The Pre-Incarnate Christ and His Body's Eternal Change

 

The Pre-Incarnate Christ and His Body's Eternal Change

by Barbara Latta

This is a chapter from my book, Redemption, the Heartbeat of Christmas, What the Birth of Christ Means to the World. This book is not only about Christmas, it is about why Jesus appeared as He did.  Jesus was born so He could die and rise from the dead. He was born so we could have Easter.

The Word of God became flesh for us, but that change also affected Him. 

Age changes us. Because of our Eden ancestors our bodies degenerate. We do all we can to physically young. Nips and tucks, creams and lotions, hair dyes and make-up provide temporary fixes. 

But we can also change for the better mentally and emotionally when we learn from our youthful experiences. We can grow in wisdom.

Every day after we are born our bodies start to deteriorate. We don’t see the effects of this change right away because babies and children’s bodies don’t reflect wrinkles and sags. 

The result of sin is in our DNA. Thankfully these aging physical changes are not eternal. One day we will receive an immortal, age-immune body but for now we must live with the fallen flesh we inherited.

What about the physical body of Jesus? He exchanged His heavenly form for a limited physical body, yet His had no fallen nature. His substance altered when He left the presence of the Father to live on earth.

And 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 (John 1:14).

Jesus existed in eternity past as the Word of God (John 1:1). He was there at the creation of the world. In the Old Testament, He showed up as the Angel of the Lord. He visited Abraham and Sarah, Hagar talked with Him in the desert, He wrestled with Jacob, and He stood before Joshua with a drawn sword.

He was forever with God and is God, yet He was willing to lay aside the benefits of deity to become a human.

What Does God So Loved Mean to You?

 

What does God so loved mean to you

By Barbara Latta @barbaralatta

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16 NKJV).

Those of us who have grown up in church have heard John 3:16 quoted over and over. We learned that verse as a child and could spit it out at the drop of a hat. It is printed on cards, cups, plaques, and banners.

But over familiarity can cause words to lose their meaning.

Do we really know what Jesus was saying when he told this truth to Nicodemus? What does God so loved mean to you? How does John 3:16 change your life?

God so loved….

This is love not that we loved God but that he loved us and gave his Son (1 John 4:10).

We can’t love God apart from Him loving us first because there is no love in us without Him.

The world…

God’s gift is available to all who will receive it.  …Not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9b). Unfortunately, not everyone will receive eternal life, but it’s not because God didn’t give it.

That He gave….

He gave His Son from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8). He knew His creation would sin and He made a way to redeem the lost. God loved His created ones made in His image so much he was willing to give Himself to pay for the wrong that we do.

He gave by putting His Word into the form of flesh. The word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14)

God was walking and talking with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden until they sinned. They threw away their intimacy with their Creator.

God was walking and talking with mankind in the form of Jesus, but most did not recognize him. They threw away the God that was before them.

He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him (John 1:11).

Love came down from heaven, but He didn’t have to.

But made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant and coming in the likeness of men. And 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 2:7-8).

This gift from the Father was presented to the fallen earth wrapped in swaddling clothes. In insignificance and with no earthly fanfare, He was born in the normal human way. He became one of us, so He could identify with our hurts, fears and temptations (Hebrews 2:18).

Jesus came to earth through a bloody human birth and left the earth through a bloody human sacrifice.

What does “God so loved the world” really mean? It means love came down…so we could be lifted up (Psalm 145:14).

Christmas brings us the cross.

Merry Christmas and may God bless us every one!

What Does God So Loved Mean to You (click to share on X)

 

 Image by Bruno from Pixabay 

Word of the Father Now in Flesh Appearing

 

by Barbara Latta @barbaralatta

“Word of the Father now in flesh appearing.”

These eight words reveal the gospel message and are part of a stanza from the beautiful hymn, “O Come All Ye Faithful.”

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1 NKJV)

Human minds can’t figure this out.

Immortal can’t be explained by mortal. Agnostics and atheist’s attempt at logical conclusions for spiritual concepts only cause confusion.

We must accept God’s Word by faith.

And 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. (John 1:14)

His spoken Word brought a baby into existence in a supernatural way.

Only the Holy Spirit can illuminate our hearts so we can accept this as truth.

The Word who existed in eternity past with the Father and the Holy Spirit appeared on earth in flesh.

