Today will wrap up our advent study as we turn our hearts and minds to the blessing of the Christmas season. God took on flesh and dwelt among us, to save us, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).

I want to abide in reflection, with brief examples throughout scripture, of when God’s plan proved not only superior to man’s, but was far more powerful than man could have ever conceived.

In the garden, when Adam and Eve stood cowering, hiding, under hand hewn fig coverings Jesus provided a sin offering to cover their shame. Man’s plan to conceal his sin and shame couldn’t have fathomed that the God walking in the garden would be the same incarnate God that would be born with a mission to provide a once and for all offering for the sin of mankind.

Mary, full of faith and belief in her son as the Messiah, planned for him to fix the problem of the bridegroom’s shortage of wine. She couldn’t have fathomed that the picture of celebration at the miracle of turning water to wine will one day be reflected in the glory of the Messianic kingdom, where we will celebrate His victory, and worship Him as King of the earth, ruling and reigning in perfect justice.

Herod, at the knowledge of Jesus’ birth planned to use the wisemen as caveats of a plan to rid the earth of this newborn King. God used Herod’s wickedness to fulfill the prophecy that, “ When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son (Hosea 11:1)” and to demonstrate his provision by warning Joseph in a dream to flee Bethlehem. It’s likely that the gifts given to Mary and Joseph by the wise men are how they afforded to live in Egypt during the years between Herod’s rage and his death.

There are countless other examples in scripture that demonstrate God’s goodness, and love, but this Christmas season please remember that God’s grace is always sufficient, His mercies are new every morning, His plan and provision for your life began before the foundations of the earth were laid and extend beyond the plot point set marking the end of your life.

If you haven’t trusted in Jesus as your savior, don’t delay. This Christmas season the greatest gift you could receive is salvation by grace, through faith, in the son of God, who loved you, and gave His life for you.

When Jesus was born, there were no trumpets or fanfare. There were no armed guards protecting the route to His nursery. There were no silk sheets to wrap him in. His mother was not a queen, and his father wasn’t royalty. What scripture does make clear, however, is that His birth satisfied prophecy and aligned Jesus with the will of the Father to act as the atonement of our behalf.

Jesus’ lineage is broken down by the Church of the Great God and explained, “The genealogy in Matthew 1 is clearly that of Joseph, Mary’s husband. Matthew records it for legal purposes. He is writing to prove to the Jews that Jesus is the Messiah, and the Jews’ custom in keeping records is to trace descent through the father. Legally, the Jews of Jesus’ day looked on Jesus as a son of Joseph (John 6:42). Also, Joseph’s lineage is given to emphasize the fact that Jesus had been born of a virgin. Because of a curse that God placed on one of Joseph’s ancestors, Jesus could never sit upon the throne of David if Joseph had been His natural father.

Jechonias (Matthew 1:11-12), called Coniah in Jeremiah 22:24-30, was so evil God cursed him and his descendants, saying, “Write this man down as childless, . . . for none of his descendants shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling anymore in Judah” (verse 30). Jeconiah, as his name is spelled in the Old Testament, had children (I Chronicles 3:17), but he was childless insofar as none of his descendants ruled as king over Judah.

How, then, could Jesus be a descendant of David and qualify to sit on the throne? Enter the genealogy in Luke 3, which is Mary’s. According to Jewish usage, Mary’s ancestry is given in her husband’s name. The original Greek merely says Joseph was “of Heli” or Eli (verse 23). In fact, since Joseph’s father is said to be Jacob in Matthew 1:16, Heli is most probably Mary’s father. Joseph, then, is his son-in-law.

Unlike Joseph’s lineage, there was no block in Mary’s genealogy to Jesus sitting on the throne of David. Mary’s descent from David comes through his son Nathan, not Solomon or one of David’s other children (Luke 3:31). To fulfill His promise to establish David’s throne forever, God honored Nathan by making him the ancestor of the promised King who would sit on David’s throne throughout eternity (Luke 1:31-33).

But how could Mary transmit David’s royal inheritance—the right to the throne—to her Son, since all inheritances had to pass through the male line? According to Israel’s law, when a daughter is the only heir, she can inherit her father’s possessions and rights if she marries within her own tribe (Numbers 27:1-8; 36:6-8). There is no record that Mary had any brothers to inherit her father’s possessions and rights. Thus, Joseph became Heli’s heir by marriage to Mary, inheriting the right to rule on David’s throne, even over Judah. This right then passed on to Jesus.

Both genealogies had to be recorded to establish Christ’s right to rule on David’s throne. Joseph’s genealogy shows that Christ was a legal descendant of Jeconiah and thus legally could not sit on the throne of David in the nation Judah by inheriting the right solely through Joseph.

