To Be Known

Good morning, folks. I feel slightly inadequate this morning because this is an incredible set

of verses that have an enormous amount of truth in them. And as I said, when we spoke at the

1 John upstairs, I said you could spend a week off Bible teaching meetings and you probably

wouldn't get through the section that we have. And I think it's equally can be said of the verses

that we have before us today. There is so much in the verses that we have today that we are just

going to scratch the surface ever so slightly and hopefully we can just see something of God's

glory in there. Christmas is undoubtedly a wonderful time of year.

You know, over the last, we had a weekend in Vienna and over the last few weeks we've been in and

around Edinburgh and we've seen the twinkling lights and the Christmas markets and the Christmas

jumpers and you think of all the festive goodies that you've eaten, the lively parties that you

might have been to and the joy of exchanging presents. Have you done that already or have

you still to do that? These things all contribute towards the magic of Christmas. And yet, amidst

all that excitement and activity, it's easy to lose sight of the slightly deeper meaning and the

significance of Christmas. Last week, the children offered us that scene in the nativity sketch that

they put on, a poignant reminder that at the heart of Christmas, there is a baby named Jesus.

You know, he is the centre of it all. And as we were imagining in that sketch, if Christmas was a

photograph, then rather than being tucked at the back somewhere in a corner, Jesus is and should be

the front and centre. I don't think it's a new idea to anybody here today. You know, even the simplest

children's Christmas carols that we sing remind us that Jesus came into this world as a baby.

And as we sing the more traditional carols, I think there's further truth that we find that help us just

to consider his birth and what it means for the Son of God to be found as a baby in a manger.

I was smiling as we sung that first song there. I hadn't known the words of the hymns that we're going

to sing this morning. But as we sung through that, I thought that is our message this morning. It is

exactly what is found in these five verses. And not that you might be able to remember that at the

minute, but if you go home and you Google the words of that first hymn there, you'll just be,

you'll smile. You'll get a bit excited. I was sitting on the bench there and I'm quite excited because

even in the breaking of bread that we had upstairs first, the section that Ian read and the way that

this ties together is just incredible. But when you think of the Christmas story, what do you see?

Is it just a serene image of Jesus lying in a manger, surrounded by shepherds and wise men and animals?

You know, that classic, not like Peter's picture with the mistakes, but that classic scene,

which is beautiful and heartwarming. Is that the full story? Is that all that we consider?

Well, John invites us to just look at Christmas in a wider context. I know we haven't necessarily read

it in these four, five verses, but John invites us to look beyond the message and to reflect on what

arguably is the most extraordinary event in human history. In that first verse that we read in verse 14,

we encounter a profound truth that can transform our understanding of Christmas.

And as I've said, as we explore these verses, there is so much in there that we could speak for a week,

but I promise I won't keep you here until the Christmas Eve service on the 24th. John 1.14 starts

like this. It says,

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. This, as I said, is a statement that just

encapsulates the very heart of Christmas. Perhaps you've even seen those words on a card.

Not that many of us send that many cards anymore on a mantelpiece. And again,

we don't have the abundance of mantelpieces anymore, or you've sung them in a carol. Have you really

considered what these words mean? Well, I think this morning we're just going to spend a few minutes

just thinking about that. What does it mean for the Word to become flesh? Craig, a couple of weeks ago,

spoke to us about this. And in the opening verses, in verse 1, John identifies the Word as Jesus.

It said that he existed in the beginning, he was with God, and he was God. Now, I don't tend to be

technical this morning because I don't know any Greek or Hebrew, but we are going to think about a

couple of words this morning because there's a rich meaning in the words that are used. This word,

this word, the word, and you've probably heard this. I'm not going to tell you something that you

haven't heard before, but most of you heard that word logos, which is word, is the word.

That's the Greek word. To a Greek audience, it was this principle of divine reasoning or creative order.

