Why God Became Man
To Show Us God’s Glory
John 1:14
One of the age-old questions that puzzles humanity is – if there is a God, how could we learn anything about him? Some believe they can answer that question by their own thinking – by asking questions and thinking hard to try to understand God. Others think they can answer that question by experiencing – closing their eyes and emptying their minds and trying to experience God.
But all these approaches have given us is conflicting opinions and contradictory ideas.
So does that mean we can’t know whether there is a God and what he is like? Not at all. And the reason is because of what happened 2,000 years ago when Jesus Christ was born. 2,000 years ago God was born as a baby, he became a flesh-and blood man, so that we could see for ourselves who God is and what he is like.
To see that, let’s turn to the Gospel of John chapter one, verse 14. If you need a Bible, raise your hand and we will bring one to you. John chapter one is on page 886 in the Bibles we are passing out.
John was a fisherman, who became one of Jesus’ twelve disciples. And John’s gospel gives us John’s eyewitness account of the truth of Jesus.
And John tells us the meaning of Jesus’ birth in chapter one, verse 14. Look at what he says --
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.
The first thing we have to figure out from this verse is -- Who is the Word? John says the Word became flesh and dwelt among us – but who exactly is the Word? To understand who the Word is, we have to see what John has already said, starting with vv.1-2 --
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was in the beginning with God.
So the Word is a personal being who is himself fully God, and who was with God from the very beginning. Keep reading in v.3 --
3 All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.
So the entire universe was created by this personal being called the Word, who is himself fully God, and who was with God. Verse 4 --
4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.
5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
So the life we were meant to enjoy is found only in knowing him. In knowing him we have the light of life. But without him it’s like we are in darkness. But still, who is he?
Keep reading in v.6, where John talks about John the Baptist --
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him.
8 He [John the Baptist] was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.
OK – now it’s becoming clear. Who did John the Baptist bear witness about? Jesus. Jesus Christ. Keep reading in v.9 --
9 The true light [the Word, Jesus], which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
10 He [the Word, the true light, Jesus] was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.
11 He came to his own [that’s probably the nation of Israel], and his own people did not receive him.
12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
13 who were born, not of blood [natural biological birth] nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man [not by a couple’s decision to have a baby], but of God.
So the Word is Jesus. Jesus was with God, and Jesus was God, from the very beginning.
Think about what this means. Because he is God, Jesus had always been from eternity past. Jesus had infinite power, so much so that all things were created through him. Jesus had sovereign authority over everything. The Word is Jesus, who was fully God from the very beginning.
So what did the Word do? Read v.14 again –
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us …
The Word – Jesus – who was fully God from the very beginning – “became flesh.” Not just “took on flesh,” as if God put on a human costume. But “became flesh” – Jesus, God, became a man. Became fully man.
Since Jesus was fully God, to become fully man he had to lay aside the powers and privileges he had as God. He never stopped being God. But to become a man like you and like me, he had to lay aside the powers and the privileges he had as God.
And because he became flesh he was able to dwell among us. Remember Alanis Morissette’s hit song “What If God Was One Of Us?” Well, 2000 years ago God did become one of us.
In Jesus Christ, the God of the Universe, who has always been from eternity past, who had infinite power over everything, and sovereign authority over everything – was born as a baby. He became flesh. He dwelt among us.
And why is that so important? There’s lots of reasons. But look at the one John mentions in v.14 --
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.
So because Jesus was born as a baby, became flesh, and dwelt among us, we have seen his glory. Now what is glory? Glory is the shining-forth of beauty and majesty. It’s what you see which makes you say “Whoa” or “Wow” or “Awesome.”
Like the sunrise I saw Friday morning driving back from my DNA group made me say “Wow” because I saw the shining forth of beauty and majesty.
So because the Word became flesh and dwelt among us we see glory -- the shining-forth of beauty and majesty. But not just any beauty and majesty. It’s the shining-forth of the beauty and majesty of the only Son from the Father – which means it’s the shining-forth of God’s own beauty and majesty.
That’s why John calls Jesus the Word. Because Jesus is how God communicates to us who he is. God came to earth in the person of Jesus – so we could know for sure who God is and what he is like. We don’t need to rely on our own thinking or our own experiencing. Both of these leave us in confusion.
But because he loves us so much God has spoken to us by coming to earth in the person of Jesus Christ so we can see and know who God is and what he is like. And what is he like? He is glorious with a glory that is full of grace and truth.
He is full of grace. Grace is God’s passion to do astonishing good for undeserving people. And he is full of truth. Truth means God is real. God exists. God is really there. So as Jesus walked the earth we can see God’s very glory shining forth – a glory that’s full of grace and truth.