Further, the genealogies prove the virgin birth: The curse on Jeconiah’s line would have passed on to Christ if He were Joseph’s natural son, but He was not—He was the Son of God the Father, begotten by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus was Mary’s son descended from Nathan. Jesus can inherit rule over Judah because of Mary’s marriage to Joseph, whose genealogy shows he was Heli’s son-in-law.

God’s plan and purpose for Jesus’ birth included all of the heritage of Mary, his mother, and Joseph her husband. As seen in scripture neither Mary nor Joseph led sinless lives, their ancestors didn’t lead sinless lives. Jesus, God’s perfect, sinless son was born into the lowliest of states, among sinners, and all of this was according to God’s plan. Though, he wasn’t regarded by the world as the worthy and mighty king that He is, He was regarded by Heaven as such. Scripture tells us that a host of angels announced His birth to the shepherds who then came to worship Him. Later, in Jesus’ life when He was baptized by John, “the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, ‘You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased’ (Luke 3:22).” While Jesus’ beginnings were certainly humble, His rule and reign are certainly worthy to be praised. John writes in the book of Revelation (5:13) that, “every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: ‘Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever!”

The week before Jesus’ birth Mary and Joseph were traveling to Bethlehem from Nazareth. “And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city. Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the City of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn (Luke 2:1-7.).” God, born in a stable, wrapped in rough cloth, and laid in a feeding trough had come to save the world from sin.

It is fitting that Jesus turns water into wine for His first sign as Messiah. The signs are intended to demonstrate Him as Messiah and the disciples knew that the miracle had been performed by Him, and they believed in Him (John 2:11-12). This sign symbolizes the joy provided to believers by Messiah’s victory over death, the subsequent penance made for sin on our behalf, through the joy the wedding party experienced at the arrival of good wine. And it also pictures the first event that scripture details will take place once the Millennial Kingdom, Christ’s thousand year reign on earth, is ushered in.

In order to better understand the timeline of events we have to turn to scripture to understand what God has in store. Biblically, at an unknown time, the church will be raptured (1 Cor. 15:22), ushering in the time of tribulation (Matthew 24: 21-22), followed by Christ’s victory (Isaiah 63:1), and the ushering in of the millennial kingdom. Isaiah writes in 25:6-8, “and in this mountain The LORD will make for all people A feast of choice pieces, A feast of wines on the lees, Of fat things full of marrow, Of well-refined wines on the lees. 7. And He will destroy on this mountain The surface of the covering cast over all people, And the veil that is spread over all nations. 8. He will swallow up death forever, And the LORD GOD will wipe away tears from all faces; The rebuke of His people He will take away from all the earth; For the LORD has spoken.”

The wedding feast in Isaiah prophetically pictures the coming unity and reconciliation that we will one day experience as a result of Christ’s death and resurrection, the payment for sin made on our behalf. This transaction was agreed upon before the foundations of the earth were laid. John writes in Revelation, “all who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (13:8). John MacArthur comments on this verse, “The Lord Jesus who died to purchase the salvation of those whom God had chosen was fulfilling an eternal plan. According to God’s eternal, electing purpose before creation, the death of Christ seals the redemption of the elect forever. By accepting salvation in Christ your seat at the wedding feast of the Lamb is secure.

When Jesus’ first miracle at the wedding offers joy and celebration for the wedding guests and hosts it is a picture of the joy and celebration that will one day take place, as Isaiah prophetically describes. The birth of Christ was the activation of a plan secured before the creation of the earth. This Christmas celebrate, joyously, the place at the table secured for you by Christ, activated by His birth, and paid in full by His death.

John’s gospel details seven of Jesus’ miracles in demonstration of his deity. John also details several other moments where Jesus responds probably just like we would, and so we’re reminded of Jesus’ humanity. The first of these is a conjoint reminder of both Jesus’ deity and humanity.

Picking up in John 2 verse 3, Mary tells Jesus, “they have no more wine.” Verse 4, “Jesus said to her, ‘woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.”

The term “woman” was not a slander Jesus was using to disregard the significance of the one to whom Jesus was speaking. As Jesus’ mother, He would have been committing a sin to dishonor her by slander, so we know that it wasn’t in this way that Jesus was referring to her. Rather, it is a more contextually connoted distancing between Mary, Jesus, and the problem: that there was no more wine. Jesus’ reply, in essence, is that this is not their concern. Further, this is not why Jesus surrendered his power to become flesh; He did not voluntarily surrender his position at the right hand of God to come to earth so He could cater weddings. The Holy Spirit didn’t come upon Him and grant Him power so He could accommodate everyday needs.