You know, something to the Greeks that was abstract and profound, you know, something that existed

beyond the created world. And to a Jewish audience, it would symbolise God's creative power. You know,

recall Genesis chapter 1, where God spoke creation into being. So for the world at that time, both for

Genesis 1 · chapter mention

the Jews and the Greeks, this title referred to God as an eternal creator who existed outside of time

and space and matter. And also that he is the reason for the cosmic order, just the things that

govern the created world. Well, John takes both of these perspectives and he makes this astonishing claim

that this eternal divine word, the creator of all things became flesh.

You know, Jesus,

the eternal one, took on a human body and entered the world that he made.

He wasn't a distant God,

watching from afar. Instead, he becomes one of us, fully divine and yet fully man.

And I know over the years that we have thought about this when, in fact, even just that song that we sang

with the children when we were going through John previously, when we talked about God,

the Lord, he has been fully man and fully God.

And you might ask yourself at Christmas time, why did he do this?

Why would the eternal God

who

existed before time,

who created all things,

why would he

come

in human flesh

and be born as a baby in a manger?

Why would you do that?

Why would you,

if you think of God,

mighty and majestic

and full of

power,

why would you come

and

take on human flesh

and be found

in a manger?

Well, John tells us that.

It is to reveal God's glory.

And I think it's an incredible thing, you know,

just to reveal God's glory

and not only that,

but to fulfill

his redemptive plan

for

humanity.

John writes,

he dwelt

among us.

This is a phrase

that,

again,

both to the

audience of the day

would remember

that that dwelling,

he made his dwelling among us,

would be

a

throwback

to what happened

with the nation of Israel

as they journeyed

through the wilderness

to the promised land.

The Greek word for this,

dwelling,

or dwelt among us,

is that he pitched his tent

or he tabernacled

amongst us.

And as soon as I say that word,

your mind goes back

to the Old Testament

and you see

the tabernacle there

in the wilderness.

You know,

we're transported

to that place

where God's presence

among his people

was in that

structure of

wood and fabric.

you know,

a sacred place

that the national Israel,

that went with

the national Israel

as they journeyed

through that land.

But,

God's presence

is no longer

confined

to a structure

of wood

and fabric

or stone,

you know,

when that was made

into a stone temple.

Instead,

when we come to

this little section here,

we find that

he lives amongst us

in the most

intimate way.

You know,

and that just means

the closeness of God.

We often say this,

that God came near.

But do we really appreciate

how near

God came to us?

Not only did he take on

human flesh,

but he lived amongst us

and

he experienced

everything that we experienced.

He experienced joy

and sorrow,

everything that,

weariness,

you know,

he walked alongside

as one of us.

You know,

this is the wonder

of the incarnation.

Just that,

what we mean by that

is that the eternal

son of God,

the one who created

all things,

would come

into this world,

not as a distant observer,

but as an active

participant.

Now,

consider this,

without a body,

it's more difficult

for us to

relate to God.

It's why the nation

of Israel

and the Old Testament

went astray

so often.

Because their view

of God

and the way

that they're related

to him

is different

to the way

that we see him

now.

You know,

our minds

can only really

think in the

frame of reference

of created things.

What we can touch,

what we see,

what we hear,

what we can smell.

By becoming

human,

Jesus

closes that

gap,

from being

that divine,

eternal spirit

to being something

that we can,

as we have sung,

something that we can

hold in our hands.

And he lived

a perfect life

in that body.

And he offered

that life

as a sacrifice

so that we might

be free

from the judgment

deserved

by our rebellion

against God.

You know,

that's why we,

that's why we

celebrate communion.

salvation.

The bread

and the wine

reminds us

of his body

that is given

for us

and the blood

that is shed

for our salvation.

Jesus took on flesh

so that he could

give that body up

for our redemption.

He had to take

on flesh

to be able

to do that.

And that is just

the most incredible

when you start

to really look

in that

and see it

and just

appreciate

what that means.

I mean,

I got excited

when I was studying

just,

you know,

this first 18 verses

as we've been going

through that

the last few weeks.

