1. INCARNATION
Jesus’ mission was to demonstrate that He
understood and interacted with our world before He
talked about His call to us all to move towards
another, better world.
2. The Word became a human being. He made his
home with us. We have seen his glory.
It is the glory of the one and only Son.
John 1:14
John 1:14
John 1:14
4. Have You Ever Wondered?
• ...what the conversation among the Three-in-One God
might have been like, just before Jesus entered Mary’s
womb?
• ...or what it might have been like for those nine long
months as the egg that God fertilized morphed into the
hoped-for human baby Savior of the world?
5.
6. Wonder No More
• D: “It’s time for you to go, Son.”
• J: “You think I don’t know that, Dad? Ever since they chose not to
trust Us, I’ve known that I would have to deliver them from the
mess they made of Our Paradise.”
• D: “Yes, Son, but in My Spirit, I detect just the slightest tick of, well,
hesitation in You. But I know it’s not possible for You to be having
second thoughts.”
• J: “Not about going to earth to be their Savior. Not in the least. It’s
just that...”
7. • D: “See, what’s that? We Three love our lost sheep immensely, so
this can’t have anything to do with You wavering in Your unbounded
love for them.”
• J: “Exactly. Ok, this is really going to sound like nothing. Because it
really isn’t a huge deal for Me. It’s just that...”
• D: “C’mon, Son, spit it out. Time’s a wastin’ here. As You know,
Angel Gabriel months ago told Mary that she’ll be pregnant with
You. It’s time for You to go.”
8. • J: “Ok, ok, so like, I’m Your only Son, right? An essential member of
the Holy Trinity. So I had a huge part in creating the universe and
everything in it. Including every human being that ever was or ever
will be.”
• D: “You don’t need to remind Me, Son. Spirit and I were there. So
please get to Your point. Tick tock, tick tock.”
• J: “My point is that I’ve always been everywhere and in everything. If
I had a need for pants--and I don’t--I could put the entire universe
in my hip pocket. And now I’m about to let go of all that infinite
awesomeness and reduce myself to a single, virtually invisible human
egg. Different doesn’t even BEGIN to describe what I’m about to
become.”
9. • J: “But I’m not having second thoughts. Just, well, certain thoughts.”
• J: “We all know that I have to demonstrate something, that I really
get what it means to be human. Vulnerable. Fragile. Tragic at times.
That I understand their fallen world before I start calling them to
repent and start moving towards Our restored, better world.”
• J: “I’ve made countless humans, of course; I’ve just never been
human before. (exhale) Ok, let’s do this.”
• D: “I love You, Son. Ok, world, I’m sending you your Savior!”
10.
11. • But even after that, a pent up world still had to wait before it knew
for sure that it had gotten what God had promised.
• Though it still boggles every mind, God the Father miraculously
fertilized one of young Mary’s eggs with Jesus and then nestled Him
deep within the wall of her uterus.
• Even though it makes your brain hurt to imagine this, the Divine-
Jesus went to work within that dark, cramped space inside of Mary,
creating the Human-Jesus exactly the way He creates every human
being. One cell becomes two. Then two becomes four. Those four
divide again into eight.
12.
13. • What a painstaking process Jesus chose to experience, especially
since the world was in such dire need of Savior. But He knew that
He would never be able to die for their sins one day if He skipped
any part of what it means to be human.
• Stem cells gradually began to diversify into liver cells, brain cells, and
blood cells. Bones, big and little. Ten tiny toes. Eight fragile fingers
and two thumbs for sucking. A nose. Two eyes, squeezed shut. A
perfect little mouth with pursed lips. A beating heart.
14.
15. • Each day brought more diversity, more complexity, greater
unification. Until at last, He was fully formed. Entirely human. One
of us.
16. • D: “My precious Son, they’ve waited long enough. It’s time to be
born into their world of happiness and hurt.”
• The first contraction came unexpectedly, but the ones that followed
over the next five hours were indescribable in their intensity. He
became vaguely aware of Mary’s cries as she labored to deliver Him
into Joseph’s waiting arms.
• It seemed to take forever. And then, with one final push, Jesus was
finally in the world, just not of it.
17.
18. • J: “What was that? Did someone just swat My bottom?”
19.
20. There were shepherds living out in
the fields nearby. It was night, and
they were looking after their sheep.
An angel of the Lord appeared to
them. And the glory of the Lord
shone around them. They were
terrified.
21. But the angel said to them, “Do not
be afraid. I bring you good news of
great joy. It is for all the people.
Today in the town of David a
Savior has been born to you. He is
Christ the Lord. Here is how you
will know I am telling you the truth.
You will find a baby wrapped in
strips of cloth and lying in a
manger.”