When you read the record of the coming of Jesus into the world—born in a stable, born of a woman, reared in the woodshop of a poor Jewish carpenter—you could not grasp the truth that He was the God-man if the Scriptures didn’t reveal it.
This great mystery of the incarnation is the crux and the core of the Christian message. It is the mystery over which the rationalists stumble, by which the humanists are offended, and by which the world is bewildered.
The natural mind is not equipped to grasp this truth that transcends human wisdom. Paul—after reasoning with the Greeks, who majored in knowledge, and with the Romans, who majored in justice—said, “Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory” (1 Timothy 3:16).
I would like you to consider with me three facts regarding the incarnation.
First, the incarnation is a Scriptural fact. The recurring theme of the Bible is the incarnation of Jesus Christ. The prophets wrote of it, the psalmists sang of it, the apostles rejoiced and built their hopes on it and the epistles are filled with it. Christ’s coming in the flesh—His invading the world, His identifying Himself with sinful men and women—is the most significant fact of history. All of humanity’s puny acts, accomplishments and attainments pale into nothingness when compared to it.
Isaiah said, “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). Even the Savior’s entrance into the world was mysterious, transcendent, beyond the grasp of the natural person. But as God, in the person of Jesus Christ, walked and talked with people, they were conscious of the fact that God had manifested Himself in the flesh. Hearts that had been repelled by empty forms of religion ran to Him as starving men and women to a feast.
The distant heavens and the remote earth, the elusive God and the wayward human, were brought into proximity to each other. The fact runs throughout the whole Bible: “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:19). “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law” (Galatians 4:4). Again, the Bible says, “Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:8). And we read in John 1:14, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” And in Philippians 2:7, “But [Christ] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.”
Men and women were incapable of coming to God, so God in love and mercy came down to earth to interact with humans. The creature could not come up to God, so the Creator condescended to come down to redeem His creation. Wonder of wonders! God incarnate! God clothed in a human body in the person of Jesus Christ. The Scriptures unite in one voice to declare this.
But He did not come just to be identified with humans—that would inflate our pride all the more. He came not only for identification, but for reconciliation. “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself” (2 Corinthians 5:19). “Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Hebrews 1:3). We exclaim with the song writer, “Amazing love! How can it be that Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?”
Second, the incarnation is a historical fact. Christianity has its roots in the deep, firm soil of history. The doctrine of the incarnation means that God came right down amidst the din and confusion of this world. It means that God was capable of participating in our pain, our suffering, our conflicts and our sorrows. It proves to us that His love was not just a vague theory sung in ancient sonnets or proclaimed by shepherd mystics of the back country, but that it was real, vibrant and realizable.
His incarnation—His being born in human flesh—was for the record. He came to the world, once and for all, that we might forever know that He has an absorbing interest in the way we live, the way we believe and the way we die. He came to demonstrate to us that God and mankind belong together. He came to mankind to mend the gap and fill the gulf that separated the creature from his Creator.
Every move He made, every miracle He performed, every word He spoke, was for the purpose of reconciling a lost world to a loving, compassionate God. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself.”
The historical fact of the incarnation is that at a specific time, and at a specific place, God invaded the world with His presence in human form.
I was walking near my home, and I looked down and saw an anthill that had just been crushed. I saw that the carefully planned home was ruined and that several ants had been killed and many had been injured. As I watched them writhing in agony and confusion, I wished for a moment that I were an ant. I wanted to be one of them so I could explain that I wanted to help them and tell them that I was sorry for the disaster. But I had no way of communicating with them, so I went on my way.
But when God looked down and saw the world devastated by sin, He did not go away! “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). That is what the incarnation means. God did something about our plight. He did not turn His back upon us in our time of need. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself.”
Even if you never have received Christ as your Savior, you have demonstrated the fact of the incarnation every day that you have lived. Whenever you date a letter, you are witnessing to the fact that some 2,000 years ago, God invaded human history to reconcile the world unto Himself. The fact that Jesus came is written in history, it is written on the calendar, it is written in the Bible and it is written on your conscience. You cannot escape it!
“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14)—and He knows that you know He came. Don’t you see that you are without excuse? God has done so much for your redemption—and may I ask you this: “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” (Hebrews 2:3).
And third, let us consider the experiential fact of the incarnation. The incarnation can be experienced. The greatest proof that Christ once lived in history is the fact that He lives today in men and women’s lives. Every born-again person can say with Paul, “Last of all He was seen by me also” (1 Corinthians 15:8). He not only lived, but He still lives, and will continue to live forever and ever.
Every time a person receives Christ as Savior, God in the person of the Holy Spirit takes up residence in his or her heart.
The age-old issue, “Can a person save himself, or does he need God?” is still raging as furiously as ever. As long as the world goes on, people will build towers of Babel, fashion their graven images and invent their own ideologies. Now, as in every period of history, there are people and nations who think they can manage without God.
Economically they may manage, intellectually they may manage and socially they may get by. But down underneath the surface is a vacuum—a void that can be filled only by Jesus Christ.
From Paul on down through history, sane, gifted and rational men and women have found Christ to be the answer to their spiritual and moral problems. They are the happiest, the best-adjusted people in the world. Composers, writers, leaders of government, leaders from the entertainment world, engineers, businesspeople, salespeople, grocery employees, tradespeople and common laborers—men and women from every walk of life are able to say with one accord, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NKJV). And what He did for them, He can do for you.
Christ not only lived in the flesh, but He can live in you. He can be incarnate in your heart. Right now, where you are, you can receive Christ into your heart and experience the incarnation of God in the human soul. You can have Christ living in you—“Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27).
The most astounding fact of all history—the most astounding fact of all ages—is that the great and almighty God of Heaven can live in your heart. It makes no difference who you are. Your life can be changed if you will humble yourself and let Christ take up residence in your heart. And you will be a “new creation!”
You say, “How can that be? How can I get God to live in my heart and fill the aching void of my life?” Simply and sincerely do this right now: Turn from your sins. Tell God, “I am a sinner. I turn from my sins—I give them up. I turn to Jesus Christ by faith.” You can do that now wherever you are.
Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version.
Sermon Taken from the Oct. 14, 1956 Hour of Decision broadcast.
CHRIST CAN LIVE IN YOUR HEART
Jesus will forgive you of your sin and live in your heart if you will come to Him in faith. He is the only way to God. He died so your sins could be forgiven, and He promises to save anyone who will turn from sin and receive Him by faith. You can do that right now. You can have abundant and eternal life if you will surrender to Christ.
START BY SIMPLY TALKING TO GOD.
You can pray a prayer like this:
“O God, I am a sinner. I’m sorry for my sin. I want to turn from my sin. Please forgive me. I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son; I believe He died on the cross for my sin and You raised Him to life. I want to trust Him as my Savior and follow Him as my Lord from this day forward, forevermore. Lord, I put my trust in You and surrender my life to You. Please come into my life and fill me with Your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”