Loving God, you came into our world in Jesus and continue to dwell with us even now.  Help us to be aware today of your presence and power, and make yourself known, not only to us, but through us; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

    How many of you who are here this morning are still waking up?  It seems that especially after New Year’s, people spend a lot of time recovering and saying things like, “You know, I really shouldn’t have stayed up that late,” or “I don’t think I should have eaten and drunk as much as I did.”  Some end up being sleepy for days, not quite ready to wake up and smell the coffee just yet.  However, in our gospel today we are being given an invitation to do just that – not necessarily wake up and smell the coffee, but wake up to the power and the abundance and the unbelievable love that has come into the world through Jesus.

    As quite often happens in the gospel of John, it is easy to get part way through today’s reading and go, “Huh?”, and wonder what you just read or heard.  John’s gospel often requires some deeper thought to comprehend what is being said, but when it all comes together, it is an amazing thing to behold.

    What we heard today is actually John’s version of the Christmas story, which begins in the very beginning with creation.  “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.... All things came into being through him” (Jn. 1:1, 3).  You might not catch it right away, but the Word is Jesus.  In his divine nature, he was there at creation.  However, his human nature did not begin until “the Word became flesh and lived among us” (Jn. 1:14).

    And so, we have the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, there at the very beginning, bringing forth creation and life and light.  Then we step into history with the ministry of John the Baptist, who came to point people to Jesus and to invite them to wake up and see the light.  In the gospel of John (a different John, by the way, than John the Baptist) we read, “He himself was not the light [meaning John the Baptist], but he came to testify to the light.  The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world” (Jn. 1:8-9).  So Jesus is not only the Word, but also the light of the world.

    And then we get to a sleepy part again.  Jesus, who was an integral part of the creation of the world, is in the world, but the world is asleep and does not know him.  Jesus, who was there all along as God adopted the people of Israel and made them his very own, shows up among his own people, and they do not recognize him or accept him.  They, too, are still asleep.  

    However, then we come to the beginning of the amazing part about those who awakened and recognized Jesus and received him and believed in him and saw his glory.  To these, Jesus “gave power to become children of God” (Jn. 1:12), poured out grace upon grace, and revealed to them the invisible God.  We, too, are invited today to wake up to the power and abundance and light and life that Jesus brought into the world and still brings to us.

    As we contemplate this wake-up call, there are two verses in particular that are worthy of some further reflection.  The first of these is verse 14: “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.”  We are talking here about incarnation - in the flesh - God become human.  If you were God, why would you choose this option?

    Seriously - think about this!  You have a world that is suffering under the effects of sin, with broken relationships all over the place, self-centred people, and people headed for death and destruction.  So - as God - what do you do about it?  I have a suspicion that a lot of us would be far less patient than God is and would just let the whole lot of them destroy themselves if they want to.  However, our God is not prepared to give up on us - on his precious creation.

    Over and over again, especially in the Old Testament, we hear this description of what God is like: “Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love” (Joel 2:13).  Our God is interested in the salvation of the world, and not in the destruction of the world.  And so, why take the unprecedented and incredibly risky action of the Word becoming flesh?

    A third century Christian explained it like this: Jesus became what we are, in order that we might become what he is.  In other words, we can become children of God and inheritors of eternal life through being united with Jesus.  It is also a plan that preserves our ability to make choices and that does not force anybody to be saved.  Jesus freely gave himself and submitted himself to what people chose to do to him, and we, too, are free to receive the salvation that he brings, or to reject it.  Really, it tells us so much about what our God is like that he would choose this means of salvation!

    However, one more thought to contemplate: Jesus is presented as “full of grace and truth,” and those in John’s community exclaim, “From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace” (Jn. 1:14, 16).  What a wonderful image of abundance!  Yet, at the same time, “grace” is one of those words that has multiple meanings, and many people are not quite sure what it means to receive “grace upon grace.”

    Well, here’s what we might be receiving: God’s unmerited and freely given love and favour; the power of the Holy Spirit renewing us, strengthening us, and making us holy; and the gifts of the Spirit like love, or joy or peace.  When we receive grace upon grace, we know that we are loved and saved and valued by God.  We know that we are forgiven and restored and renewed.  We know the depth and the breadth of God’s love for us, and are thankful for the incredible gift that Jesus is.

    When we are still sleepy, or even sleep walking, it is easy to miss some of these things.  However, once the real meaning of what we have heard sinks in, we do find ourselves awakening to the power and the abundance and the unbelievable love that has come into our world in Jesus.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.... [And] from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace (Jn. 1:14, 16).

Thanks be to God!  Amen.


Christmas 2(A)                                John 1:1-18
January 2, 2011
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison

© 2011 Lynne Hutchison  All Rights Reserved