There is so much

truth in that.

In fact,

the whole Bible,

you find threads

that come from

the first chapter

here in John

that just run

through the whole Bible.

And that's why

at Christmas time,

we,

it doesn't matter

where you go

in the Bible,

you can find

a thread

that will link us

to Christmas.

But there's no other

section that I'd rather

speak about this morning

than just this

little section here.

You know,

a baby

that was born

in Bethlehem

that was destined

to grow up

and carry the weight

of sin,

of the world's sin

to the cross.

You know,

as he journeys

from that manger

to the cross,

it just underscores

the profound love

and God's commitment

to redeem

his people.

Well,

John goes on

to say,

and we have seen

his glory.

But what does

glory mean

in this context?

You know,

in the Old Testament,

God's glory

was often displayed

in incredible,

awe-inspiring ways.

You know,

you think about

the burning bush

or you think about

the thunderous display

with the cloud

and fire

on the Mount Sinai

with Moses.

Or the radiance.

We've thought about

the tabernacle already,

but off that radiance

that existed within.

In fact,

there was a curtain

that was hung there

because God's glory

was so radiant

that those who,

the curtain was there

to shield people

from that,

otherwise they would

not have survived.

The glory is the

manifestation

that is shown to us

in his majesty

and his power

and holiness

in the Old Testament.

In fact,

when we think about

Moses,

and I was reading

this recently,

when Moses encounters

God's glory,

when he comes down

that mountain,

his face,

and he didn't even

have the full revelation

of God's glory,

he only got a glimpse

of the back

as it passed through

as he was hidden

in that rock

and yet his face

shone so bright

that men were afraid.

In fact,

it tells us in the Old Testament

that Moses had to

veil his face

because it shone

that bright.

This is probably

one of the hardest words

to sometimes get

a head around.

What does the word

glory mean?

Well,

I had a quick look

in the dictionary

and there is so many

things that we can

think about here

but,

and again,

this is a word

that,

you know,

I struggle with English,

right,

but doxa,

which is the word

where we get doxology

and doxology

is just the liturgical

praise of God

but the doxa,

that is the Greek word

for glory

and you see in here

that it covers things

like the abundance

or the wealth

or the treasure

and if somebody

has that

then there is

honour

that is given

to them.

We see that

in the second point

there around

the dignity

and the honour

that is given

to somebody

as,

who we would like

to glorify.

You see there

that it refers

to the splendour

and the brightness

and the majesty

as we've seen

and we,

again,

just pull your mind

back to that

image in the temple

where that radiance

shone so brightly.

And then we come

to point four

in here

and there's

more than this,

it's just a little clip

that I took there

but we think about

the glorious moral attributes

and the infinite

perfections

of God.

It says this,

that Jesus is the brightness

of the Father's glory

in Hebrews chapter one.

You know,

these are just

the attributes

of someone

that invokes praise.

It's the manifestation

of these things

that we've just

thought about.

And sometimes we,

I mean,

I don't really

follow football

but I'm sure

there are some

football fans in here

and you might be called

a glory hunter.

Sometimes we speak

of something

in all its glory

and all its revealed

and everything

that is revealed

about that thing.

You see the full picture.

It's just a manifestation

of all of the

attributes of God.

But when we come

to

the Lord Jesus,

it's not necessarily

speaking about

these awe-inspiring,

majestic,

mighty

revelation

of God's glory.

It takes on

a much more personal,

profound dimension.

You know,

Jesus,

even though

he is majestic,

even though

he is all-powerful

as we see

when he calms

the wind and the waves,

what Jesus

reveals to us

about God

is his character

and his nature.

We go on to read

in our verses

that he was full

of grace and truth

and the witness,

the disciples

got to witness

his first hand

in his teachings,

in his miracles,

in his compassion,

the way that he

dealt with

people,

got to witness

it in his death

and his resurrection.

