And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

Many rulers have tried playing God, from Tutankhamen to Mao Tse Tung. How stunning is it that God decided to come to Earth as a human baby? This is called the incarnation, a Latin word meaning “in flesh.”  Did God really become human?  And, if so, did God cease to be God?

Jesus was fully God and fully human, though understanding that can be so confounding. The man Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5) was like us in every way, except that He did not sin. He was tempted, suffered, tired, and excited, just as we are. We can be certain that God knows exactly what we experience on Earth because God, in human form, experienced it too.

Jesus also contained the fullness of deity within Him (Colossians 2:9) while on Earth, which means He was still God. Jesus forgave sins, ultimately through giving up His life on the cross. Only God has the power to erase sins, so Jesus was practicing His deity while in human form.

The Apostle Paul described Jesus as fully God and fully human like this: “Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” (portions of Philippians 2:5-8). If you’re scratching your head, don’t worry. God’s incarnation is mysterious because it’s a bigger love than we can fathom.

 

Resource reading: John 1:1-12.