The miracle began with the promise in the Garden of Eden that the Seed would bruise the head of the serpent.

And when the time was right the Word of God from heaven became flesh.

But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. (Galatians 4:4–5)

As you sing the wonderful centuries-old Christmas carols we are blessed to have from the pens of lyrical masters, may these words bring a new revelation of God's love to you. 

“Word of the Father now in flesh appearing.”

Merry Christmas!

Join the conversation and share your thoughts.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:14 NKJV) Gods concepts can’t be explained by mortal minds. Only the Holy Spirit can illuminate our hearts so we can accept this as truth. (click to tweet)

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

The Birth of Jesus Changes a Life

Today's post is by Maria Johnson, a fellow writer and member of Word Weavers International. I know you will be blessed by reading her insight of how Jesus changed her life.

 by Maria Johnson

Just the Right Amount of Jesus

 “The reason for the season” is a marketing success story.  It’s an effective sound bite for

The birth of Jesus changes a life

those of us who “get it” to let everyone else know that we “get it” and that they should “get it”, too. 

I realize the heart behind the message is sincere.  I’m saying the exact same thing when I encourage people to look to God’s Word for hope in mental illness. 

But we humans are flawed, and we have taken this valid encouragement and turned it into yet another requirement for doing Christmas “the right way.”  For those of us with anxiety issues, this can be yet another trigger during the holidays. 

What I try to do is think about what God did outside of the popular nativity story in Luke (Luke 2:1-20).  And I specifically try to think about not just what God did, but how what God did has changed my life.

God Became a Man

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

God has always wanted a relationship with man.  But once man sinned, we were cut off from Him because He is so holy.

He knew all along that we couldn’t make it all the way to Him.  So He came to us.  He came to me.

John 1:14 – “And 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.”

There have been many times when I didn’t have the strength to do one more thing to be a “better Christian.”  I was in the pit of depression and saw no hope of ever getting out.

Jesus came to me.

The baby born in that manger, the one immortalized in plastic on so many front lawns, grew up and offered me compassion.

Matthew 11:28 - “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

When Jesus was born a human child, He brought God to the earth to meet me where I was.

Jesus Cleared a Path to God

Jesus cleared a path to the heart of God.

When God designed the tabernacle in the wilderness, two curtains separated the mercy seat, where God’s presence was, from the people.  The first curtain led into the holy place, where only the priests could come. 

Hebrews 9:3,7 – “Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place … But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.”

God had made a way to be in the midst of His people, but He still had to keep His distance because our sin could not exist in His holy presence.

When Jesus died on the cross and paid the price for our sins, that distance was no longer necessary.

Mark 15:37-38 – “With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.”

I don’t have to go through a priest to get to God.  I don’t have to complete a checklist of tasks perfectly just to be able to talk with Him.  The only requirement now is accepting His sacrifice and His Lordship.

Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem provided hope that I could come into God’s presence.

Peace On Earth

Jesus didn’t come to earth to remove conflict. He couldn’t do that without removing free will. In the end, He will remove conflict, and those of us who used our free will to choose Him, will enjoy that eternal peace.

I have to be honest, though. The hope of eternal peace in the sweet by and by offers little comfort when I’m trapped by insomnia and all my worst fears are ravaging what little sanity I have left.

It’s then I have to remember that Jesus didn’t just come to set up a retirement plan.

What He brought instead, was a way to find peace in spite of conflict – whether that conflict is internal or external.

John 16:33 - “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

When Jesus was born into the chaos of a stable, peace was born. That’s not just a baby in that nativity painting; it’s peace.

When I remind myself that I’m celebrating the birth of peace, it’s easier to let go of the need to “get Christmas right.” I can look back in thanks that He came, but then live my life today filled with all the benefits of why He came.

How is today better for you as a result of Jesus being born? Join the conversation.

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The birth of Jesus changes a life (click to tweet)

Maria spent most of her life focused on the theatre, while also dealing with depression and bipolar disorder.  Through Celebrate Recovery, she has come to a place of stability and peace and is now serving as a mental health advocate.  Recently, God called her to focus on writing as her main priority and she started a Bible study blog,  God’s Word for Mental Health.

She lives in Covington, GA with her husband, son, dog, and cat.  A proud geek, she enjoys fantasy and sci-fi stories, super hero movies, and spreadsheets.