And each of these

scenes that we see,

especially in the Gospels,

just give us

a glimpse

of the nature

of God.

John describes

the glory

as the glory

of the only one,

of the one and only

son who came

from the Father.

You know,

Jesus is unique

in the fact

that he is

God's eternal

son,

fully divine

and fully man.

And through his life

he shows us

exactly what he's like.

I was thinking

about that verse

just that was

quoted in the

little dictionary

extract in

Hebrews chapter 1

Hebrews 1 · chapter mention

that says that

the son is the

radiance of the

glory,

of God's glory

and the exact

representation

of his being.

So when we see

Jesus,

everything that we

see about his

being

has just given

us a glimpse

of God's glory.

And remember,

just to try and

summarise that,

the one who was

eternal in spirit

and in a way

unrelatable

takes on

a human body

to become

relatable,

to show us

what God

is like.

And in everything

that you read

in the whole

of the Bible

that talks about

the Lord Jesus,

it just gives us

a glimpse

of who he is

and it gives us

a glimpse

of the glory

of God.

You know,

there are many

things that

show us

God's glory

and I think

the word is

used over

400 times.

It's actually

used a lot

more than that

but 400 times

roughly and

there's some

words that

would be very

closely linked

but some of

these will

come to mind

and I encourage

you over your

lunch today

or over the

next few days

just recall

some of these

because you'll

just get excited

when you start

to see

just this thread

that goes

through the

whole of

scripture.

Psalm 19

Psalms 19:1

verse 1

I'm sure

I don't really

need to ask

anybody to

see it

but the heavens

declare the

glory of God

and the sky

proclaims his

handiwork.

You come to

Isaiah chapter 6

Isaiah 6:3

verse 3

and it says

this

holy,

holy,

holy is the

Lord Almighty

the whole earth

is full of

his glory.

You come to

Romans chapter 1

Romans 1 · chapter mention

and it says

this

for what can be

known about God

is plain to them

because God

has shown it to

them.

For his

invisible

attributes

namely his

eternal power

and divine

nature has

been clearly

perceived ever

since the

creation of

the world

and the things

that have been

made.

So we see it

in creation

but we see it

in man.

We see it in

you and I.

Man was formed

as the highest

creatorial display

of God's glory

and in the

Bible it tells us

that man is the

glory of God.

God's glory of God

but it also

tells us in

Romans chapter 3

Romans 3:23

verse 23

that we've fallen

short of that

glory and we

aren't the

people who God

created us to

be.

When Jesus

comes in we see

that that glory

is re-established

and for all of

us who believe

in him

and we've been

thinking about

this last week

in the section

that Graham

covered

to all that

believe in

his name

who received

him

who believe

in his name

he gave the

right to

become the

children of

God

and in a

sense

a little bit

of that glory

has been

restored.

In fact

even just in

the gathering

today

it tells us

in scripture

that the glory

of God

is on display

because the

way that God

created us to

be

is displayed

here.

If you're a

believer

if you're a

Christian

if you're one

of God's

children

as we've

read just

in that

last verse

then we

display

God's

glory

and we

do it

in the

way that

we live

in the

ways that

we try

and emulate

the Lord

Jesus

and some

of that

has been

restored.

We're

reminded in

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4:6

4 verse 6

it says

this

for God

who let

light shine

out of

darkness

has shone

in our

hearts

to give

the light

of the

knowledge

of the

glory of

God

in the

face

of

Jesus

but we

have this

treasure

in jars

of clay

to show

that the

surpassing

power belongs

to God

and not

us

and that

is just a

little bit

of God's

glory that

comes through

us

but it's

just a

faint

picture

in comparison

to what we

see in

the Lord

Jesus.

When we

see the

Lord Jesus

we see

God

his life

his actions

his words

reflect the

heart of

the Father

God

and whether

that's

through

if we

just look

at the

miracles

through the

gospels

you know

whether that's

healing the

sick or

comforting the

broken hearted

or confronting

injustice

Jesus reveals

the very

nature

of God

in a ways

that we can

understand

and that we

can relate

to.

