WHAT CHILD IS THIS?
John 1:1-14
Christ’s birth means that God intervened in the history of human affairs to redeem a creation that had rebelled against him.
INTRODUCTION
I thought it would be a good idea for us to take a “Christmas Quiz” this morning to see how well we know the facts about the first Christmas.
1. When Mary and Joseph went to Bethlehem, how did they get there?
a. They walked
b. Joseph walked; Mary rode a donkey
c. They took a chariot
d. We don’t really know
The correct answer is “D.” The Bible gives no record of their means of travel.
2. How many angels spoke to the shepherds?
a. A multitude
b. Two Gabriel and Michael
c. One
d. Not sure
The right response is “C.” Luke 2:10: “The angel said to them…”
3. What song did the angels sing?
a. “O Little Town of Bethlehem”
b. “Joy to the World”
c. “Glory to God in the Highest”
d. None of the above
This is a trick question. The correct choice is “D.” According to Luke 2:13, they were: “…praising God and saying…” There’s no mention of them singing anything.
4. What animals were present at Jesus’ birth?
a. Cows, sheep and camels
b. Horses, sheep and donkeys
c. Lions and tigers and bears
d. None of the above
There is no mention in the Bible about any animals being present. The answer is “D.”
5. In what books of the Bible can you find the Christmas story?
a. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John
b. Matthew and Luke
c. Mark and Matthew
d. Matthew, Mark and Luke
The right choice is “B” -- Matthew and Luke. These two gospels give us insight into the birth of Jesus and provide much of what we know about the first Christmas
My goal this morning is to help answer the question to the song we just sang, “What Child Is This?” John’s gospel begins with a introduction that will give us some clues about the identity of the baby in the manger.
Please turn in your Bible to John 1 and follow along as I read: John 1:1-14 ( read together)
Newsweek magazine conducted a poll asking questions about Christ and his birth. Here are some of the results:
1. 67% - believe that the entire story of Christmas is historically accurate.
2. 24% - believe the story of Christmas is a theological invention.
They were asked a secondary question in the same poll.
C. If Jesus had not been born, people believe there would be:
1. 63% - less charity
2. 61% - less kindness
3. 59% - less personal happiness
4. 58% - less tolerance
5. 47% - more war
It does not matter what people believe about the birth of Christ because it is a historical fact. However, the question is what does his birth mean to us, today in 2012?
P.S. Christ’s birth means that God intervened in the history of human affairs to redeem a creation that had rebelled against him.
The word John uses to describe Jesus and who he is, is the greek word LOGOS.
This means more than just words spoken. It is words that reveal something. Warren Wiersbe writes that just as our words’ reveal to others our hearts and minds, so Jesus Christ is God’s “Word” to reveal His heart and mind to us.’
Jesus said of Himself, ‘Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.’(John 14:9). In revelation 1:11, the glorified Christ from the throne identifies Himself as the ALPHA and OMEGA, the beginning and the end.’ In other words jesus is the first and last word. Everything begins and end with Jesus on the throne.
According to Heb_1:1-3, Jesus Christ is God’s last Word to mankind, for He is the climax of divine revelation.
He uses this word so that the Greeks reading this gospel would know that Jesus was fully man, and the Jews would know He is fully God.
1. Jesus is the ETERNAL word. ( 1:1,2)
In the beginning, is an expression that John uses to explain that Jesus existed before time and creation. He was not created, Jesus was already present with the Father.
One of the most incredible statements Jesus makes of himself isa when he declared to the Pharisees and religious teachers, “Before Abraham was, I am” (Joh_8:58).
When we say Jesus was born in Bethlehem, to Mary we really mean that was when God entered humanity in the flesh.
The fact of the matter is that Jesus Christ has always existed according to verses 1-2:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.”
Jesus is before the beginning of time as He said in John 8:58: “Before Abraham was born, I am.” He is eternal, or infinite because He has always existed.
The “Word was with God,” indicates that Jesus Christ existed in a face-to-face relationship with the Father. Jesus was not only in the closest possible fellowship with God, the “Word was God.” Jesus is not a creation of God, but is God Himself. Verse 2 summarizes and repeats verse 1 in order to make sure we grasp the magnitude of this truth: “He was with God in the beginning.”
This teaching does not, of course, rest only on what we find in John’s Gospel. There are many other passages that affirm Jesus’ deity. Among the most powerful are:
Col_1:15-20. Jesus who expresses the invisible God was Himself the Creator of all things, and has priority over all.
