Return
to BibleToday Homepage
THE
INCARNATION
"The Logos Was Made Flesh
and Dwelt Among Us"--John 1:14--
The common thought in respect to our Lord's manifestation in the flesh is usually
expressed in the word incarnation.
This usual thought
we believe to be wholly incorrect, unscriptural. The Incarnation theory is that
our Lord's human body, which was born of Mary, was merely a clothing, a covering
for the spiritual body. The thought therefore attached to our Lord's earthly life,
according to this theory, is that our Lord during his earthly life was still a
spirit being, exactly as before, except that he used the flesh that was born of
Mary, and that was known as the man Christ Jesus, as his veil or medium of communication
with mankind, after the manner in which angels had appeared in human form in previous
times--to Abraham, to Manoah, to Lot, and others. (Gen. 18:1,2; 19:1; Judges 13:9-11,16)
Because of this incorrect premise, many confused and unscriptural ideas have been
evolved respecting the various incidents of our Lord's life and death: for instance,
this theory assumes that our Lord's weariness was not real, but feigned; because
he, as a spirit being, could know no weariness. The logic of this theory would
imply also that our Lord's prayers were feigned, because, says this theory, he
was God himself, and to pray would have been to pray to himself; hence it is argued
that his prayers were merely pro forma, to make an impression upon the disciples
and those who were about. The same theory is bound to suppose that our Lord's
death was merely an appearance of death, for they argue that Jesus was God the
Father, who being from everlasting to everlasting, cannot die: hence that the
apparent agony and cry, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" and the dying,
were merely pro forma, to make the impression upon the minds of those who heard
and saw. The logical argument of this theory, therefore, is that there was no
real death for man's sins, but merely an appearance of one, a spectacular effect,
a dramatic show, a Cinematographic representation, a deception produced for a
good purpose--to favorably influence the sympathies and sensibilities of mankind.
All of this is wrong, and violently in opposition to the truth on the subject,
as presented in the Word of God. The Scriptural declaration is not that our Lord
assumed a body
of
flesh as a covering for a spiritual body, as did the angels previously; but
that he actually laid aside, or, as the Greek renders it, "divested himself
of," his prehuman conditions, and actually took our nature, or, as our text
above declares, "the Logos was made flesh." There was no fraud, no sham, about
it: it was not that he merely appeared to humble himself, while really retaining
his glory and power: it was not that he seemed to become poor for our sakes,
yet actually remained rich in the possession of the higher spiritual nature
all the time: it was not that he merely put on the clothing, the appearance,
of a servant. No, but he actually became a man-- "the man Christ Jesus, who
gave himself a ransom for all." 1 Tim. 2:5
When we come to consider particularly the ransom feature of his work, that it
was absolutely necessary that he should be a man--neither more nor less than
a perfect man--because it was a man that sinned, man who was to be redeemed,
and the divine law required that a man's life should pay the redemption price
for a man's life. "As by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection
of the dead." (1 Cor. 15:21) But let no one misunderstand us by this to mean
that our Redeemer became a man such as we are, full of inherited imperfections
and blemishes. Quite to the contrary of this: the same word of God declares
that he was "holy, harmless, separate from sinners." Heb. 7:26,28; Luke 1:35
Click here to learn more.
Click here to send us your question on this subject and we will provide you a Bible answer.