Jesus: The Word Made Flesh
Central Thought: The word became flesh to bring us into sonship with God.
Text: John 1 & 2
Reading text: 1:1-14
“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God” John 1:1. This scripture explains the interlocking of God and His Word. Word, in day to day usage offers a means of expression of someone’s mind or heart to another, so the Word of God, Jesus, is the express image of the Father. At creation He, the Word, caused everything that came forth from the mouth of the Father to come into being. When God said, “let there be light”, the spoken Word caused it to be.
In the fullness of time, when what the Lord had purposed in His heart from the foundation of the world concerning man’s redemption should be manifest, the Word became flesh to buy man back from bondage of the devil. There could be no other way man could be redeemed except by another man who is totally sinless and free from the grip of the devil. That perfect man was the Word of God who, by partaking of the nature of man, fulfilled all of God’s just requirements for the penalty of man’s disobedience. Being man, the word tasted death (the penalty for man’s disobedience), and made it possible for every man to believe in Him and receive God’s redemptive grace. Today, all who place their trust in the Word made flesh are saved for eternity.
The Word made flesh is the Christ, the only begotten Son of the Father. His creative ability, exercised at creation, has not ceased. Today, He gives life to the spiritually dead, and deliverance to all who are opposed of the devil. Being the express image of the Father, the Word indwells those who believe in Him, and that makes their lives to glow brilliantly before the world.
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Who is the word of God?
It is usual to identify and introduce the personality of a being by his word or deed. Hence, it follows that one cannot separate the person of the being from his words and deeds. The words or sayings communicate one’s vision, philosophy, and life’s pursuits to others. From the foregoing, it suggests that the Word of God should be the full expression of God to humanity. The personality, attributes and works of God are fully revealed in the Word of God. In addressing this question, therefore, our focus should be on that individual who fully reveals the Father to humanity.
The opening lines of the letter to the Hebrews provide a clue: “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful Word”, Hebrews 1:3. The foregoing passage clearly points out that the only begotten Son of God is the Word of God. Anyone who knows the Son of God knows the Father.
If we wish to assure ourselves who this son of God is, the revelation of the Holy Spirit through Simon Peter gives us this assurance. “Simon Peter answered, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God”, Matthew 16:16. The Christ (the Anointed One) is the Son of God, and He is the Word of God.
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What role did the Word of God play in creation?
The Word of God, Jesus Christ, played a significant role in the creation of the world. The Bible expresses this truth: “All things were made by Him and without Him was not anything made that was made”, John 1:3. God, by His Word created all things that we can see and those that are not visible, Colossians 1:16. There is creative power in the Word of God. The Word of God brings into existence all the thoughtful conceptions of God. Through faith, we understand that the worlds (the planets, sun, moon, the heavenly bodies and all that consist in them) were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which do appear, Hebrews 11:13.
The word “framed” in the above context means fashion or to construct and or to bring to being that conceived in the mind of God. It is important to note that this creative process came into being by faith, and it is not faith in a greater being but faith in Himself (God) that whatever He speaks will come into being by the Word. It is by the same power of creation that the Word keeps the world in its present order. He continues to keep the moon in place, to cause the sun to rise and set, to cause the rain to fall during the wet months and dryness during the dry months, and to cause plants and trees to grow. Creation will go into irreversible chaos if for a split of a second; the Word decides to let off His hold on the world.
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Why was the Word of God made flesh? Hebrews 2:9-17
It could not have been possible to save mankind from sin and eternal damnation if the Word of God was not made flesh. God had earlier stipulated the punishment for the soul that sins as death or spiritual separation from Him. That punishment was fully borne by a perfect man – The Word who became flesh, so that all who put their trust in His sacrificial work receive God’s favor and justification.
The Scripture further declares; “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 that had the power of death, that is, the devil”, Hebrews 2:14. This passage makes us to understand that it takes a perfect man to retrieve from the devil all that Adam and Eve pledged to him. That perfect man is Jesus Christ. By faith in Him we take back all that are rightfully ours (health, peace, joy, liberty, etc.) which the devil deprived us of by his lies.