Heb_1:1-13. Jesus is the “exact representation” of God’s being, and sustains all things by His own powerful word. He is, as God, above all created beings, including the angels who are so superior to mortal man.
Phi_2:5-11. Jesus, though “in very nature God” voluntarily surrendered the prerogatives of Deity to become a true human being. Now that He has been resurrected He has been exalted again, and in the future every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
He is God!
Jesus is the eternal word and secondly Jesus is the CREATIVE Word.
2. Jesus is the CREATIVE word ( 1:3)
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made
We see in verse 3 that Christ is also the Creator: “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” This verse brings back the truth we read in Colossians 1:16-17: “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” Jesus is both the creator and sustainer of all things.
Notice the verb ‘was made’, is perfect tense in the Greek, which means a “completed act.” Creation is finished. It is not a process still going on. This is in compliment of the word sustain which This means that Jesus Christ did not only speak the worlds and universe into existence, then leave it to run out like a celestial clock. No, He continues to sustain and hold it together. He is the glue that keeps everything operating. He is what gives life, purpose and direction to the universe and to your life.
If He sustains the universe how much more do you think HE cares for you?
Jesus is the eternal word, the creative word but there is more;
3. Jesus is the LIVING word. ( 1:4)
In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.
Light and darkness are recurring themes in the Gospel of John. People love one or the other, but not both.
Max Lucado tells the story about a tribe of people who lived in a dark, cold cave. The cave dwellers would huddle together and cry against the chill. Loud and long they wailed. It was all they did. It was all they knew to do. The sounds in the cave were mournful, but the people didn’t know it, for they had never known joy. The spirit in the cave was death, but the people didn’t know it, for they had never known life.
But one day they heard a different voice. “I have heard your cries,” it announced. “I have felt your chill and seen your darkness. I have come to help you.” The cave people grew quiet. They had never heard this voice. Hope sounded strange to their ears. “How can we know you have come to help?”
“Trust me,” he answered. “I have what you need.” The cave people peered through the darkness at the figure of the stranger. He was stacking something, then stooping and stacking more. “What are you doing?” one cried, nervously. The stranger didn’t answer. “What are you making?” another shouted even louder. There was still no response. “Tell us!” demanded a third.
The visitor stood and spoke in the direction of the voices. “I have what you need.” With that he turned to the pile at his feet and lit it. Wood ignited, flames erupted, and light filled the cavern. The people turned away in fear. “Put it out!” they cried. “It hurts to see it.”
“Light always hurts before it helps,” he answered. “Step closer. The pain will soon pass.”
“Not I,” declared a voice. “Nor I,” agreed a second. “Only a fool would risk exposing his eyes to such light,” said another. The stranger stood next to the fire. “Would you prefer the darkness? Would you prefer the cold? Don’t consult your fears. Take a step of faith.” For a long time no one spoke. The people hovered in groups covering their eyes. The fire builder stood next to the fire. “It’s warm here,” he invited.
“He’s right,” one from behind him announced. “It is warmer.” The stranger turned to see a figure slowly stepping toward the fire. “I can open my eyes now,” she proclaimed. “I can see.” “Come closer,” invited the fire builder. She did. She stepped into the ring of light. “It’s so warm!” She extended her hands and sighed as her chill began to pass. “Come everyone! Feel the warmth,” she invited.
“Silence woman!” cried one of the cave dwellers. “Dare you lead us into your folly? Leave us. Leave us and take your light with you.” She turned to the stranger. “Why won’t they come?”
“They choose the chill, for though it’s cold, it’s what they know. They’d rather be cold than to change.”
“And live in the dark?” she asked. “And live in the dark,” he replied.
Spiritual darkness spilled into our world in Genesis 3 and can only be removed by the Lord who is life and light. As the light, Jesus shines into the darkness, and those who have not yet received Him are still in the dark and cannot understand Him. Many people today do not comprehend the real meaning of Christmas. It’s because the world in general has no place for Christ.
Jesus is the living word, the creative Word and the eternal Word. In all Jesus is God! But how can the God of the universe reveal His glory and person, without at the same time vapourizing the very ones HE loves and wants to communicate with?
How can HE make His creation understand Him?
