Question
The Word Became Flesh
John 1:14 2005 Christmas
Lesson 3
1. John 1:14 can be viewed as the key verse for the gospel of John. Read verse 14 and think about the meaning of the Word (with a capital "W"). Compare the point of this verse with what John says in verses 1-4, especially the statement, "the Word was God". What does this comparison indicate about Jesus?
2. Compare John 1:14 with John 1:18. What does this comparison tell us about Jesus born in a manger? (Hebrews 1:3) Why is this knowledge of Jesus important? (John 1:12; 6:44-45)
3. Of all the points Jesus came to teach, the Apostle John emphasizes (in his gospel and epistles) the importance of knowing and relying on the kind of "love" God has for all people on earth. [Read for example the following Bible verses: John 3:16; 14:23; 15:9,13; 21:15-17.] [You also may wish to read 1Jo 3:16-4:21.] Compare this point with what the Apostle Paul says in Romans 5:8, "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." What does the word "demonstrate" mean? Why should God "demonstrate" his own love for us? What does this analysis suggest about the reason why the Word became flesh?
4. The Apostle John describes in his gospel how Jesus served (or loved) many. Yet, John 21 (the last chapter) indicates that Jesus focused on helping one person Simon Peter to the end. What can we learn from Jesus who helped Simon Peter even after rising from the dead?
** Write a Bible testimony on one thing you learned from John 1:14, especially what the birth of Jesus (the Word who became flesh) means to you.
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Message
The Word Became Flesh
John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Merry Christmas! Today we are here to celebrate the birth of Jesus. In so doing it is meaningful for us to think about the meaning of Jesus’ birth.
First, Jesus is God Incarnate
John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh…” In Greek, the Word is Logos. This means Jesus is smart. He made you and me as the crowns of creation, so we would be smarter than dogs or cows. Jesus made Bill Gates who in his smartness made a lot of money and is now living in a 97 million dollar Eco house in Seattle. Jesus made Albert Einstein the famous physicist who came up with the equation e = mc2. He made butterflies know how to dance. You will see a Taekwondo dance later today, and they will fly like butterflies. Jesus is the Logos. In his smartness Jesus designed the universe which works seamlessly. And in his smartness he turns water into buckets of choice wine, simply by desiring it to happen. Can you change water into choice wine simply by desiring it to happen? Jesus does.
In the December issue of Reader’s Digest, there is a feature article entitled, “Searching for Heaven,” which describes Barbara Walters’ interviews with believers of different religions, including the Dalai Lama. According to this article there are some 10,000 religions in the world, and each religion teaches different gods, leading people to different places. Imagine 10,000 different religions teaching 10,000 different gods, leading their followers to 10,000 different destinations! How confusing! It is no wonder that many people have questions about themselves and God, such as:
Who is God?
What does God look like?
Where do I come from?
Where do I go after my life here on earth is finished?
After interviewing many people from many different religions, how did Barbara Walters answer these questions? She confessed that she herself was totally confused.
John Lennon composed a song entitled, “God,” where he said that God is a concept. Listen:
“God is a concept by which we measure our pain; I will say it again; God is a concept by which we measure our pain. I don't believe in magic. I don't believe in I-ching. I don't believe in Bible. I don't believe in tarot. I don't believe in Hitler. I don't believe in Jesus. I don’t believe in Beatles...I just believe in me.”
But the Apostle John says, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” We celebrate Christmas because God sent Jesus to show us who God really is, so we would NOT be confused about who God is, what God thinks of us, and how he wants us to relate ourselves with Him! In Jesus, we find the answer to all our basic questions of life.
Who is God? John tells us that Jesus is God. John 1:18 says, “No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.”
What does God look like? Hebrews 1:3 says, "The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word." So, if you want to know about God, then look at Jesus—Jesus and God are the same.
Where do I come from? John 1:3 says, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” This means that I come from Jesus.
Where do I go after my life here on earth is finished? Jesus says in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
Thank God that he revealed himself through Jesus Christ. Through Jesus, God gave us a clear idea about who God is.
Second, the Message of Love
Jesus walked on earth for a short time—about 30 years. During his short stay here, he taught us many things: things about God, things about men, things about this life and the life thereafter and much more. Of all the things Jesus taught us, the Apostle John emphasizes God’s love the most. For this reason, Romans 5:8 says, "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
Let us think about the word "demonstrate". What does the word “demonstrate” mean? Demonstrate means "to show clearly." If you are a car salesman, you would want to showcase the kind of car you are selling, so that you can show it to prospective buyers in a most attractive way.
God is a salesperson, selling love. You and I are prospective buyers. God showcased his love in Jesus by sending Jesus as a tiny baby in a manger, then as an atoning sacrifice for our sins on a tree, and then as the victorious Savior rising from the dead.
Of all the love there is, the love God has for us is the best and the greatest because John 15:13 says, "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." Jesus laid down his life for us. He taught his disciples to lay down their lives for their sheep. Jesus became flesh to show the kind of love God has for us.
How should we respond to God demonstrating His love for us? Peter answers this question in Acts 2:38: "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."
God gave us Jesus free of charge. The same is true of the gift of the Holy Spirit. The gift of the Holy Spirit is for free. Once one has this gift inside he becomes like Moses’ burning bush which never burned up. The Lord God put His Spirit in Moses. Through Moses, the Lord God led a slave nation, Israel, out of slavery in Egypt, to the freedom of God in the Promised Land. In so doing, Moses served people for forty long years in the desert land, yet he did not burn out because of the Holy Spirit living in him. The Holy Spirit does the same for everyone who receives Him. First of all the Holy Spirit brings with him all kinds of good stuff: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and oh yes, self-control. And God provides him with all these without a limit; the more you use, the more God gives. When this happens to you God's vision for you to become a source of blessing for many becomes a reality.
Third, the Example of Love
Jesus demonstrated God’s love by dying on the cross for our sins. He also showed God’s love by loving people coming to him one by one.
How did he love people? Well, the four gospels describe how: gracefully and truthfully he loved all who came to him. Of all the stories of his love, John 21, the last chapter of John's gospel has the best story of His love. It is the showcase of God’s love for men.
As many of us know, the Apostle Peter was not faithful to Jesus all the time. While Jesus was on trial, Peter denied Jesus three times. Because of this failure, Peter felt condemned and wanted to give up. Yet Jesus loved him to the end. Jesus loved Peter until Peter restored his love for Jesus fully. Then Jesus helped Peter to love others as Jesus did.
In John 21, Jesus asked Peter "Do you truly love me more than these?" He asked the same question three times. Imagine, the risen Savior comes to you, serves you a warm breakfast on the beach, and when you are satisfied, asks you, "Do you truly love me?" This was what Jesus did to Peter. Three times Peter answered Jesus, "Lord, you know I love you." Each time Peter said this, the Risen Lord said to him, "Feed my lambs." Again, in John 21, in restoring his beloved disciple Peter, Jesus showed us how we should practically love others. John 13:34-35 thus reads, "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
We know that it is not easy for us to love our fellow human beings. But in Jesus everything is possible. If anyone is in Jesus, he is a new creation. The old is gone, the new has come. And God sent Jesus to teach us this new kind of love.
Today we are gathered here to celebrate this new kind of love. The celebration of his birth is the celebration of God's love for us. May the Lord bless all of you as you accept this love and put it in to practice with your neighbors.
One Word: The Word Became Flesh