The Word became flesh (5)
[John 1:1-4, 9-14]
Why did God the Son, “the Word,” become “flesh” (man)? What is its purpose? Its purpose is threefold: (1) To dwell among us, (2) To be the mediator between God and us, (3) To be peace offerings.
The first purpose for God the Son, “the Word,” to become “flesh” (man) is to dwell among us.
Look at John 1:14a – “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us ….” Here, the word 'dwell' means 'to pitch a tent' or 'to live in a tent'. In the Old Testament, the first passage in which the word “dwell” appears is Genesis 4:20 – “Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock.” The Bible records that a man named Jabal dwelled in a tent. When Abraham, the ancestor of faith, was called by God (Gen. 12:1-3) and entered Canaan, the land that God would show him (he was 75 years old), he did not build a house and live as in his hometown. But he lived in a tent for about 100 years and died at 175 tears old (25:7). Even at the time of the Exodus, the Israelites lived in tents in the wilderness. Look at Exodus 25:8 and 26:1 – “"Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them” (25:8), “Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen and blue and purple and scarlet material; you shall make them with cherubim, the work of a skillful workman” (26:1). God told Moses to build a sanctuary or tabernacle for God to dwell among the Israelites. There was a veil in the sanctuary or tabernacle, the purpose of which was to separate the holy place from the holy of holies (26:33). The reason was for God to dwell in the holy of holies. There were seven lampstands in the sanctuary to light the sanctuary day and night, but there was no need for lampstands in the holy of holies. The reason is that it was bright because the holy God was dwelling there. King Solomon built the sanctuary for 7 years (separate the sanctuary and the holy of holies).
The New Testament says that the Word became flesh and does not dwell in the sanctuary/tabernacle/temple, but among us (Jn. 1:14). Look at Matthew 27:51 – “And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split.” The veil in the holy place that separated the holy place from the holy of holies was torn in two, so people were able to enter the holy of holies. Look at John 1:14a – “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, ….” Look at Matthew 1:23 – “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel--which means, ‘God with us.’” This word was prophesied by the Prophet Isaiah about 700 years before Jesus was born (Isa. 7:14), “God is with us” (“Immanuel”). God became a man and is with us.
Where is the temple in this day and age? Look at 1 Corinthians 6:19-20: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.” The Bible says that our bodies are “a temple of the Holy Spirit.” In other words, we have the Holy Spirit within us. And we also have God the Son, the Word made flesh. Jesus said, “I will be with you always, even to the end of the world” (Mt. 28:20). Why is God the Son, the Word, with us? What is its purpose? There are 3 purposes:
- It is to show us God.
Moses wanted to see God and asked God, “Show me Your glory.” Look at Exodus 33:18 – “Then Moses said, ‘I pray You, show me Your glory!’” Just as children yearn to see their parents' faces, Moses, God's child, yearned to see God. But God's answer was, "You will not see my face, for no one will see me and live" (v. 20). That is why Jesus, the Son of God, became a man and is with us in order to show God. Philip also wanted to see God. Although Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him and have seen Him” (Jn.14:6-7), Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father, and that will be enough” (v. 8). Then Jesus said to Philip, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?” (v. 9) Look at John 1:18 – “No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.” The only begotten God, Jesus Christ, who is in the bosom of God the Father, appeared to reveal God the Father. The word “revealed” here means that He revealed all the hidden things clearly, in detail. Jesus, the only begotten Son, showed God the Father. Therefore, the more we know Jesus, the more we know Heavenly Father. Knowing Jesus is knowing Heavenly Father, but not knowing Jesus is not knowing Heavenly Father. Look at John 8:19 – “So they were saying to Him, ‘Where is Your Father?’ Jesus answered, ‘You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also.’” In this way, the first purpose of the Son God the Word, Jesus Christ, who became flesh (man) and dwells among us is to let us know and show us God the Father.
- It is to get to know us.
He is the God who created us, so how could an all-knowing God not know us? He knows us very well. Nevertheless, God the Son became a human being to know us. Here, “to know” means to know experientially, not just knowledge. Look at 2 Corinthians 5:21 – “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” The saying that Jesus Christ did not even know sin means that He did not know sin experientially. Jesus never sinned. Jesus is without sin. In a word, Jesus is a righteous God. The purpose of God making Jesus Christ, who knew no sin, to be sin is to justify us. Look at Hebrews 2:9 – “But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.” Jesus Christ, who is God, suffered death for us and actually tasted death for us. The teaching of the Bible tells us not to know just by knowledge, but to taste it. Look at Psalms 38:8 – “Taste and see that the Lord is good. ….” Look at 1 Peter 2:3 – “if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.” We must taste God's goodness and the Lord's lovingkindness. The more we taste it, the more we can't help but yearn for it. When we believe in the truth that God the Son, the Word, became human in order to know us experientially, we must also experientially know Jesus. The second purpose of the Word, the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who became a man and dwells among us, is to know us..
- It's to help us.
God the Son, who is the Word, becomes a man and knows even the suffering of death, so He can sympathize with us. Look at Hebrews 4:15 – “For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.” Also, Jesus is able to help us sufficiently. Look at Hebrews 2:18 – “For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.”
The first purpose for God the Son, the Word, to become flesh (man) is to dwell among us (Jn. 1:14). The purpose of God the Son dwelling among us is to show God to us, to know us, and to help us. I hope and pray that we all come to know more and more of God Immanuel, who is with us forever, not only through knowledge but also more and more experientially, so that as we know Heavenly Father more and more, we can firmly believe that God the Son, who knows us best, sympathizes with our weaknesses, will certainly help us. Also, I hope and pray that all of us can walk with God Immanuel by faith and taste eternal life on this earth partially.