WE HAVE SEEN THE GLORY OF THE LORD
Christmas, 2014
John 1:1-14 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all
things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In
him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the
darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. There came a man who was
sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify
concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself
was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that
gives light to every man was coming into the world. He was in the world,
and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize
him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the
right to become children of God--children born not of natural descent, nor of
human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. The Word became
flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of
the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Dear Christian Friends:
At Christmas time people like to drive around town and look at the
Christmas lights. They ‘oooh’ and ‘aaah’ at the lights on trees, on houses
and in the nativity scenes on front yards.
Our text is like those bright holiday lights but even better. Our text shines
with the most brilliant light of all. God’s Word shines with the light of Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, the world’s only Savior from sin.
We need this light because we live in a world darkened with sin.
Materialism of the holiday season, “political correctness” that wants to take
Christ out of Christmas, and our own gluttonous over-indulgence are just a
few things that darken our celebration of Christmas.
But God’s Word drives out this spiritual darkness with the light of Christ.
Looking at God’s Word about Christ we can say, WE HAVE SEEN THE
GLORY OF THE LORD.
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Jesus is glorious because Jesus is the one, true, eternal God together with
the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus was one with God, the Father, before
creation. Jesus was active with God, the Father, in creation. John describes
this. Calling Jesus, ‘The Word,” he says, “In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God
in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him
nothing was made that has been made.”
The baby lying in Bethlehem’s feeding trough is the almighty God
without beginning or end. The helpless little son of Mary is the everlasting
God who made the heavens and the earth. Therefore, Jesus has eternal glory.
Jesus has glory every day of the year, not just at the end of December.
Now, that doesn’t mean you should leave your Christmas decorations up
all year. However, it does mean that every Christian can say, “So what if the
world forgets about Christmas at 9:00 PM on December 25th. Jesus Christ is
my eternally glorious Savior every day of the year. Jesus Christ is still my
glorious God in the middle of summer just as he is at Christmas time. His
love shines with the glory of forgiveness and salvation every day every day
of the year and for all eternity.”
Yes, Jesus is true God who shines with eternal glory. Yet, even so, it’s still
not easy for you and me to live in the light of Jesus every day. That’s
because sinful ignorance has shrouded our hearts and minds. So, everything
about Jesus—from his dual nature to his work of salvation—everything
about Jesus is difficult for us to understand and appreciate. So Jesus has a
mysterious glory. In our text John describes how sinful ignorance fails to
recognize the true glory of Jesus.
This time calling Jesus, ‘the Light,’ John says, The true light that gives
light to every man was coming into the world. He was in the world, and
though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize
him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive
him.
When Jesus came into the world, people did not recognize his glory. The
Roman government did not issue an empire wide celebration. King Herod
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did not call the Jews back to faithful worship. The Pharisees did not rejoice.
Apart from a few shepherds nobody noticed that Jesus had arrived.
That set the pattern for Christ’s life on earth. Sure, at times, Jesus had large
crowds around him. But mostly Jesus lived a humble existence. He was a
poor, wandering rabbi. He died a shameful death. None of that looks very
glorious from a human perspective. So, Christ has a mysterious glory
because his glory is wrapped up in humility.
That’s why we must praise the Holy Spirit for blessing us with faith. Only
by faith can we solve the mystery and see the true glory of Christ. Only by
faith can we say, “That little baby born in a manger is the Lord of all
creation” Only by faith can we say, “That insignificant wandering preacher
is the all-knowing God who is truth and life for all humanity.” Only by faith
can we say, “That pathetic criminal hanging on the cross is the only hope for
humanity to escape hell and spend eternity in heaven.”
Thank God that he has given you this saving faith to recognize the
mysterious glory of Jesus. Thank God that you are also what our text says:
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave
the right to become children of God--children born not of natural
descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.
You are God’s children by faith in Christ. You have faith in Christ not by
your own thinking or choosing but your faith is a gift of God’s undeserved
love. And that brings us to the third type of glory our text describes—God’s
gracious glory. Our text says, The Word became flesh and made his
dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and
Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
God proved his grace when Jesus became a true human and lived a true
human life. And when Jesus came to earth, he wasn’t just pretending to be
human. He wasn’t just going through the motions. He was a real human.
He suffered real human pain. He endured real human temptation and sorrow.
To illustrate: Sometimes, on a big holiday, the TV news will show an
important person volunteering at a homeless shelter. The volunteer can be
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the mayor, the governor, or some sports star. These people are serving a
meal to the homeless people and wishing them a happy holiday.
That is noble, charitable work. But Jesus did so much more. When Jesus
came down to earth, he just didn’t show up for a few hours. Jesus didn’t just
come down from heaven, smile for the cameras, empty a bag of blessings,
and then quickly return to the comforts of paradise.
No, when Jesus came down to earth he became one of us. That’s a greater
sacrifice than we realize. After all, what big city mayor ever left his own
home and deliberately lived as a homeless person? What governor ever left
his governor’s mansion and lived in a poverty-stricken slum for the length of
his term in office? Well, Jesus did even more than that. Jesus left the
comfort and glory of his heavenly home. Jesus spent thirty-three years of
homelessness wandering in humble human existence that ended in a cruel
death. Jesus did that because of God’s grace, because of God’s love that sent
his Son to be our Savior.
That’s what Christmas is all about. Christmas is not a naïve notion of
everybody getting along. Christmas is not about getting as many presents as
possible. It’s not about stuffing yourself at a huge holiday feast. And
Christmas is not even about children and families.
No, Christmas is about God’s grace for a sinful world. It’s about God’s
grace for you. Christmas is about God becoming fully human to save you.
Christmas is about Jesus giving you the gift of his life to pay for all your
sins. Christmas is all about Jesus coming down to earth to give you a home
in the mansions of everlasting life in heavenly glory.
So, on this Christmas Day, gaze in wonder at the glory of the Lord. His
glory is more impressive than even the most spectacular display of Christmas
lights. His glory is eternal, mysterious and gracious. His glory is the glory
of love and salvation. May God bless your faith so that you marvel at that
glory of Jesus Christ today, tomorrow, and forever. AMEN.
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