Jesus came to earth and displayed His power so He could validate His identity as Messiah. The miracles were always a means to an end in His ministry. Jesus showed signs and wonders to prove a message which He delivered in conjunction with those miracles. But, here, Mary wanted a miracle done, divorced from any message. Her concern was for the host’s reputation and liabilities rather than for Jesus’ glory. That’s why Jesus asks her, “what does this have to do with Me?” Mary’s purposes were not keeping in step with the Father’s purposes; therefore, by definition, Mary’s desires were sin.

In this is such a relatable sentiment. So often I desire the outcome that I so long for. In August of 2020 my grandma was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. It hadn’t spread, responded significantly to treatment, and on October 20, 2020 we were laying her to rest, stunned by the immediate conclusion to her earthly race. Was my desire to see her healed sinful? In itself, no. My prayers were for healing, they were that she would be fully recovered by Christmas, as the doctors assured us was a very real possibility. But, upon not receiving the answer I so desperately desired, I was given an opportunity to abide in obedience, trusting in the Lord, or lean into the flesh’s response of betrayal, anger, and bitterness.

By the grace of God I leaned into His timing, aware of the war my flesh was waging against the spirit in desire to tear my trust and adoration away from my Lord, and replace it with substitutions the world would offer as vices to fill the God shaped hole that throbbed in my chest after losing her. Only a full submission and dependence on Him can satisfy all our desires. I grieved, wept, and prayed for the grace to heal from her loss on a daily basis, but I did not, “sorrow as those who have no hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13).” For I believe Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus (v14).

In Mary’s request, also, is her full faith in Jesus as Messiah and the power given to Him by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus’ replies to her, “my time has not yet come.” He’s reminding Mary that the timing for Jesus’ miracles is according to the Father’s plan. In His response to her, Jesus displays His divinity in the way He highlights her behavior as sin. In a sense, He is acting as judge, convicting Mary for having the wrong motive in commissioning Him to act on behalf of the bridegroom. But Mary completely ignores this and tells the servants to do whatever He says, which is intriguing because that’s what servants did: what they were told. She would have had no reason to say this to them unless she knew that Jesus was capable of and would acquiesce in a way that may be startling to them. I don’t believe Mary knew how Jesus would accomplish this, but I think Mary fully believed that Jesus could.

So, Jesus performs the miracle. If Mary’s request was sin, why would Jesus do this? In performing the miracle He accomplished it discreetly. No attention was drawn to Jesus, whatsoever, in fact the master of the feast praises the host for withholding the good wine until the end. Only the servants know what has transpired. So, Jesus doesn’t violate the Father’s will in performing the miracle, because He didn’t use it to publicize His ministry prematurely. Nevertheless, He obeyed His mother’s request because to do otherwise was to dishonor his mother. Therefore, the humanity of Christ respected His mother and complied with her request. As divinity Jesus rebuked the sin of Mary. John shows us succinctly both sides of Jesus’ nature in one story.

Proverbs 3:5 tells us, “trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.” When our requests align with the will of the Father it is a result of the work of the Spirit in us, moving our desire in alignment with the will of God. His plan and purposes are greater than our desired outcomes, but sometimes we’re not able to see how the outcome of terrible circumstances can work together for good.

An illustration I think of often is that of a tapestry. We are limited in our perspective, unable to see the full beauty of God’s design. This side of eternity we see the back of the tapestry, the parts still in the making with the knots, and the pulled ends, and oftentimes what looks more like chaos than any cohesive design. But, the face of the tapestry will be revealed when we conclude the earthly race and stand in His presence, the front of the tapestry revealing the beautiful portrait of His eternal perspective, causing our concerns over the knots and tears in the back to fade, with our eyes full forward on the glory of His majesty, wonderful, and worthy to be praised.

By the end of John 1, four days have surpassed. Beginning at chapter 2, three days from then have gone by, 7 total days of Jesus’ earthly ministry have passed. John spends little time in his gospel detailing the numbers of things, so for this distinction to be made there must be significance.

John opened chapter 1 with the allusion to Genesis 1, establishing Christ as the word by which all that was made, was made. Chapter 2 opens with the seven day picture that Genesis 2 opens with, reminding us that Jesus is fully God, though He yielded his power, not His authority, but His power in order to become flesh and dwell among us.

Today’s devotion will be brief. I’m not known for succinctness in writing, but I think the first 10 verses of John 2 merit reflection and will be broken up between today and tomorrow.

In John 2:1-10 we see Jesus first earthly miracle performed. It is not accompanying a message pointing eager listeners to the Father as Jesus’ miracles were generally ordained, it was a miracle born of a request from Jesus’ mother, Mary.

