Incarnation

Glen Scrivener – Incarnation: The True Turning Point

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Glen-321A-300x267Glen Scrivener is an evangelist with Revival Media.  He writes about evangelism and theology at ChristTheTruth.net and his evangelistic book, 321, comes out in the autumn: three-two-one.org  Glen visits us at Cor Deo for a day during each season of the programme to talk gospel together with us and it is always a real help.  As we continue this series to mark the release of Pleased to Dwell, here is Glen on the significance of the Incarnation for the Gospel and how we communicate it to others.

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The centre of evangelicalism is the believer’s “choice for God” – that’s Diarmaid MacCullogh’s opinion, Oxford’s Professor of Church History. When he made this claim during his “History of Christianity” on the BBC, I howled in protest, throwing pillows, shoes, the cat – anything – at the TV screen. Surely the professor has it backwards. It’s God’s choice for us, right? Surely it’s Jesus – the Chosen One – coming down, not us – the mighty decision makers – choosing upwards.

But as the episode unfolded I realised that it wasn’t the Professor who had gotten it backwards – it was evangelicalism. MacCullogh was just being honest. He was describing the movement as it is – not as it ought to be. And who can deny that, on the ground, the actual centre of gravity for global evangelicalism is “our choice for God”?

Think of sermons on Luke 15 and ask where our attention lies today. If an evangelist preaches a “message of salvation”, where will the emphasis be? More often than not, we focus on the prodigal in the pigsty. The sinner must make “a choice for God.” Compare this with the theology of the early church. Where would they see salvation in Luke 15? Primarily they would speak of Christ’s opening parable. God the Son is the Good Shepherd seeking out His lost sheep. Through His incarnation, He takes up our humanity, through His death He takes responsibility for our sins, through His exaltation He marches us – now perfected – home to the Father.

We must learn from the incarnation that salvation is a case of “God coming down.” Therefore, where is the turning point in our relationship with God? Is it our turn to God – praying the sinner’s prayer, for instance? Surely, more profoundly, it’s God’s turn to us in Jesus. Where is the renovation of our human nature? Is it our decision to get right with God? Surely it’s Christ’s decision to hoist us on His shoulders and carry us home. If this is true, what kind of evangelists ought we to be?

Darrell Bock – Lessons About the Incarnation from Luke 1-2

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darrell_bockToday’s guest post in the Incarnation Series is from Dr Darrell Bock, Senior Research Professor of New Testament at Dallas Theological Seminary.  As well as Darrell’s great commentaries on Luke and Acts that I have appreciated so much over the years, be sure to check out The Table – a weekly podcast on God, Christianity and Culture.  His latest works are the co-authored Truth in a Culture of Doubt (UK Link, USA Link), and Truth Matters (UK Link, USA Link).  I am grateful to Darrell for offering this succinct post on the Incarnation in Luke 1-2 as we mark the release of Pleased to Dwell.

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God keeps his word. In Luke 1-2, this is the theme that surrounds the incarnation. Jesus’ birth is shown to be part of a divine plan that involves both John the Baptist and Jesus. Jesus’ birth is shown to be superior to John. John is a prophet, while Jesus is Son of God. As hard as some of what the angel says to Mary is about how the child will be born, the refrain is that “Nothing will be impossible with God” (Luke 1:37).

Three hymns sing out the refrain that God keeps his Word. Mary’s hymn speaks about how God lifts up those who fear him in line with covenantal promises made to Abraham and his offspring (Luke 1:54-55). Zechariah’s hymn highlights God’s visitation to his people showing mercy to the fathers and keeping the covenant (Luke 1:68-75). Simeon’s hymn affirms that the psalmist’s eyes have seen the salvation of God when he sees the baby Jesus (Luke 2:30). The child is light, revelation to Gentiles and glory for Israel (Luke 2:32), for God has kept his word to deliver his people.

We tend to forget when we think about the incarnation that the arrival of Jesus is part of a plan God had and that he represents the keeping of promises and divine commitments made long ago. This is why Luke 1:45 says of Mary, “Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” John 1 calls Jesus the Word, but Luke 1-2 argues that in Jesus God kept his word. God is faithful. Underneath all that is the incarnation that comes from God stands God’s faithfulness to keep his pledge and to perform his word.

The coming of Jesus means God can be trusted to care for us for in Jesus’ coming that is exactly what God has done––just as he promised he would do. As God is trustworthy, all that is left for us is to trust his promise and live with hope.

John Hindley – Let the Wine Flow: The Incarnation in John 1-2

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Mail AttachmentToday’s post, by John Hindley, launches our Incarnation Series.  John is pastor of BroadGrace Church in rural Norfolk (England) – www.broadgrace.org.uk.  John authored the really helpful Serving Without Sinking (UK Link & USA Link) and has another title coming out next year.  He is an Acts 29 Europe church planter, is married to Flick and has three little ones.  I haven’t met John yet, but hope to soon as I hear good things about the Christ he has preached to student groups in this part of the country!  Pleased to Dwell finishes in John 1, so why not start there with this post from John Hindley?

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 ‘“Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.” This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.’ – John 2v10-11

From what John says, I estimate that Jesus made around 600 bottles of the finest wine as the first sign he did. The first miracle Jesus did was to save a wedding party from fizzling out. This comes after John has stressed the wonder of the incarnation. When you read John 1, the great introduction to the gospel climaxes in verse 14, ‘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’.

John is setting up his gospel to display the wonder of the eternal God, the Word, the One from the Father’s side becoming a man so that we might be drawn into the family of God; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. By the end of John 1v18 we are left amazed and wondering what such a God-man will do. Then John shows us Jesus gathering a ramshackle bunch of disciples, creating furious mayhem in the Temple, confusing a leading theologian, sitting in the dust by a Samaritan well, healing without consideration of religious custom and feeding hungry crowds. John lifts us to the heavens in his portrayal of Jesus in chapter 1, and then shows us an incarnate Christ who is very… human.

The miracle at Cana is perhaps the most strange. This first sign seems almost flippant. The issue is not a paralysed man or grieving widow, there is no demon confronted or sinner comforted. The issue is an embarrassing lack of wine at a party. Jesus response seems almost reckless. Verse 10 tells us people had already been drinking. Jesus seems more concerned that the party goes well than he does about the risk of drunkenness. This wedding points forward to his great marriage of his Bride on the cross and the coming wedding supper when he returns, as made clear by this being  the ‘third day’ in verse 1 and  not yet ‘his hour’ in verse 4.

But more simply, this Word made flesh is a God who wants to be with us. A God who wants to draw up a stool alongside us, pour us a drink and know us, love us and draw us to himself. I have not thought enough about the incarnation, but what I see shows me a God so good, so close, so loving and so generous that I want to think more, and know him more.