Advent Reading for December 6, 2023 | “And the Word Became Flesh” from John 1:1-18

¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made. ⁴ In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

⁶ There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷ He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through Him. ⁸ He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

⁹ The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. ¹⁰ He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world did not know Him. ¹¹ He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him. ¹² But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God, ¹³ who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

¹⁴ And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. ¹⁵ (John bore witness about Him, and cried out, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because He was before me.’”) ¹⁶ For from His fullness we have all received grace upon grace. ¹⁷ For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. ¹⁸ No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, He has made Him known.

John 1:1-18

“And the Word Became Flesh”
by John Goldwater

The greatness of the incarnation (an important doctrine expressing that Jesus, the only begotten Son of the Father, is God made flesh, emphasizing that Jesus is fully God and fully man^[i])of JESUS Christ cannot be overstated. No one could ever rightly say, “Friend, you are putting too great an emphasis on this passage of Scripture.” John, the beloved apostle, writes concerning the greatest manifestation of all time and eternity when he writes, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with GOD, and the Word was GOD…And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:1, 14).  We who believe stand at the greatest vantage point, bask in the glory of the grace and truth of this majestic scene.

The Great GOD of creation, the GOD of the beginning, the GOD of light and life, has come to us. His light and life have touched all people, and all people owe their existence to their Creator. His light and life cannot be stopped or altered by darkness or rejection. Further, He has given witness to His to His arrival and His power to animate and regenerate mankind. There is no higher calling than “to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe” (John 1:7). There is no greater promise than to say, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become the children of GOD, those who believe in His name: who were born…of GOD” (John 1:12). This great privilege and great promise are by GOD’s gracious design.

The Word made flesh, the bringer of grace and truth, the only begotten of the Father, is clearly identified as JESUS Christ. This unmistakable identification of the Word with JESUS Christ leads to the greatest of confidence. Not even the Israelites, who followed Moses on dry ground through the Red Sea or stood at the foot of Mt Sinai as GOD’s voice boomed and the Mountain smoked, were afforded such confidence. JESUS is the Word that perfectly exegetes (analyzes/explains what something is by use of the Bible^[ii]) the Father!

Personally, in all my study of the Bible, I don’t know of a more significant passage of Scripture. John 1:1-18 is an Everest among the greatest peaks of GOD’s Word. We who hold our deepest love, loyalty, trust, and hope in JESUS Christ do so for good reason considering this passage. So, this season go big. Go big with your worship. Go big with your witness. And go big with your confidence in JESUS. The all-powerful GOD showed up and showed out, and He will never stop being Him, being the only one, He will never stop being JESUS Christ the Word made flesh!

           “Then sings my soul, my Savior GOD to Thee, how great Thou art!”^[iii]

Reflection Questions:

1. Reflecting on John 1:1-18, why is the incarnation of Jesus considered so important?
2. How does v. 14 calling Jesus the “Word made flesh” help us understand why the incarnation is so important?

"Worthy is the Lion, the Slain Lamb Who Lives" from Revelation 5 (The KING is Coming) – Refresh & Restore | A JustKeithHarris.com Podcast

📖 Revelation 5:1–14In this episode of The King is Coming, Keith Harris and Jamie Harrison continue into the throne room of heaven—and what unfolds in Revelation 5 is one of the most powerful and familiar scenes in all of Scripture. A scroll appears in the right hand of the One seated on the throne, sealed with seven seals. A mighty angel asks a question that echoes through heaven and earth: Who is worthy to open the scroll?At first, no one is found—and John weeps. But then everything changes. The Lion of the tribe of Judah has conquered… and when John turns, he sees not a lion, but a Lamb standing as though slain—and alive.Together, Keith and Jamie discuss:✔️ The significance of the sealed scroll and why only the rightful heir can open it✔️ The difference between ability and worthiness—and why no one but Jesus qualifies✔️ Why John hears “Lion” but sees a slain Lamb—and what that reveals about Christ✔️ How Jesus conquers not by force, but through His death and resurrection✔️ The connection to the Passover Lamb and the redemption of God’s people✔️ The overwhelming worship of heaven declaring Jesus alone is worthyThis chapter is the turning point: the Lamb who was slain is alive—and He alone is worthy to carry out God’s plan.“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” (Revelation 5:12)🔗 If you would like to see a written version of this podcast, complete with footnotes and cross-references, you can find it here.

1. "Worthy is the Lion, the Slain Lamb Who Lives" from Revelation 5 (The KING is Coming) 36:02
2. "Before the Throne of God Above" from Revelation 4 (The KING is Coming) 34:36
3. " Lukewarm Yet Not Without Hope: Jesus’s Letter to the Church at Laodicea" (The KING is Coming) 35:45
4. "Kept Through the Trial: Jesus's Letter to the Church at Philadelphia" (The KING is Coming) 35:40
5. Christ Has Come: The Promised King & His Gift of Love" (Advent 2025) 22:22

[i]            Lisa Woicik, “Incarnation,” ed. John D. Barry et al., The Lexham Bible Dictionary (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016).

[ii]           Douglas Stuart, “Exegesis,” ed. David Noel Freedman, The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 682.

[iii]           George Thomas Kurian, Nelson’s New Christian Dictionary: The Authoritative Resource on the Christian World (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2001).