Word Made Flesh: Reflections on the readings for "Christmas III"
(Free Version)- Isaiah 52:7-10; Hebrews 1:1-4; John 1:1-14
Artwork: “Ecco Homo,” watercolor on paper, by Rev. Dr. Chris Green +
The lectionary readings for Christmas Day do not change from year to year, but we are given readings for three services on that day. My reflections today focus on the readings for “Christmas III” the third of three services for Christmas Day. Last year, we looked at “Christmas I” and you can find those notes here. I also would always like to invite you to subscribe to the “Deep Dive,” which looks at these readings in-depth. While the first two services focus on the narrative of the Christmas story, these readings reflect on the reality of the Incarnation and its proclamation.
Because of what we celebrate at Christmas, because of Jesus, the world has changed! The Word became flesh, moved into the neighborhood. And things have gotten very messy, as they always do when God moves in and our curated lives are upended.
In our Isaiah reading (Isaiah 52:7-10), the messenger arrives with good news. The king is coming! The sentinels see the messenger’s stride, perhaps the smile on his face, and they know what is coming. He is beautiful! From the sentinels to the waiting city, the joy of the good news leads to singing. The Lord has comforted his people. But this news is not only for the messenger, the sentinels, and not only for the besieged city. This is good news of salvation for the nations, for the ends of the earth.
In our Hebrews reading (Hebrews 1:1-4), the author tells his recipients of a great change which has occurred. God has spoken before, of course, in a variety of ways in different times and places. But something has happened in Jesus (he will not be named until chapter 2, but everyone knows about whom the author speaks). Rather than glimpses of God, we now hear his voice in his Son, his exact imprint: his beauty and character in-person. There is nothing like Him: not even the angels or anything else to which we would ascribe transcendence. This is God’s true word, once and for all.
John begins his gospel (John 1:1-14) speaking about Jesus, the Word made flesh. Like with our Hebrews reading, we hear that He was there in the beginning in God. John tells us that everything has come into being through him. We hear themes of light and darkness; we hear of John the Baptist, the witness to the light. And we hear of the resistance, because anytime light shines in the darkness there is resistance.
What are the implications of such a thing? We so often fail to see it. We believe in the Word of God. We believe in Jesus. We believe in Christianity; but we act as if the belief is where it ends. Our logos is much like the Greeks. God is real, but he’s far away, flighty.
Many of the narratives that dominate our culture point us this way. We are led to believe that faith is a mere personal experience. Yes, God is close, but the light only shines in my heart. A “Word of God” like this never goes as far as to impact anything besides me, let alone social structures of our world. Racism, poverty, systems of oppression, we are told that these things are not touched by the gospel. That’s something else. We are content to believe that there are parts of the human life and soul that are not really touched by the Word made flesh. But this rejects the truth of the God who has drawn near.
He is close. He is not distant or abstract. Yes, he is beyond our understanding, but he has made himself known to us, taking the ultimate action of drawing close. If he is close, that means that everything is different.
God’s drawing near is good news, but also judgment. When you get to know him, places in your life will start to itch. You know when you get a cut or something and it starts to heal and it itches? That means it’s healing. You know when you run for the first time in a long time and your legs itch? It’s because capillaries are opening in order to get blood to right places. When you follow after Jesus, the parts of your life that have not received oxygen in a long time will start to itch. Sometimes they will more than itch. Following Jesus is painful as it means demolishing the other structures which prop up our lives. You will need to make some changes. But it means that healing has come.
This good news changes our posture towards our neighbors. Our jobs, schools, neighborhoods, and cities, are all seen differently when we know that God is near to us and in us.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer prayed the following prayer from a Nazi prison cell.
“In me there is darkness,
But with You there is light;
I am lonely, but You do not leave me;
I am feeble in heart, but with You there is help;
I am restless, but with You there is peace.
In me there is bitterness, but with You there is patience;
I do not understand Your ways,
But You know the way for me.”
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer 1
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “Prayer for Fellow Prisoners,” Letters and Papers from Prison, (New York: Touchstone, 1953).