THE SON BECAME FLESH - PART 3

THURSDAY 14 MARCH 2024

The Bible says, "And that's the way it was with us before Christ came. We were like children; we were slaves to the basic spiritual principles of this world. But when the right time came, God sent His Son, born of a woman, subject to the law" (Galatians 3:3-4 NLT).

In other words, all were liable to the imperfections which come with the law, until the Son of God became flesh, thereby making us heirs of salvation by His sacrificial death, which was perfect - in accordance with God's eternal purpose and faithfulness.

Reference: Hebrews 2:14 New Living Translation (NLT)

"Because God's children are human beings - made of flesh and blood - the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could He die, and only by dying could He break the power of the devil, who had the power of death."

Before the Son became flesh and blood, God's people as human beings, made of flesh and blood, were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which was yet to be revealed, but the wholesome truth is that at the fullness of time, the Son also became flesh and blood, in this very sense:

"Who, being in very nature of God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to His own advantage; rather, He made Himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!"

The key participial phrase here is: "And being found in appearance as a man." Indeed, He was born as a human being; so He became very human, made of flesh and blood, and was conditioned to function in a state of a humble position, denoting servanthood, held in low esteem, all which determined the absolute genuineness of His human nature.

The next line of our referenced Scripture states: "For only as a human being could He die..." That means, if He didn't manifest in "flesh and blood" appearance, He would never become a servant, let alone die. Got it? The book of Isaiah 53:3-4 says, "He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted" (NKJV). Did you also notice that God was doing this to His Son? Why? God's predestined or preordained people were held in custody under the law, locked up under the guardianship of imperfection (see also Galatians 3:23-29 NKJV).

Beloved, our faith walk began with that which God began with Christ on the cross. Only by dying could He break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. No other way to make it happen! It wasn't an easy task for Jesus as a human, which I mentioned in part 2. Zero wonder He prayed, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." Indeed, it wasn't easy, and God knowing this, prompted an angel from heaven to appear to Him and strengthen Him" (see Luke 22:42-43 NIV-UK).

What if Jesus acted on His will? Embracing His own "human will" would mean, creating a way of escape from the difficult sufferings ahead. So another important lesson to grasp from this Scripture is that by accepting to go along with God's perfect will, the Kingdom of God was obliged to strengthen Him amid heavy trial and sufferings ahead. Stay tuned for part 4. Shalom!

Scripture Reading - Matthew 7:21; John 4:34; Romans 12:2; 1 John 2:17.

Guided Prayer:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for the assurance of my salvation and justification by faith, plus the establishment of our intimate relationship, as a result of Christ's perfect sacrifice on the cross, in Jesus' Name, Amen!