John 2, “On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 3 and when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, ‘they have no wine.”

In Jewish culture, for the host of a party to invite guests into his home there were several implications that followed. There was an expectation for provision, and if that expectation wasn’t met, the host would fall under social shame. Culturally we can’t equate the westernized inconvenience of running out of Tostitos at the Super Bowl party to the sort of faux pas that this would have been for the host of a wedding feast in Jewish culture.

Secondly, there were financial obligations. The host was legally obligated to provide for guests invited into his home or he was obliged to provide financial restitution. Guests, for instance, could take a sheep and leave if they weren’t provided adequately for. With a party as large as a wedding feast, running out of wine could bankrupt the host. Mary’s remark to Jesus was not an observation. She was prompting Jesus to provide a solution to what could have been a crises for the family.

Mary’s concern for the host, though understandable, caused her to make an inappropriate request of Jesus. She treats Jesus here more like a genie at her bidding than as the ultimate authority of heaven and earth. Her request, though undoubtedly born of concern, is not dissimilar to requests we make of God all the time.

In our minds, we see a problem, and what seems to be the solution, and we make a wish. We expect God at our bidding, in our time, and we wonder when He doesn’t miraculously produce the result that we think is the most obvious and best solution. But the prophet Isaiah makes it clear, “For ‘My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,’ says the LORD (55:8).” God is holy, distinct, righteous, and separate. We can’t fathom the depths of the riches of His wisdom, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” (Romans 11:33) Now, I am by no means diminishing the awesome and miraculous power of prayer. God asks us to “cast all our anxieties on Him,” but that verse in context reads, “humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that at the proper time He may exalt you 7 casting all your care upon Him, because He cares for you (1 Peter 5: 6-7).” Humble yourselves,” because our thoughts are not His thoughts, “under the Mighty hand of God,” and our ways are not His ways. God does delight in answering the prayers of His children, so precious to Him are our petitions that they are kept by Him near His throne (Revelation 5:8). But, that doesn’t mean that our requests are aligned to His good and perfect will nor is God obligated to oblige us. Prayer moves us closer to the heart of God, it does not move God closer to our desire.

Yet, here, we see Mary make a petition of Jesus, which from her perspective was the solution to the bridegroom’s potentially socially ruining and financially wrecking blunder of running out of wine.

Tomorrow, we’ll look closely at Jesus’ response, Mary’s faith in her son’s deity, and the first miracle of Jesus’ ministry performed.

So often we feel that our naked and exposed position before the Father is one in which we stand alone, with the singular hope that we’ll be accepted, but acutely aware of our sin now glaring in contrast to the holiness of God.

The prophet Isaiah was given a vision by God, probably at the beginning of his ministry. The vision is of the Lord sitting on the throne. When Isaiah sees Him, he cries out, “woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, The Lord of hosts.” (Isaiah 6:5) Isaiah was responding out of a place of deep grief, to the contrast between God’s holiness and the sin of man.

Another prophet of God, Moses, when he was asked by God what he desired, asked to see God’s glory. God replied that if Moses was able to look upon His face, the full radiance of God’s glory would kill him. God said, “You cannot see my face; for no man shall see me, and live.” (Exodus 33:22). Sin cannot be in the presence of God. God’s holiness is so unapproachable from those who have sin that it places anyone who has it in mortal danger if they enter His presence, because God’s righteous nature compels Him to bring judgement against sin. If sin enters His presence and He is not executing judgement, He isn’t being true to His character.

In Isaiah’s vision, he sees Jesus seated on the throne.

The author of Hebrews in chapter 1:1-3 tells us, “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds (John 1:1); 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.” There have been no more prophets since Jesus because Jesus resolved man’s sin problem before God through His blood on the cross. He, alone, became the penal substitutionary atonement. Christ died on the cross as a substitute for sinners. God imputed the guilt of our sins to Christ, and he, in our place, bore the punishment that we deserve. This was a full payment for sins, which satisfied both the wrath and the righteousness of God, so that He could forgive sinners without compromising His own holy standard. We can be in the presence of God only as long as we’ve been washed by the blood of Jesus.

In the last verse of John 1, Jesus reveals an intimate element of his role to us through His reply to Nathanael. In verses 50-51, “Jesus answered and said to him, “because I said to you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And He said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, thereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” The reply that Jesus gives Nathanael should have sparked an image for him of the Old Testament character, Jacob.

