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April 20th 2023
Scripture
Devotion
On Christmas, something miraculous happened. The Word became flesh. The term “Word” here refers to the second person of the Trinity and the Apostle John understood the Word to be equal with God: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). The miracle was that God, the second person of the Trinity, became human. The Word willingly condescended to our level and became the man Jesus Christ.
The Word did not simply condescend to our level for a mere moment and then quickly return to His divine position in heaven. Rather, He “dwelt among us.” He spent significant time with us. He went through the cycle of life like any human despite His divine status. The Apostle Paul referred to Jesus as He “who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:6-7). The Word, in other words, was willing to humble Himself for our benefit.
How do we know this actually happened? How do we know that the Word became flesh? How do we know that Jesus was actually God incarnate? There are many ways, but John gives us what was for him the most important one. He had beheld His glory. John, along with Peter and James, beheld the divine glory of Jesus on a high mountain: “There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light” (Matthew 17:2). We know that the incarnation actually happened by faith grounded in the testimonial evidence of John, an eyewitness of the divine glory of Jesus Christ.
The divine glory that was revealed to John and the others was the “glory as of the only begotten of the Father.” That is, it was unmistakable. It was the divine glory of the only begotten and divine Son of God, the second person of the Trinity, manifesting the divine attributes of grace and truth.
Although no one has ever seen God, on Christmas Day the one and only Son, who is Himself God, began to make Him known (John 1:18).
Inspirational Image of the Day
