The Incarnation: God In-fleshed

By: Brandon Cleaver

“the Word became flesh and lived among us.” – Jn. 1:14

Mystery lies at the heart of the Christmas message. Although the Advent season is marked by celebratory joy, a peculiar enigma serves as its foundation. The claim of the Incarnation . . . that God donned flesh.

“The omnipotent, in one instant, made himself breakable. He who had been spirit became pierce-able. He who was larger than the universe became an embryo.”

The Incarnation, which in Latin means “to make flesh,” refers to the act of Jesus taking on a human nature. In the form of a baby, born to His virgin mother Mary, the Son of God humbly took His place among humanity. This momentous act was akin to “. . . a dagger thrust into the weft of human history.”

Jesus became fully human to share in our humanity, yet remained fully God, displaying His efficacious love through self-revelation and His ultimate sacrifice on the cross. The North African Church father Athanasius summed it up well in his book On the Incarnation: “Christ was made man that we might be made God.”

Athanasius was not asserting that humans would assume God’s divinity, but he was beautifully illustrating the intimate intentions of our Lord. That through the Incarnation, our communion with Him would blossom. “Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.” (1 Jn. 3:2)

The mystery of Christmas reveals the magnificence of God. 1 Jn. 4:8 states that “God is love.” So, it is not only that God donned flesh, but He, the living embodiment of Love donned flesh, for our sakes.