Jacob (deceiver or trickster), the one to whom the reference to Nathanael was first made, was a twin. He was the younger twin and when his father, Isaac, was old and intending to bless the older son as was customary for this time, Jacob tricked their father into giving him the blessing, and bribed Esau with a bowl of stew in exchange for the birthright. When it was discovered what Jacob had done Esau threatened to kill him. Their mother, Rebekah, tells him to flee. As Jacob is about to leave the land of his fathers he probably is wondering, human nature would have us worrying, that once we’re out of the right jurisdiction that God will no longer be with us. God blesses Jacob with a dream that assures him that God is not confined to the boundaries of men. In Genesis 28:10-16, Moses records, “Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran. 11 So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep. 12 Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 And behold, the LORD God stood above it and said, “I am the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. 14 Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. 15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.” 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.”

In Jacob’s dream, the ladder reflected God’s promise to be with Jacob and to minister to him by way of angels. When he woke, his worries that God was no longer with him were assuaged, and he says, ‘and yet, I did not know it.’ Jacob hadn’t realized how close God could be to him in his life on earth. God was capable and willing of descending from heaven and reaching down to earth. God did so through intercessors, angels appointed to minister to the saints. But, also in that dream was a picture of Christ himself.

Jesus is the intercessor Who came to earth to reveal the Father to men and to make a way for men to enter Heaven. In verse 51, Jesus repaints the picture of this image from angels ascending and descending on the ladder to ascending and descending on the Son of Man: on Jesus. Jesus tells Nathanael you will see in full what Jacob saw in limited form.

Wrapping up this first week of advent, Jesus is the light and life by which all was created. He is the payment by which the way of entry into God’s presence was made. And He is the intercession between God and man, through which God has fully revealed Himself to us. Spend the weekend reflecting and meditating on these intimate truths, remembering that there is nowhere you are hidden from God’s presence, nowhere He can’t reach you. From beneath the figs He sees you and His desire is for you. Abide in His mercy, grace, and forgiveness through His son, Jesus Christ, today.

Picking up from where we left off, the next thing Jesus says to Nathanael is, “I saw you under the fig tree.”

If Nathanael knew the Old Testament well, as most Jewish men would have, he would have known that he was not the first man to be found by God under the fig leaves.

Sin does something to us, in our walk, that causes distance between us and God. Not because He has moved or changed, but because we have chosen a preference for something over our desire to abide in obedience to God. We have exchanged righteous conduct for conduct that is ill befitting to the worthiness by which we’re called.

We also have a notion that somehow we can hide our sin from God if we avoid places like church and people who walk faithfully, or we are deceived into believing that God has much bigger things to worry about, or that He really isn’t involved in the minute details of our life.

But, the Bible makes it clear, “there is nothing hidden from His sight, all things are naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13); For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:14); “He reveals deep and hidden things. He knows what lies in darkness and light dwells with Him (Daniel 2:22).” The Bible makes it clear: there is nowhere we can go to hide from God. King David wrote in Psalm 139:7-9, “Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!”

When Jesus tells Nathanael, “before I called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you,” He creates an allusion to Genesis 3, immediately after the fall, when Adam and Eve tried to cover their nakedness and shame with fig leaves.

Adam and Eve tried to cover their sin on their own by crafting fig leaves into a covering. But man isn’t able to cover the price for sin on his own. When God arrived in the garden to find them cowering beneath their fig leaves, He created the temporary atonement needed to cover their sin. He made an animal sacrifice and created clothes for them. A blood sacrifice was required to cover the cost.

The lamb of God was there with Nathanael. The exchange for his coming to Jesus was that there was no more deceit in him, no more crookedness in his heart, and as a result his sins were covered by the blood of the lamb. Nathanael’s response affirms this. It can only be that Nathanael spoke from the Spirit’s inspiration of his heart to reply, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel (v49).” Nathanael had just met Jesus. Jesus, by the power of the Holy Spirit, was able to tell Nathanael something about himself Jesus couldn’t have otherwise known. This undoubtedly impressed and surprised Nathanael, but for him to affirm Jesus’ deity and authority immediately after meeting Him is indicative of the sort of enlightenment that can only come from the unveiled heart of the redeemed.

God sees you, friend. He sees you in this season. Sometimes twinkling lights and Christmas carols don’t seem to be manifesting the same joy they always have. Maybe you’re experiencing joy in all the trimmings and trappings this season brings. Whatever path you’re on, it is a path seen by the Lamb, one on which you are not alone, and this season is a shining reminder of the high value he has placed on you. A price so high it was paid for in blood, but it ensures that if you come to Him, the penalty for a debt you could not pay on your own, has been paid in full.