Another reason why the Word was made flesh is revealed in Hebrews 2:17: “Wherefore in all things it behooved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.” Having tasted of our fleshly nature, Jesus now the High Priest at the right hand of the Father, is able to help us in all areas of our lives. In times of temptation and trial, Jesus offers a way of escape: He empathizes in our moments of grief and loss and provides courage when we are weak and discouraged.
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What are the benefits to us from the Word made flesh?
Some of the benefits of the Word becoming flesh have been enumerated in the previous question: salvation from sin and reclaim of all our privileges stolen by the devil. Other benefits of the Word becoming flesh are outlined below.
-Brought light to the world:
The Word being made flesh brought light to the world, dispelling darkness and every work of darkness, “The Light shines in darkness, but the darkness has not understood it”, John 1:5. Jesus dispels darkness and every evil work from any individual that accepts Him: in addition, that believing individual now becomes light to his world, Matthew 5:14-16; Ephesians 5:8-9. He provides leadership that upholds godly deeds and manifests the fruit of the Holy Spirit in righteousness and holy living.
-Brought grace to mankind:
The Word being made flesh brought us into the full realization of the grace of God. The law (the commandments, judgments, and ordinances), though good, brought man into condemnation because of the inability of man to obey every law of God. “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the law”, Galatians 3:10. However, the fullness of God’s grace came through our Lord Jesus Christ, John 1:17. Jesus met the just requirements of God for sinful man to become acceptable to Him, and anyone who believes in Jesus receives the forgiveness and favor (grace) of God.
Every believer can now have the Holy Spirit:
The Word being made flesh ushered in the Holy Spirit into the life of every believer: “the man on whom you see the Spirit come down will baptize with the Holy Spirit”, John 1:33. The Holy Spirit is the wonderful inheritance to the believer, Ephesians 1:13-14. The blessings of His indwelling presence cannot be quantified. A believer who recognizes the continual abiding presence of the Holy Spirit never runs out of the oil of joy of living victoriously over the devil.
-Believers are now disciples of Christ:
The Word being made flesh brings believers into discipleship with Christ. It is wonderful for the new-born believer to come into discipleship living with a desire to walk in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus Christ in absolute obedience to His word. Discipleship brings us into a life of Christian discipline which allows us to live with strong convictions of our Christian calling.
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What are our responsibilities to the Word made flesh?
As believers, each of us has a personal responsibility to this message of the Word being made flesh. We are to direct the hearts of men and women to Jesus Christ of Nazareth. “The next day John was there again with two of His disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by he said, “look the lamb of God!”, John 1:35-36. John the Baptist pointed his disciples to Christ, so must we today. We should point our fellow church goers to Christ. We must be careful not to think that because an individual attends the same church with us, he of a necessity knows Christ. It is our responsibility to point every individual to this Lamb of God: He is the only One that can take away sin.
Another responsibility of ours to the Word made flesh is to live our lives in obedience to the Lord. Such a life of obedience can only exist when we have a thorough understanding of the Scriptures. The essence of the Word being made flesh is only a value to the world when people see the evidence of the life and character of Christ in our lives.
Daily Living Application:
That which the Father conceived from the foundation of the world was fulfilled some 2000 years ago when one of the Godhead, Jesus Christ, became man and did the works of God during His earthly ministry. Some 2000 years have gone by, and the blessings of the Word becoming flesh remain as fresh for today’s believer as for the first believers in Him. Those who beheld Him then and do still behold Him now see Christ as the exact representation of the Father, and that prompts a life which reflects the character of God in holiness and righteousness. As we appreciate the incarnation of the Word in positive response to the Gospel, there should be a motivation to live for the Lord and point unbelieving folks to the Lord Jesus Christ. Sharing Christ with others should take greater prominence in our hearts, judging by the prevailing times which points to the soon return of Christ.
Memory Verse:
John 1:14 – “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth”