The Impact of the Incarnation
The highlight of the day was attending my first “Star Wars” movie with grandchildren and Christian and Bridget. Later Christian had to rescue my drone (gift from Stephanie and Nathan) from a tree. I still haven’t tried to fly it, but it has been fun for the other guys in the family.
BIBLE VERSE FOR TODAY… “We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” 1 John 5:20 NIV
Matthew and Luke provide the details about the birth of Christ. We see the angels words to Mary fulfilling the Old Testament prophecy, “….The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him ‘Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).” (Matthew 1:22,23 NIV)
However, John in his gospel and in his letters speaks to the power and purpose of the incarnation. He declares in his gospel, “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.”(John 1:14 NIV)
In his first letter John says, that “the Son of God has come….that we may know him who is true…” The result of “knowing him” is experiencing life in Christ. John writes, “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 NIV) “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (1 John 5:12 NIV)
The life that Christ brings allows us to fulfill the “law of Christ”: to love God and others. John declares, “This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands.” (1 John 5:2 NIV) “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.” (1 John 4:7 NIV)
Then John declares, the incarnation was to defeat the spiritual enemy of our souls, “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” (1 John 3:8 NIV) This happens through the victory won for us by Christ on the cross. God’s Spirit in us gives us the power to live the life that the Lord has destined for us to experience. We don’t sin and keep on sinning because, God’s Spirit convicts and draws us back to Christ.
We can thankful for the impact of the incarnation on our lives. The eternal Christ, who came in flesh, brings us eternal life, that impacts our life today and gives hope for the future.
Prayer for today… Lord, we give You thanks for not just coming to reveal the Father to us. But to change our lives. You are more than an example, You are the source of a new life and a new destiny. Help us to live in that reality each day of our life.