One thing that has always confounded me in scripture is the response of Jesus’ disciples upon first meeting him. As Jewish men they knew to expect and hope in the arrival of Messiah. But, as we discussed yesterday, they were expecting a conquering king, not a suffering servant. Isaiah makes it clear that Jesus was not what the Jews had come to expect. Isaiah 53:2b-3, “He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. 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.” God, through the prophet Isaiah, foresees the hatred and rejection by mankind toward Messiah. Jesus suffered not only physical abuse and death at the hands of men, but also internal grief over those who He knew would not come to Him, those very same who He came to save.

So when Jesus, in John 1:29 -who had no form that was particularly desirable- shows up where John is baptizing, after John has witnessed the theophany of Jesus’ baptism: the spirit descending and alighting on Jesus in the form of a dove, and a voice from Heaven saying, “this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased,” John announces to the disciples gathered there with him, awaiting Messiah, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John announces to those there with him that Jesus is Messiah. The next day, again, as John is there with his disciples, Jesus walks by , and again John says, “Behold the lamb of God” (v36).” The disciples there with John, were John’s disciples only insofar as they were waiting for Jesus. When John announces to them that Jesus is Messiah, “they followed Jesus (v37).”

The exchange that follows is the picture of how, as Jesus’ disciples today, we minister to others in His name, sharing the gospel. Salvation doesn’t require an ornate building, it doesn’t require elaborate explanation and proof of Jesus’ life and ministry, though those details are important and relevant they aren’t what ultimately leads a nonbeliever to faith. The disciples left John to follow Jesus and ask Him, “where are you staying (v38)?” Jesus replies, “come and see (v39).” And they do. The call of Christ is to come to him. The prescription is to come and see not see and come. There is nothing that can be explained, rationalized, justified, or coerced into someone until they are ready to come to Jesus. Then, as we discussed yesterday, their eyes will be opened to the truth, they’ll be given light and life to understand spiritual truth through the indwelling power of the interpreter, the Helper, the Holy Spirit.

One of those disciples that left John to follow Jesus was Andrew, the brother of Peter. After spending the day with Jesus, Andrew goes to where Peter is and tells him about Jesus and Peter comes. Andrew then goes on to find Philip, who goes on to find Nathanael and repeated through this section (John 1:43-50) is the emphasis that each of these disciples heard the call, and came to Jesus.

Nathanael’s interaction with Jesus is where we conclude today. Philip says to him, “come and see.” When Philip finds Nathanael, he announces Jesus by his earthly affiliation and then adds that this is the One that God’s word had been talking about from the beginning. Nathanael’s response is less than enthusiastic, he replies by asking if anything good can come from Nazareth. But, his reply affirms just how lowly Jesus’ beginnings were. The Father chose to give his son an identity that would carry no earthly appeal whatsoever. This keeps is step with God’s plan for salvation to be by faith and not by sight. Philip’s response to Nathanael, is “come and see.”

If we want someone to see Jesus, just as he truly is, we extend the invitation to them to come and see. If they do, they will see for themselves that what we say is true. But until and if they make that spiritual journey, there is nothing we can do or say to convince them. Our offer to come is significantly more important than any rationalization we could leverage at someone. in an attempt to persuade them. Trying to convince someone that Jesus is Messiah before they are inclined to come is a reversal of the salvation call. It’s ‘come to Jesus so you can see Him as Lord,’ not ‘see Him as Lord so that you come.’

Nathanael chose to come. When Jesus sees Nathanael coming with Philip, Jesus declares that his decision to come has set his heart straight, there is no longer deceit in him, a euphemism for the name of Issac’s son, Jacob. Jacob meant deceiver, so he essentially said, ‘here comes an Israelite who has no Jacob in him.’ His decision to come to Jesus has straightened out his heart, which reminds us of John the Baptist’s ministry: to make crooked paths straight.

After Jesus calls Nathanael by name, Nathanael is taken aback that Jesus knows his name and Jesus says, “before I called you,” and it is now that we understand that it was Jesus, through Philip, who called Nathanael, and just as Jesus used Philip to call Nathanael so does He use us to call unbelievers to a saving knowledge of Him.

It takes no eloquent speech or honed technique, though knowing scripture and being able to respond effectively with the sword is something we should know how to do well, it’s not us who calls or brings anyone: it’s Jesus.

Tomorrow, we’ll dig deeper into this interaction with Nathanael and see how God’s plan for atonement began long before this moment, was set in motion the day Jesus was born, and fulfilled on the third day when He rose from the grave.

Yesterday we discussed the total authority of Jesus as fully God and the humility that led him to putting aside his power, not His authority, but His power when He became flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus is the incarnation of the one true God. Jesus was present at the beginning, He was the word by which the creation was accomplished, and is the curator by which all happens. He accomplished that for which He came in His death and resurrection offering a once and for all sacrifice that we hold onto as the cornerstone of our faith and the foundation of our hope in this church age.