John concludes

this verse by

saying that

Jesus is full

of grace

and truth.

These two

qualities are

at the core

of who

God is

and what

is offered

through the

Lord Jesus.

You know

grace is

God's unmerited

favour to

us.

His love

and his

mercy is

freely given

despite our

rebellion

and our

unworthiness.

You know

I've already

quoted Romans

Romans 3:23

chapter 3

verse 23

and it says

this

we've all

sinned

and we've

all fallen

short of

that glory.

None of us

could ever

earn God's

favour

through our

own efforts

and yet

through Jesus

grace is

extended as

a gift.

His

sacrificial

death on

the cross

provides the

ultimate

expression of

this.

Offering

salvation to

all who

believe and

that is

something that

we come to

sometimes just

gloss over at

Christmas time.

But again

just to

summarise

a baby was

born in a

body in

order to

die and

the only way

that we

can be

offered

salvation

is in

the death

of the

Lord Jesus.

You know

grace means

that we

don't have

to strive

to earn

God's

approval.

It's not

about what

we do

but it's

about what

Christ has

done.

There's a

quote by

Martin Luther

and it

says this

the law

says do

this and

it's never

done.

Grace

says believe

this and

everything is

already done.

We're not

going to spend

a huge amount

of time on

that verse

that it

talks about

that the

law was

given through

Moses and

grace and

truth came

through the

Lord Jesus.

We're going

to focus on

this grace

and the

truth as

beautiful

attributes of

the Lord

Jesus that

is on

display.

Truth on

the other

hand is

the ultimate

reality of

who God

is.

In a

world that

is full of

confusion and

lies and

shifting values

grace and

love.

He reveals

God's plan

for humanity

and he

reveals the

path to a

relationship

with him.

Jesus is

the embodiment

of both grace

and truth as

we see there in

the end of

verse 16.

It meets us

in our

brokenness.

You know

grace offers

us forgiveness

and hope.

And truth

grounds us

guiding us

in this

world.

And I'm

sure you

know as

we often

say when

we meet

on a

Sunday

morning that

there is so

much conflict

and confusion

and chaos

in this

world.

And yet

when we

come here

and we

think about

the truth

it is

something

that grounds

us both

in our

thoughts and

in our

thinking and

in the way

that we

live.

Truth also

just reveals

to us

God's

love and

the purpose

that he

has for

all those

who believe

in him.

And then we

come on to

the last point

here.

The father

that has

been made

known.

So what

does all

this mean

as we

approach

Christmas?

You know

before I

share some

points,

in the

New Testament

when we

read about

God it

normally

refers to

God as

a father.

it's the

reason that

the Lord

Jesus came

in the

form that

he did.

And when

you start

to realise

just the

intricacy of

the whole

story you

realise how

glorious the

message of

the gospel

is.

Jesus came

in the

form of

a son

because that's

how he

wants us

to relate

to God

as a

father.

And in

the New

Testament

that's what

we see

right the way

through.

We see

it when

the disciples

asked the

Lord Jesus

to teach

us to pray

he says

father who

art in

heaven.

Paul in

all of his

letters

when he

prays he

prays to

God as

a father.

And the

Lord Jesus

has shown

us the

relationship

that we

can have

with God

as a

father in

his life

on earth.

But what

does it

mean when

we come

to Christmas

what does

this mean

to us?

What do

we take

from this?

Well first

of all it

reminds us

that there

is far

more to

this story

than just

a baby

in a

manger.

It's a

story of

God stepping

into the

world.

to rescue

us.

The eternal

word becomes

flesh so

that we

can know

God.

So that we

can experience

his love and

that we can

be transformed

by his

grace.

Secondly it

challenges us

to see Jesus

for who he

really is.

He's not just

a figure in a

nativity scene

or a character

in a Christmas

carol.