4> Jesus is the INCARNATE word. ( 1:14)
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Incarnation is one of those big church words we hear a lot about at Christmas. But what does it mean? If I asked you to define “Incarnation” could you do it? Let me give you a hint… it is not a flower and it does not come from contented cows.
Here are some definitions of what incarnation means:
Incarnation is the ultimate and final disclosure of the eternal God. It is the self-revelation of the Absolute Being Himself, the pre-existent Son of God, the second person of the Trinity taking human form.
Mark creech in the Cristian Post Newspaper writes,
‘The birth of Jesus was unique in that God was taking upon Himself the form of a man. That is much of the beauty of the incarnation of Christ. In that act God dignified and imbued every human life with an inherent value. When God robed himself with human flesh, he was communicating to every age this dramatic declaration, "Everybody is somebody special."’(Mark Creech, Christian Post)
My all time favorite is the Message paraphrase of John 1:14 that reads, The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.
John, in the fourth gospel, defines the incarnation as “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.”
In order to understand what the incarnation is and means, we need to realize what it is not.
The incarnation does not mean that Jesus was part God and part human. Nor was he a phantom who seemed to appear to be human. Jesus was not only human who received a divine nature on the cross. Nor did he become divine his birth. No the Bible declares that He was fully God and fully man in one person. Jesus is God in the flesh.
Tthe Bible does teach that Jesus of Nazareth was fully God as well as truly man.
How did he become incarnate> by the virgin birth.
The Old Testament prophesied it ( Isa.7:14) Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and you shall call him Immanuel.
The Gospels confirmed it, in Matthew 1:18-25 it is recorded, This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
As mind bogling as that concept is, it is imperative to our faith. If the incarnation had not happened, then the cross would have been a meaningless human tragedy.
It is impossible to overemphasize how important God’s arrival on earth was. God’s coming in human form is important because:
It reveals the heart of God. God’s appearance in human form on the earth speaks volumes about God’s love for us. You are familiar with the words, which are perhaps so familiar that we take them for granted: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17).
Here is the best news in all the world — God deeply cares for us. He has made a plan to save us from our sin and ourselves. He wants to change our lives and give us a life worth living that will ultimately result in eternal life. This is the kind of God we serve. He loves us more than we will ever know, and he has not come to take the fun out of life, but to make life enjoyable in ways that we never imagined.
How much easier it would have been for God to leave us to our own devices. or rain fire down from heaven and destroy us for our sin. But God is not hostile toward us, neither did he remain distant — he never was and never intended to become so. He broke into the world and disturbed our equilibrium.
We had become comfortable with a God who kept his distance. We liked the fact that he did not interfere with the world and left us alone. When he came in person, it made us uncomfortable. He was invading our space and getting too close. He was interfering with how we thought the world should be run and how we wanted to live our lives. He was a novelty at first, but then we decided we would be better off if we could get rid of him.
But God came, even though he knew the consequences. He was willing to come even if it meant that the Almighty and Eternal One had to experience pain and death — so great was his love for us. He came so that he might share the human condition and take our burdens upon himself.
Jesus Christ has come along side of us to take on the roughness of the world on our behalf. He has put on our shirt — experienced what we experienced, walked where we have walked, and eased the pain of life. He is willing to place our suffering and pain on his own back.
God’s entrance into the world reveals the heart of God. But secondly, God’s coming in human form is important because:
It reveals the need of people. In last Fridays massacre in Newtown CT, one of the heros was a 25 year old teacher, Vicky Soto. She had just begun her lifetime dream of teaching. A student favorite she had all the appearance of a person who did not merely teach as a job, but she was a gifted teacher. Her passion was children and poring herself into these young lives.
The morning the shooter broke into the school and shots rang out. Witnesses say Vicky was one of the first to secure her class and hide her students in a closet, shielding them from harm.
She then put herself in the way between the shooter and her children. That was the last thing she ever did.
I thought, wait a minute. You would expect a mother to give her life for her students. But these were not her biological children. A selfish person would say to themselves, the kids are hidden, I am finding a window and getting myself out of here.
Her willing sacrifice is a perfect picture of what God did for us through Jesus isn’t it?
The Bible says, “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8). This is an incredible mystery, and an incredible story of love.
God’s appearance in the world revealed his heart and our need, but thirdly, God’s coming in human form is important because: It reveals the mystery of God’s plan. The Bible speaks of the mystery of God’s plan with these words: “Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory” (1 Timothy 3:16).
