January 6

The Incarnation

The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. — John 1:14 BSB

The same Person who existed in the beginning, who is God and made all things, became flesh. The Jesus of the Gospels is the eternal God, the Jehovah of the Old Testament. The reason for the incarnation was our salvation. The Good Shepherd came to seek and save His lost sheep. He took on human form to draw closer to sinners.

There’s a story of a Moravian missionary who went to preach to slaves in the West Indies. When he couldn’t reach them as a free man, he became a slave himself, joining them in their work and hardships. It was only then that they listened to him. This is an example of what Christ did for us. We couldn’t comprehend God’s glory, so He came to live among us, revealing the invisible God in a way we could understand.

Christ became man to learn by experience and become the perfect Savior, able to sympathize with our struggles. Now, when we come to Him with our needs, we know He understands and is able to help us. He experienced temptation, suffering, and sorrow, so He knows how to comfort us. He became man so He could taste death for us and destroy it on our behalf. When He sees us struggling, He remembers His own trials and is ready to help.