The infinite became an infant
Advent is the season leading up to Christmas where many believers practice various traditions in order to prepare for the celebration of Jesus’ birth. Advent means “coming” or “arrival,” and has been a part of church history for hundreds of years, as we pause to take extra time to reflect on the incarnation where "God put on flesh and dwelt among us."
Every year, during the holiday season, it is so easy to think we know the story of Christmas, simply because we’ve heard all the details before. Yes, we know the real reason for the season is Jesus, right? But it becomes cliché. It becomes like any other story or like someone relaying sports game highlights to us. Shepherds, wise men, manger, no room in the inn, got it.
It’s not fresh or new like it was the first time that we heard it with childlike wonder. The story is ordinary to us.
That might be understandable, however, if we didn’t spend days, hours, and weeks focused on decorations, shopping lists, presents, and parties in preparation for December 25th.
In reality, this is not an ordinary story. It is extraordinary that the uncreated, everlasting God stepped into our world. And we have the possibility of missing out on the depth of this truth.
God put on flesh. He is a man, who is also fully God. And He is God, who is also fully a man.
This is the age-old story of God’s great plan of salvation. This is the incarnation. The infinite God became an infant. The Bible says that God dwells in eternity, and dwells in unapproachable light (1 Timothy 6:16, Isaiah 57:15). From His throne comes flashes of lightning, peals thunder, and voices (Revelation 4:5).
Yet, through this time of remembering the Christmas story, we can see that God put aside His glory to come in humility, subject Himself to a human frame, and become like us. So that He could ultimately die on the cross and save us.
So, I want to challenge you, read the story again. Pull out Luke 2 and any other Scripture you can find on the birth of Jesus.
Read it like it’s the first time you’ve heard it.
If Christmas is all about the arrival of Jesus, let us prepare to celebrate that.
Prepare for His coming.
Today’s blog is written by one of our Executive Leadership at GateCity, Beka Pendleton.
