a Jewish carpenter from a small village could actually be the
Creator of the universe.
But when a disciple of Jesus said, "show us the
Father," Jesus responded, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father"
(Jn. 14:8-9). The incarnation was to bring light to those who abide in
the darkness of their own notions about God (Jn. 12:46).
Jesus told Pontius Pilate, "for this cause came I into the world,
that I should bear witness unto the truth" (Jn. 18:37) - the truth being
that God of the Old Testament came in the flesh to redeem humanity. Yet
many people will continue to refuse to worship Him.
The humanity of Jesus the Christ does not mean that He
was less than fully God. He was not part man, part God. He was not God
disguised as a man.
The incarnation does not mean that His Godhood mixed
with His manhood to make Him a strange type of third being. The
fundamental position of faith is that Jesus the Messiah was wholly God
and wholly man and that He came to redeem and regenerate sinners and to
reveal the true God.
An unknown author put the importance of the incarnation this way:
If our greatest need had been information,
God would have sent us an educator. If our greatest need had been money,
God would have sent us an economist. Had our greatest need been
pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer. But our greatest need
was forgiveness and salvation, so God sent Himself through the
incarnation and provided us a Savior*
As Jesus walked through the Temple during Hanukkah, some religious
leaders demanded He state plainly if He was the Messiah-the Christ. Part
of Jesus' response was, "I and my Father are one" (Jn.10-30). They did
not misconstrue what Jesus was saying about Himself, namely that He was
God. The Law was clear. It demanded death for anyone claiming deity. So
they "took up stones" to stone Him (Jn.10:31).
Reaction to the incarnation has not changed in 2000
years.
Some still respond in rock-tossing rage at the idea that Jesus is
God in the flesh. Not much can be said for those determined to deny the
evidence of Scripture. On the other hand, those who truly understand
why God Almighty would condescend to become flesh have accepted Him as
their personal Redeemer.
They alone have experienced the life-changing
power of the Holy Spirit in their lives, can say confidently they know
the true and living God of the Bible, and can give wholehearted devotion
and praise to the incarnate God-Jesus Christ.
Editor's note:
* The author is Roy Lessin. (Copyright DaySpring Cards. All Rights Reserved),
* The author is Roy Lessin. (Copyright DaySpring Cards. All Rights Reserved),
and this is the correct quote:
God Sent Us A Savior
If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator.
If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist.
If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist
If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer.
But our greatest need was forgiveness, So God sent us a Savior.
If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator.
If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist.
If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist
If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer.
But our greatest need was forgiveness, So God sent us a Savior.
Peter Colon