Love Came Down at Christmas

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

While I ascent to the power and truth of this verse from my lips, I often find that in my heart they ring hollow. How does Word become flesh? Dwelt among us? We have seen His glory? These are simple yet monumental words of truth, full of wonder and mystery, written from the hand of God through the pen of John. In one sentence they tell a profound story of how big and full of grace and mercy God is and that we desperately need to be rescued by Him.

Over the centuries Christmas has become more of a warm fuzzy, where we give gifts to express gratitude, we say “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas.” The season is full of shopping for the perfect gift that either gets returned or re-gifted. Try to find gift tags, Christmas cards or Christmas wrap that conveys any hint of the Biblical message of Christmas! It is getting harder.

As I watch the hustle and bustle of the season, the visible stress on people’s faces as I venture around a store it causes me to wonder, “Do they know the cost?” Not the cost of what’s in the cart, but the cost of what it meant for Word to become flesh, dwell among us and display the glory of the Father. Have I become so short sighted that I have missed the point?

Pause! Think! Ponder! In her day Mary was seemingly pregnant out of wedlock. How could that be? Shame and scorn begot Joseph and Mary before they were even married. And at the appointed time, they had to make the decreed census journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem because Joseph was from the lineage of King David. I can only imagine how confused, weary and worn they were when they arrived, only to find there was no place to stay, no room at the Inn. The only thing left was a barn and it had a trough. The story gets more tense; she went into labor. In a lowly barn, a tired and worn young couple give birth to a Son begotten of the Father of heaven, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. A barn had become a palace and the Word had become flesh to dwell among us so that we could see God’s glory fully displayed in grace and truth. Jesus, Immanuel, God with us, who is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature who upholds the universe by the word of his power (Hebrews 1:3) has come. He is the perfect gift and it cost God everything. Will you receive it? (photo from Revive Our Hearts Ministry)