Christmas
Day 2017
“From Heaven
Above: The Word Became Flesh” (John 1:1-14)
INI
“What’s
the good word?” you might hear someone say as they greet a friend. The expected answer is something happy that
happened. A good word. Not a rotten word. Of course, if your day was lousy, then you
would be stumped if someone asked you “What’s the good word?”
“The Good
Word” also can refer to the Bible, which is God’s Word, God’s message to
humanity given through prophets, apostles, and evangelists. More specifically, the “Good Word” is the
Gospel, the message that Jesus died for your sins and rose to life again to
forgive you and give you everlasting life.
In and of
themselves, words are used to communicate, to describe, to name, to identify. And thankfully we are not left guessing what
God’s will is for us. He has clearly
communicated to us through words. Yes,
at first, they were Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek words. But those words have been translated into many,
many different languages and are still being translated today.
“In the
beginning was the Word” are the words with which John begins his Gospel. Who is this Word of whom John speaks? Of course, he is speaking of Jesus. “The Word became flesh.” This is what we are celebrating today. The Incarnation. God became a man. The divine Son of God received his human
flesh from his Mother Mary. He entered
into the very creation in which he participated all the way back in the
beginning. As the living Word, he has
come to communicate to us in his very life about God’s character, God’s will,
and in particular his forgiving, loving nature towards us, his creatures. This is what the author of Hebrews was
referring to when he wrote, “Long ago, at many times and in various ways, God
spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to
us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he
created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint
of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power” (Heb.
1:1-3).
“In the
beginning was the Word.” He was there at
the beginning. He has always
existed. There never was a time when he
did not exist.
“The Word
was with God.” He was present there with
the other members of the Holy Trinity, the Father and the Holy Spirit.
“The Word
was God.” The Second Person of the Holy
Trinity is equally God with the other two members of the Holy Trinity. If he did not exist eternally, that would
make him less than God, since being eternal is one of God’s chief
attributes.
“In him
was life, and the life was the light of men.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” All life finds its source in him. This points us back to the very beginning,
when Yahweh spoke everything into existence with his powerful, creative word. “And God said, ‘Let there be … and there was’
or ‘And it was so’” is the constant refrain in Genesis chapter 1. He gave light to all creation. And he gives light to us in this dark world
so full of sin and evil following Adam and Eve’s act of disobedience in the
Garden. The devil lied to humanity. Death entered into the world. Therefore, Grace and Truth had to be
proclaimed to humanity in the person of Jesus Christ. Life itself had to enter into the world to
take death into himself and to conquer death and the devil by rising to life
again.
“The Word
became flesh and dwelt among us.” The
Word is God, but for a time, the Son of God humbled himself. He allowed himself to be totally dependent
upon his mother. He became weak and
lowly, even to the point of being born in a stable and given a manger full of
straw for a bed. He placed himself under
the very Law that he gave to Moses and was totally obedient. He submitted himself in faith and trust to
his Heavenly Father, and not once did he ever waver or doubt. And he did all of this for you and for me,
for us who do waver and doubt, for us who in our weakness fall to temptation. Jesus willingly placed himself in the hands
of the governing authorities who condemned him to death. The Almighty Son of God, the Creator of all
things, allowed himself to suffer and die.
He offered his innocent life up at the cross as a perfect, holy
sacrifice to cover over our guilt and shame. That’s why we can sing with Luther in his famous
Christmas hymn:
Welcome to earth, O noble Guest
Through Whom the sinful world is blest!
You came to share my misery
That You might share Your joy with me. (LSB 358:8)
By the
way, when John writes that the Word “dwelt” among us, the original Greek word
can be translated “tented” or “tabernacled.”
That points us back to the tabernacle that Yahweh told Moses to build
when he received the Law at Sinai. It
was a big tent. Inside, at one end,
behind a large curtain, was the “Most Holy Place” or the “Holy of Holies.” This was where the Ark of the Covenant was
placed and where God promised that his gracious presence could be found. The heavens cannot contain God, the Maker of
heaven and earth. Yet God also promised
that he would dwell among his people on earth in the Holy of Holies.
That all
changed when the Word became flesh. The
Son of God became a Man and entered into this world to dwell among us. The temple curtain in Jerusalem was torn in
two when Jesus died on Good Friday. This
signified that there is no more need for an earthly tabernacle. The sinful barrier between God and Man has
been removed in the sacrifice of Jesus at the cross. The flesh of Jesus is now our Holy of
Holies. The gracious, forgiving presence
of God is found in him. So, now, for us,
the altar becomes our Holy of Holies. The
Word who became flesh for us gives his flesh and blood to us here in the
Eucharist. Our hands become a manger
where the body of Jesus is placed for us to eat. Our mouths drink joyfully of the blood that
was shed for us and for our salvation.
At
the risk of sounding terribly outdated and uncool … well, I guess it’s far too
late for that, so here goes anyway. A
few years ago, the hip hop crowd would say “Word” to affirm what another
speaker was saying or to express agreement with them. For example, one person would say, “Man, that
guy can really rap” to which the other person would say, “Word!” Another slang response might be “True
dat.” It’s kind of like the way we use
the word “Amen.” When you say, “Amen”
you are expressing agreement with what was just said in the liturgy or the sermon
or the prayers. “Amen. I agree with what was just said. That’s my prayer, too.”
Now,
certainly John did not use “The Word” in this modern slang sense of the
term. John may have been borrowing an
idea from Greek philosophy, but that discussion is beyond our scope here. But this modern sense works, don’t you
think? Jesus is the Word. He is truth.
He is the living Word in whom all of God’s promises find their fulfillment. We are in agreement with this. That’s faith. That’s what St. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 1:
“For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you … was not Yes
and No, but in him it is always Yes. For all the promises of God find their Yes
in him” (2 Cor. 1:19-20).
So
let’s celebrate Christmas for the next 12 days.
Remember, Christmas isn’t over when the radio stops playing Christmas
music or when you put the decorations away.
Christmas is over when Epiphany arrives.
But that’s not really true either, is it? Christmas lasts throughout the year. The Son of God became incarnate for you. And still is. The Incarnate Son of God is present for you every
day … and especially every Lord’s Day.
Why else do we sing the song of the angels in the liturgy, even when
it’s not technically Christmas? “Glory
to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.” Those words echo throughout the year in every
church season and down through the centuries. The song of the angels reminds us that Christ
is present for us even now with his grace and truth and peace. He’s not just the Baby in the manger. He’s the Word made Flesh.
Amen.
Word.
INI
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