Today, we’re discussing John 1:4-5, “in Him was life and the life was the light of men 5. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.”

Throughout John’s gospel, John used the verb “belief” (pisteuo) 98 times, but he never uses the noun, “faith” (pistis). This indicates that John emphasizes the necessity of knowing Christ through an active, continual trust in the Lord, rather than simply resting on our moment of confession.

John introduces the reader to contrastive themes that occur throughout the gospel. Life and light are qualities of the Word that are shared not only among the Godhead (5:26) but also by those who respond to the gospel message regarding Jesus Christ (8:12; 9:5; 10:28; 11:25; 14:6).

John uses the word -“life” about 36 times in his gospel, far more than any other NT book. It refers not only in a broad sense to physical and temporal life that the Son imparted to the created world through His involvement as the agent of creation (v 3), but especially to spiritual and eternal life imparted as a gift through belief in Him (3:15; 17:3; Eph. 2:5).

In Scripture “light” and “darkness” are very familiar symbols. Intellectually, “light” refers to biblical truth while “darkness” refers to error or falsehood (Ps. 119:105; Prov. 6:23). Morally, “light” refers to holiness or purity. (1 John 1:5) while “darkness” refers to sin or wrongdoing (3:19; 12:35,46; Rom. 13:11-14; 1 Thess. 5:4-7; 1 John 1:6; 2:8-11). “Darkness” has special significance in relationship to Satan (and his demonic co-horts) who rule the present spiritually dark world (1 John 5:19) as the “prince of the power of the air” promoting spiritual darkness and rebellion against God (Eph. 2:2).

John uses the term “darkness” 14 times (8 in the gospel and 6 in 1 John) out of its 17 occurrences in the NT, making it almost an exclusive Johannine word. In John, “light” and “life” have their special significance in relationship to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Word (v. 9; 9:5; 1 John 1:5-7;5:12,20)

Theologians differ on the interpretation of “comprehend” in v.5. John MacArthur writes that “when John writes that the darkness did not comprehend it, the better meaning of this term in context is “overcome.” Darkness is not able to overcome or conquer the light. Just as a single candle can overcome a room filled with darkness, so also the powers of darkness are overcome by the person and work of the Son through His death on the cross.”

John MacArthur teaches that the darkness could not overcome the light. In essence, the light was more powerful to drive the darkness away than the darkness was to consume the light, which is an equally accurate and scripturally sound doctrine. But, Jesus’ earthly ministry was shrouded with darkness and the schemes of Satan, culminating in His death on the cross. It would have seemed as though death won. God’s eternal plan and purpose were ultimately set in motion by the attempts of the Devil to destroy Messiah, and if you’re an Old Testament junkie you know that Christ’s second coming will be as the conquering King the Jews were expecting Jesus to be and exactly how and when He will come again in victory. In verse 5, given the context of John’s gospel, and using other scripture, I tend to side with the interpretation that the darkness could not understand the light. In verse 5 John neatly summarizes Jesus’ entire earthly ministry in one verse: Jesus brought His light into the world but He was not understood by the darkness. Jesus is revealing Himself to the world, but the world rejected Him.

In 2 Corinthians 4:3-4 Paul writes an explanation to the way the gospel is veiled to unbelievers, stating, “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” The god of this world blinds the spiritual eyes of friends and neighbors so that they are not able to see the light of the gospel. The darkness cannot comprehend it. Paul writes in Colossians that for those who God has ordained to see the light that, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and delivered us into the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:13-14). Paul also explains in 1 Corinthians 1:18, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

To those who have not seen the light it seems foolish. It seems as if we could contribute to our salvation. It seems like we could behave well enough, give enough money, or falsely believe that God is only love and not also judge over all our sin. But the light of the gospel reveals that there is only one name under Heaven, given among men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12) and that name is Jesus Christ.

The first half of John 1:5 is written in the present tense, while the second half is written in the past tense. The revelation of God in Jesus Christ is forever available and therefore shines without end. It was not limited to Jesus’ first visit on earth but is everlasting. The second half of the verse refers to the response Jesus received during His first coming. He was rejected as Messiah, the unbelieving hearts of men did not comprehend the message of the gospel in Jesus Christ.

