The One who spoke the entire universe into being made a decision to rough it. As the Second Person of the Trinity, the Son was 100% God. Then something absolutely crazy happened. Somehow, someway, He added to His 100% Godness. He took on 100% humanity too! That’s the new math. The new DIVINE math.
100% God+100% Man=100% Savior!
But the Son didn’t sit back and chill out after taking on His brand new humanity. He was about to make a road trip. He had mission. The Son packed up and headed to Earth. He headed into the very creation He shaped and formed. But when He left the lap of heaven’s luxury, He didn’t check into the Four Seasons or the Plaza. He “dwelt among us.”
Setting up Camp
John tells us that the Son of God went camping. The original text tells us us that He literally “tabernacled” (Gr.σκενοω/skeno’o) once He got to earth. In other words, Jesus set up camp and pitched a tent. The Message describes how Christ “moved into the neighborhood.” For the Second Person of the Big Three, His accommodations were just a bit less posh than the glorious palace He enjoyed back home in heaven.
Jesus pitches a tent. God is roughing it. And if you have any doubts about all that, remember where Jesus made His arrival. In a stinky old barn behind the Motel 6 in Bethlehem.
Eyewitness to Glory
At this point, John jumps into the story and tells us what he saw. “We have seen His glory.” Since we know Jesus’ buddy wasn’t hanging out with the shepherds when the angels lit up the sky in glory, that can’t be what he’s talking about.
Most likely, the apostle is talking about that crazy day Christ took him, his big brother Jim and their fishing buddy Pete mountain climbing. Once they arrived at the summit, something wild happened. Jesus started changing and glowing! Their Leader pulled back the curtains of heaven to let them know just who He really was.
Or John could be describing Jesus’ appearance after His resurrection. And their’s a chance that this is his way of summing up all of their experiences with the remarkable Rabbi/Carpenter from Galilean. His teaching exposed God’s glory. His miracles revealed God’s glory. His love disclosed God’s glory. John and the boys saw Jesus’ glory with their own eyes. They didn’t get this crazy stuff second hand.
The One and Only
John and the rest of the posse realized Jesus was more than Mary and Joe’s kid from Nazareth. He was the one and only Son of God. While Joe was a great dad, he was Jesus' adoptive father. He and his wife had other kids. But Christ was an only Child.
His Dad in heaven had just one Boy. Jesus was someone special. That’s the meaning behind the term we translate “only.” This is μονογενες/monogenes, which means unique, one of a kind, the one and only or the only one like it. Jesus is unique. He’s one of a kind. He’s the one and only. He’s the only one. There was and is NOBODY like Him. Ever.
It’s interesting to understand that the word “Son” isn’t there in the original Greek text. You can actually write this phrase in English as “the Unique of the Father.” The First Person of the Trinity had only one Son. There was and is no one else like Him in the history of the universe. Jesus, the one and only.
Grace and Truth
One of the things that makes Christ unique is the fact that no one who was so overflowing in goodness spoke so bluntly. Jesus was “full of grace and truth.” Everywhere He went, He opened up the fire hose of God’s blessing. Healing. Teaching. Loving. Caring.
But Christ also pulled no punches when it came to telling the truth about sin. Just ask the lady caught in adultery. Or the woman sitting by the well in Sychar. Or the religious bullies known as the Sanhedrin. He told them the truth. He made it perfectly clear that they needed a Savior. One way to understand John’s wording is that Jesus made the Good News REALLY good because the bad news is REALLY bad.
That’s what happens when you experience the one-of-a-kind Son of God.
100% God+100% Man=100% Savior!
No comments:
Post a Comment