The Incarnation of the Word

     The word incarnation means the embodiment of God.  It means an appearance in human or bodily form.  It means to be endowed with a human body.  Although the word incarnation is not to be found in the Scriptures, the doctrine and teaching of the incarnation of God in the flesh, certainly is found in scripture.   As the Bible never uses the word supernatural, yet is filled with supernatural accounts, so it clearly teaches the incarnation of God while never using the word.  We will use the word incarnation to encapsulate one of the Bibles most profound and mysterious teachings.

     When we study  the reproduction process of living things, then we understand that the process as a rule begins from a seed.  This is no less the case with the God-Man.  In Genesis chapter 3, at the entrance of sin in humanity, we see revealed God promising  His own seed or child to remedy the sin problem.  God in Genesis promised to bring in hatred of sin, deliverance from sin, and the destruction of sin, through His seed.  And as  promised, the Bible in Gal 4:4 declares, "when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son".  God clothed God, or we may say, the Father by His creative power dressed Divinity with humanity, or, we may say as does John chapter 1, "God made the Word, who was God, flesh".

     Beloved, in order to partially grasp the magnitude of the incarnation, we must understand that in the seed in spirit, was all the Godhead bodily.  Also in the seed, that is in his flesh, was not just one man, but all humanity.  The seed was, or we may say, in the seed was, all of God- Father, Son and Holy Spirit; and in the seed was all human beings ever conceived.  It took creative power and infinite foreknowledge to accomplish this.  The Bible says of Christ "In Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily".  Col 2:9.  Holy record declares in Heb 1:3 the Son or the seed is the "express image" of His Father's person.  Because the seed or Christ, being the epitome or personification of all that the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are in spirit, humanity, that is all humanity for all times, must be gathered together in one Body and place on him.  Eph. 11:10  words it so very clearly, "In the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth: even in Him."   Creation power is necessary and at work here, as Eph 2:10 declares "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus."

     Remember Beloved, Christ had no earthly Father.  The Father of spirits was His Father.  He was the son or seed of God alone, yet, "God laid on  him the iniquity of us all"  Isa 53:6.  And we are not talking figuratively here, we are talking of  a literal reality.  What we are in the flesh, Christ was made.  All that all humanity is in the flesh Christ was made literally.  That is how and why IICor 5;21 says "God hath made him to be sin for us".  Moreover the word says of all humanity "we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones", and then it declares, "This is a great mystery." Though  few will accept salvation, all could be saved!  Though only the church will be saved, all humanity have equal opportunity to be redeemed - Christ was made all humanity.  Christ lived and died for all humanity.

     The Bible declares that Christ bore the sin of the whole world.  Christ died for all sinners of all times.  And the inspired word declares that Christ "his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree."  1 Pet 2:24.  Also in Heb. 9:26-28 the scriptures declare concerning Jesus, "but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself."  There is but one way Jesus could have put away sin by the sacrifice of himself, and that way is He was made to be sin for us, and bore our sins in his own body as the scriptures teach.  Verse 29 of Heb chapter 9 says concerning Jesus that, "Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation". The gospel truth is, the seed or Christ appear the first time with sin, not his own, but the accumulated sin of the world was imparted in him in the incarnation.  You see if you or I were in Christ He had to have sin in His body, for we without a doubt are sinful.  Further. it is the only way Christ could justly pay for sin and at the same time condemn sin in the flesh, He had to be made sin.

     So Beloved in Heb 10:5 when Christ in communion with His Father declared, "a body has thou prepared me" Christ was speaking of a creative act of God in preparing one body in which He created all humanity as residents.  That is how and why in I Cor 15:45-49 the word refers to Christ as the "last or second Adam."  In the body of Adam the first man created was literally all humanity.  So when Adam fell all humanity fell in him.  So it is with the last or second Adam who is the Lord from heaven.  In His body, by the creative power of God, was created all humanity, thus when He lived, died to pay the price, and rose again, all humanity literally lived, died, and rose again in Him.  God does personally justify mankind, and further,   in perfect harmony with His just character, God justifies mankind justly.

     In conclusion the incarnation is, God the Father taking the second member of the Godhead - His living Word, who was infinite, eternal, omnipotent, omniscience and omnipresent, and veiling or clothing Him with the essence and sum of every member of humanity for all times, and combining this combination in the form of a seed.  This is the "seed of God."  " That in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ both which are in heaven, and which are on earth, even in Him."  Eph 1:10.  It was this seed that was placed in the womb of the virgin Mary.  For the Bible records in Matt 1:18-20, " Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise; When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost" "for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost" And again in Luke 1:35 we find, "The angel answered and said unto Mary, the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee; therefore that Holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."  And lastly in John chapter 1:1-14 we see,  "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  The same was in the beginning with God.  All things were made by him and without him was not anything made that was made.  In Him was life, and the life was the light of man and the Word was made 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 they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is God with us."  Matt 1:23.