Here is the mystery. We could not have imagined it or guessed it in a million years. He had to reveal his plan to us. The Creator of the universe comes to the rebellious world which he has created in love. He avoids nothing: hunger, sleeplessness, thirst, pain, suffering or death. He comes to die in the place of those who deserve to die. He suffers for those who deserve to suffer. He comes as a King, but is seen as human refuse. The Bible chokes on the incredulity of the mystery when it says: “He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him” (John 1:10-11).
But here is the mystery which God kept hidden until the world was ready: The world deserved to be destroyed because of its sin, but God would come disguised as an ordinary man and die in the place of the world’s people in order to take away their sin.
God had allowed animals to die as substitutes and sacrifices under the Old Covenant. It was a temporary solution. But animals could not atone for the sins of a human being. It would have to be a man who would die in our place, as our representative. But not just any man. Not even a priest. It had to be a perfect man. There was only one such man — the man Jesus Christ. A real man, for the Bible says, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched — this we proclaim concerning the Word of life” (1 John 1:1). Here is the Word made flesh — God becoming a real man so that he would experience what it was to be human. He was God, for the Bible says, “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form” (Colossians 2:9).
But he was also fully human, for the Bible says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are — yet was without sin” (Hebrews 4:15).
The Bible says, “For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people” (Hebrews 2:17).
What other religion do you know whose God comes in person to die for his people? Buddha did not claim to be God, nor did he claim to have come from God. He was in search of the divine principle — the word become word. And neither did Mohammed claim to be God, only a prophet of God and author of the Koran. In all of the other world religions we have the word become word — a verbal revelation: writings, injunctions and moral codes. Only in Christianity does the Word become flesh. Even the Jews have only the word becoming word — the prophets and the law of Moses. In Jesus Christ, God did not just reveal his will or his laws, he revealed himself. Nothing less would do. If the Word only became word then our contact with God would only be intellectual. But the Word has become flesh, and now he is personal. The Word is standing in front of us and he is calling our name
What does all this have to do with you and me? But what does this have to do with us personally? How does this intersect our lives? What difference does it make ultimately? There are many ways that this effects us personally, and one is:
It means that Jesus Christ is God. It means that he is alive today and has the power to help us. There could not have been an incarnation of God if Jesus did not previously exist. This truth changes everything we understand about who God is and what he is like. If Jesus is God, then we know what God is like
Secondly, It means God cares for us. This is not a god who, as the agnostic claim, created the world, wound it up and set if off into space never to take an interest in it again. Far from it. This is a God who is full of emotion and passionate caring for the world and the people he created —
That is why the Bible can say, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7).
If Jesus did not care, he would never have come. He certainly would not have allowed himself to be abused and crucified if he did not love you enormously. It just wouldn’t have happened. The eternal God stepped into time and space to allow you to know him, be forgiven and inherit the kingdom of heaven. If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is.
The third thing is: It means there is a plan. Here is the plan, The plan is to give us eternal life. The Bible says, “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:9-10).
Illustration: Judy reading or Soren Kierkegaard, the great Danish theologian of another century,
tells the story of a prince who was running an errand for his father one day in the local village. As he did so, he passed through a very poor section of the town. Looking through the window of his carriage, he saw a beautiful young peasant girl walking along the street. He could not get her off his heart. He continued to come to the town, day after day, just to see her and to feel as though he was near her. His heart yearned for her, but there was a problem. How could he develop a relationship with her? He could order her to marry him. It was in his power to do so. But he wanted this girl to love him from the heart, willingly. He could put on his royal garments and impress her with his regal entourage, and drive up to her front door with soldiers and a carriage drawn by six horses. But if he did this he would never be certain that the girl loved him or was simply overwhelmed with his power, position and wealth. The prince came up with another solution. As you may have guessed, he gave up his kingly robe and symbols of power and privilege. He moved into the village dressed only as a peasant. He lived among the people, shared their interests and concerns, and talked their language. In time, the young peasant girl grew to know him, and then to love him.
This is what Jesus has done for us. The Word became flesh. The King of heaven put aside his heavenly robes and divine prerogatives. He came to us as one of us. He lived among us; ate with us; drank with us; felt with us — all to win our love. He could have forced us. He could have overwhelmed us, but he chose to romance us. He stands here today with the smile of love and arms extended. He is the God who became real so that we could experience his transforming love.
Jesus is not just a truth to believe in, he is a person to be experienced.