So let’s take a look at what Jesus did – so we can see his glory.
One day a crowd of over 5,000 people had travelled to Jesus in a remote area so they could hear his teaching. It was getting late in the day, and he knew they would be hungry and need to be fed. But he and his disciples did not have the money to feed them. So what did he do? Watch Jesus love these people. See him caring about these people. See him take one boy’s gift of five rolls and two fish – and miraculously multiply them until there was enough to feed everyone. That’s glory – a glory full of grace and truth.
Another example -- Jesus came upon a man who was horribly afflicted by evil spirits. They so oppressed him that he lived in a graveyard, where he would scream and run around naked and cut himself. And what did Jesus do? Watch him love this man. Notice how he cares about this man. Then listen as he commands the evil spirits to leave the man – and they leave – and the man was completely restored. That’s glory – a glory full of grace and truth.
Another example -- Jesus knew that we had all sinned against God and deserve only to be punished by God. But what did Jesus do? Look at his heart – loving us. Caring for us. See how he came to earth and was born as a man so he could suffer on the Cross. See him, allowing himself to be beaten; scourged; nailed to the Cross -- being punished in our place for our sins. That’s glory – a glory full of grace and truth.
One more example – Jesus had died. He was dead. Friday evening his disciples came and removed his body and buried it in a tomb, which was guarded by Roman soldiers so no one would steal the body and claim he had risen from the dead. But then God’s power comes so much that the earth shakes. And see Jesus as he emerges from the tomb – fully and physically alive -- having paid for all the guilt of our sin and having conquered the curse of death. That’s glory – a glory full of grace and truth.
But this raises another question. If Jesus so clearly showed us God’s glory, why didn’t everyone welcome him? That’s what happened, as John said in vv.10-11 –
10 He [the Word, the true light, Jesus] was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.
11 He came to his own [that’s probably a reference to the nation of Israel], and his own people did not receive him.
So why did the world not know him? Why did his own people not receive him? The answer is because of sin. We wanted to sin. We wanted to be in control. We did not want to bow before the God of infinite glory. And our sin blinded us to the glory of Jesus Christ.
Ask yourself – do you see the glory of Jesus Christ? Do you feel the glory of Jesus Christ. Has the glory of Christ so captured your heart that you want nothing more than to live for his glory no matter what it costs you?
That’s what happened to Ronnie Smith. He had seen Jesus’ glory. He loved Jesus’ glory. He was so captured by Jesus’ glory that he wanted nothing more than to live for Jesus’ glory. So he went to Libya, because people in Libya can’t hear about Jesus – because he wanted Jesus glorified by people in Libya. He went there, knowing the risks. And this week he was shot to death as he was jogging in Libya. And he heard – well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of the Lord.
Have you seen Jesus glory? Some of you have not. But if we will simply turn to Jesus Christ and say “Help!” – he will. He will bring his power upon you and forgive your sin and heal your blindness so you see his glory. For the first time you will see his glory and love his glory and want nothing more than to live for his glory.
That’s what happens when you are first saved. But it’s not just when we are first saved. Throughout the Christian life sin blinds us to Jesus’ glory. But if we will turn to Jesus and say “Help!” – he will. He will use prayer and his Word to once again show us his glory – so we see his glory and love his glory and want nothing more than to live for his glory.
Let me tell you how Samuel Pearce experienced this. He was a pastor in England in the year 1800. And he took a day to seek God’s will about whether he should go to India to be a missionary. He started by reading God’s promises that God would come to him and help him. Then he asked for the help of the Holy Spirit.
Then he read five chapters from the book of 2 Corinthians. But he was not seeing the glory of Jesus. He said his heart was full of dullness. And he was just about to give up when God did something powerful.
Here’s how he described it --
I was about to finish by confessing the hardness of my heart, when suddenly it pleased God to smite the rock with the rod of his Spirit, and immediately the waters began to flow.
Oh what a heavenly, glorious, melting power was it!
… Oh what a view of the love of a crucified Redeemer did I enjoy! The attractions of his cross, how powerful!
If ever in my life I knew anything of the influence of the Holy Spirit, I did at this time. I was swallowed up in God.
Hunger, fullness, cold, heat, friends, and enemies, all seemed nothing before God. I was in a new world. All was delightful; for Christ was all, and in all.
(From The Complete Works Of Andrew Fuller, 3:390f.)
We don’t need to wonder who God is or what he is like. In Jesus Christ we see God’s glory. A glory so real, so satisfying, that when we see it we will want nothing more than to live for his glory.
So turn to him. See his glory. Love his glory. And in a fresh way commit your life to living for his glory. He is worth it all.