I’m not sure what this December has in store for you. I don’t know if the presents are bought and wrapped or you’re unsure of how you’ll have presents on time for Christmas morning. I’m not sure if you’re healthy or enduring a seasonal or more serious illnesses in your family. On this day, two years ago, was the last time I saw my grandpa before the day we held his hand and sang hymns while the Lord gently led him home on Christmas Eve 2021. What I do know is that the next morning my grandpa celebrated his first Christmas at the feet of the savior whose death made my grandpa’s salvation and eternal life possible. What I do know is that you can live out life and light to those around you this holiday by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. The darkness may not understand the light but it cannot overcome it.

My prayer for you is that you receive the greatest gift ever given: salvation by grace, through faith, this holiday season.

In John 1, John establishes the identity of Jesus in verse 1 as the creator of all things. John establishes that Jesus is the Word by which all that exists was created. He writes in John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God” (John 1:1-2). John’s words echo Genesis 1 and are affirmed in Col. 1:15 in order to establish Jesus as creator. Colossians 1:15 states, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”

The book of John was the last of the gospels to be recorded, the second to last book written next to John’s last recorded book, “the Revelation of Jesus Christ.” At the point John was writing, his audience would have likely been second and third generation Christians in the church. These believers would have begun to understand that the Millennial Kingdom was not just around the corner like they previously thought. John’s gospel would have been preparing them for what would become a rather lengthy church age, the age we are still in today.

Prior to Jesus’ ministry, death and resurrection, the Jews did not understand that the suffering servant prophesied in Isaiah would also be the conquering King. They would have understood those descriptions in the Old Testament as describing two different people. Many Jews today are still awaiting the arrival of Messiah, falsely believing that he hasn’t yet come, and don’t see that the crucified man, Jesus, is also Messiah who will come again as the conquering King.

One day at the end of tribulation all remaining Jews will recognize Christ as the suffering servant, the Messiah which they crucified, and that will be the catalyst by which Jesus, conquering king, return la and the Millennial Kingdom is finally ushered in.

But, at this point, John would have known what the other four gospels said and would have known that His gospel would need to establish Jesus as creator God, redeemer, and coming conquering King. So he does this by establishing the following themes throughout his book: light and darkness, born again -spiritual rebirth as a result of faith in Christ, the incarnation, creator and eternal -one with the father, and the fullness of God in flesh living among men.

Through these themes, John establishes a message to believers of encouragement for abiding in Christ. He establishes that Jesus is still shepherding through the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. Though there are several omissions from the book of John that can be found in the other gospels, such as the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist, in place are deep spiritual truths that culminate in the understanding that through a continued, active pursuit of Christ our faith will be strengthened to endure any hardship or trial we may experience during this age.

What our overcomer, Jesus, accomplished on the cross is divine grace in action. It is not something that, in our humanness, we can fully understand. As a result, we have a tendency to fall victim to the lie that because Jesus is God that he was less human.

The scriptures make it clear that Jesus was fully man. Romans 1:3 tells us, “concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh.” Jesus was fully God and fully man. He was subject to the same ailments that we experience on a daily basis. He experienced hunger, fear, sadness, and joy. In fact, the Bible makes it clear that during His life He experienced every single facet of humanity. The author of Hebrews tells us, “for we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” (4:12) Jesus endured the cross and experienced it just as you or I would.

But, the scripture is clear that He is also fully God. Jesus, defending His divine authority in John 8:58 declares, “Most Assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.” The Jews to whom Jesus was speaking would have known this reference to YHWH or Yahweh, the God of their ancestors, of Abraham and Jacob. Jesus’ declaration mirrors YHWH’s reply to Moses when he asked God from the burning bush, “who do I tell them sent me,” referring to the Israelites in captivity in Egypt upon his commissioning to go to Pharoh and declare God’s command to release His people. YHWH, the LORD God answered Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” (Exodus 3:14). John MacArthur explains, “this name for God points to His self-existence and externality. It denotes “I am the One who is and will be.” Jesus” declaration affirms His complete divine authority as one of the three members of the Godhead trinity.

A continued pursuit of Christ amidst a sometimes disheartening world will only result in the ability to endure the race He has set before us. His was the word at the beginning, He established the earth, He is actively involved by the power of the Holy Spirit in all of our interactions from where He is seated at the right hand of God. During this advent season choose to take comfort in the knowledge that the suffering servant who bore our stripes is also our conquering king, and is coming back to abolish death, disease, and to make all things new.

John uses the metaphor, “light,” to speak of Jesus’ presence in contrast to the darkness of the world. Tomorrow we’ll begin unraveling this metaphor.

“Thank you, Father, for the ability to freely pursue your word. I pray, for each of us pursuing you this holiday season, that we would come to a more full understanding, awe, and appreciation of who you are and that you would be glorified by this pursuit.” We love you, Father. In Jesus’ name, amen.”