He is the

creator and

he's come to

be the

saviour.

He's the

embodiment of

God's

glory.

And if we

recognise that

truth it

should change

how we

approach

Christmas and

it should

change how

we approach

life.

It should

change how

we live

day to

day.

And finally

it calls us

to respond.

You know if

Jesus is full

of grace and

truth,

if he is

the revelation

of the

eternal God,

if he took

on a

body and

as the

words of

that carol

would say

born that

man no

more should

die, how

should we

respond to

him?

Will we

allow his

grace to

change our

lives?

And will

we build

our lives

on the

truth that

he reveals?

You know

Christmas time

it's often

because we

take a day

or two

off but

Christmas time

is a time

for reflection

and it's a

time for

renewal.

It's an

opportunity to

rediscover

as we've been

doing over the

last three

weeks in

these 18

verses to

rediscover

the heart

of the

season.

You know to

move beyond

just a

surface level

a few

carols and

a carol

service and

a few

Bible verses

on a

Christmas card

on the

mantelpiece.

And it

allows us to

just engage

with the

profound

truths that

we see

in this

section.

You know as

we celebrate

Christmas and

all the

busyness you

know we

just had a

conversation

just before

we started

and everybody

that you

talked to and

I'm sure that

Hazel and the

team that were

on the

welcome team

this morning

when they

shook their

hand and

said how

are they

then they

probably said

I'm busy.

Well Christmas

time is a

busy time but

let's not allow

that busyness to

overshadow and

distract us from

the wonder of

what we're

celebrating.

the word

becomes flesh

God

comes near

his glory is

revealed and

it's revealed in

a gentle way

that's full of

grace and

truth.

You know

whatever you are

in your

relationship to

God this

truth invites us

to draw near.

You know if

you already

believe then

it should fill

our hearts with

gratitude and it

should shape the

way that we

live our lives

and that is a

big challenge to

us because it

is so easy to

just live as

the people out

in the street

rushing about

our daily lives

doing all the

things that on

the surface

celebrates Christmas

the giving of

presents and the

kindness and all

the other festivities

that we

enjoy.

joy.

But if you're

uncertain about

Jesus

then what I

want you to do

is to take this

season as an

opportunity to

just explore his

love towards

you and the

magnitude of

what he has

done for you.

The God of

heaven the

eternal creator

coming in the

form of

mankind

taking on a

body so that

that body could

be put on a

tree and

across so that

you and I

could be

reconciled to

God.

You know this

Christmas may

it may be a

time for us

just to reflect

on that and

to allow the

revelation of

God through

Jesus to

illuminate our

hearts and our

minds.

Let's give

thanks for this

incredible gift

and allow this

grace and truth

to change our

lives in a way

that extends

far beyond the

25th or even

to the 6th when

you take your

Christmas tree

down but the

truth that we

see in the

Lord Jesus and

the glory that

we see of God

in him let that

shape our lives

as we go into

2025.

Let us pray.

Heavenly

Father we thank

you this morning

for your word

that reminds us

of who you

are.

A God who is

full of love,

a God who

before the world

began had a

wonderful plan of

salvation that

would come together

in the death of

your son.

And so our

Father at this

time of year we

thank you for

this opportunity

just to reflect on

the real meaning

of Christmas, on

the reason that

the Lord Jesus

came into this

world.

Our Father we

thank you that

in him we see

your amazing love

displayed.

and not only

your love

Father but the

full attributes

of your glory.

Father help us

to be inspired

by our thoughts

of him this

morning.

Help us to

praise and to

worship you for

all that we see

in your lovely

son.

And our

Father as we

spend time

together with

family and

friends may it

be that we can

encourage ourselves

and that we can

be encouraged

within ourselves

as we consider

him.

Father we thank

you for this

time that we

have spent

this morning.

We thank you

for all that

the Lord Jesus

means to us.

And we thank

you for we

ask his things

and we give

thanks in his

name.

Amen.

Amen.