The greatest event since creation began, took place on that day when God became MAN.
As we know deep within the core of our beings, the three Almighty Persons of the Triune Godhead, the Holy Trinity, are equal in power and wisdom. Each of Them is God and yet They are Three in One.
Some translations or versions of the Bible read that (Genesis 6:6) God repented that He had made man. I told the Lord I could not accept this and would never believe that God repented for anything. To repent means I’m sorry for something I did. God is perfect and has no need to be sorry for anything. The Amplified Bible uses the word REGRET and that I can accept. I can regret that something is necessary without repenting because I know it is necessary for the best. For me there was something missing and my conversation with God continued. I knew the Flood was an amputation to preserve the human race but God knows everything so I asked Him why He created something He knew He would have to destroy. Was it possible there was a lynch pin between the first wave of humanity and the second?
Enoch (Genesis 5:24) walked with God for 365 years and God translated him before the Flood. So what? Enoch was the essential key because he had a great grandson who would build an ark and with his family survive the Flood and replenish the earth. Now trace that line.
Noah – Shem – Abraham – Isaac – Jacob – Judah – Boaz – David – Nathan – the virgin Mary. W O W! I was thrilled as I considered the manifold wisdom of God and His plan through all generations – leading up to a miracle in Bethlehem. Now, I’m at the empty tomb
– Jesus has comforted Mary Magdalene and He is going to Heaven - - for the first time!
The MAN Christ Jesus had never been in Heaven before.
I was stunned by this thought and very concerned that I do not tread into danger but trust the Holy Spirit to enlighten, teach and guide me.
When we go back to before the foundation of the world, more than 4 1/2 billion years and overhear the Persons of the Holy Trinity planning for the Lamb Who would be slain, Jesus did not exist at that time.
Consider with me some of the things Scripture says about Him and His advent.
Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15) “God will raise up a Prophet like me from among your brethren”. To be like Moses and His Jewish brethren, He would have to be human.
Isaiah 9:6 – Unto us a Child is born, a Son is given
John 3:16 – God gave His only begotten Son. To beget is to cause something to exist. No Person of the Triune Godhead was ever created but the HUMANITY of Jesus was created by God.
Luke 1:31 – You shall call this new-born Baby, JESUS
This baby was created by God in the same way he created you and me – but with 2 major differences. Just once, and only once, God removed the glove of nature and planted holy, sinless sperm in the borrowed womb of a virgin who loved and obeyed God. At the instant of conception Jesus arrived!. Jesus was here and lived out His human life on earth by living out the actual Life of His indwelling Father by the power of the Holy spirit. The Holy spirit was given to Him without measure because He was yielded to God without measure.
Veiled in Flesh the Godhead see,
Hail the incarnate Deity
JESUS never stopped being GOD
But
He DID START being MAN
John 1:1 – The Word was God
John 1:14 –The WORD was made FLESH and lived among us.
How did all this happen? (Philippians 2:6-8) The Almighty Second Person of the Trinity chose to temporarily lay aside every attribute of Deity, which was incompatible with humanity. He clothed Himself in humanity -- was made Flesh so that He could die for undeserving, guilty, ungrateful, arrogant rebels.
Remember Adam? God breathed into Adam, and he became alive by the very breath of God (Genesis 2:7). A wonderful sinless human filled with incarnate Deity. Adam wore no clothes but was never naked. He was clothed with the shining splendour of God’s radiance. By one quick choice of his free will Adam threw it all away – the glory of God departed and death reigned over all the earth’s creatures. Now Adam and Eve were clothed in the skins of an animal. An animal which God sacrificed to make a blood atonement for their sin. Adam’s choice created a huge gap between God and human, a gap, which all the best efforts of humans could never bridge. Is there any hope? What do we need?
We need a mediator – One Who is like us but not damaged by personal sin. He would have to be like us in order to represent us. (1 Timothy 2:5) There is one Mediator between God and man, the MAN Christ Jesus. How did He mediate?
Now we come to the reason, the necessity and the purpose and mystery of His Humanity. HE CAME TO DIE.
The second Adam took our sin, suffered our just punishment and triumphed over sin and death and hell. (Philippians 2:9) God has highly exalted Him and given Him a Name above every name. This confirms that all Jesus accomplished was the victory of the MAN Christ Jesus. God could not exalt God – He couldn’t get any higher.
After His resurrection Jesus took up again all the attributes of His eternal Deity and yet He still wears His human glorified Body. Forever, we’ve got a MAN in Heaven Who opened the Kingdom to us. We can enter into the very LIFE of God now and in the future enter the home of God as our permanent residence.
The mob at Calvary screamed, “We will not have THIS MAN to rule over us!” Do we ever say that in a particular habit or choice? When I ponder and probe into the mystery of God’s love – all He did, the lengths He went to and then I consider what we earth people did and still do: Despise God’s goodness and use His holy Name for cursing, flagrantly, boastfully disobey His commands, blame God for everything wrong in the world (which our sin caused) I think there is an overwhelming depth to God’s love and grace which I have yet to fully discover. I wish I had words to describe the wordless swelling of my heart.
Jesus loves me, this I know
For the Bible tells me so,
Jesus loves me, He Who died
Heaven’s gate to open wide.
Rockets may soar to far away reaches
Men may arrive at the strangest of beaches
But the greatest event since creation began
Took place on that day when God became MAN.
No wonder the furious wrath of God will be poured out on all those who reject His beloved Son.
Holy art Thou, O Lord, just and righteous in all Your judgments.
Holy Spirit, give me a burning heart of love for Jesus