MUELLER: Christmas provides us with one blessing after another

This Christmas, as we celebrate the birth of our Savior, I’d like to draw your attention to John 1:14: “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.”

This little verse is loaded with meaning. The phrase, “made His dwelling”, is a single word in the original Greek “skay-no’-o”, translated “He tented among us.”

And when you see that in connection with the word “glory” it is obvious that John is making an Old Testament allusion. In Exodus 40:34, we read of “The Tent of Meeting” or the Tabernacle filled with the glory of the Lord: “Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.”

The Israelites had been in bondage in Egypt, but God had set them free! Now the Tabernacle was where God dwelt and led His people.

In Exodus 40 we also read, “In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the Tabernacle, they would set out; but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out until the day it lifted. So the cloud of the Lord was over the Tabernacle by day and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel during all their travels.”

Ultimately God leads them to the promised land of Canaan. The land He swore to give to their forefather Abraham. What John and the other apostles came to see was that the Old Testament history of Israel was a foreshadowing of the life of Christ.   In fact, if you were to take a careful look at Matthew’s Gospel, you would find it is structured in this very way. Jesus is born in Bethlehem, but because evil men wanted to kill Him, He like the Israelites of long ago had to go to Egypt.

And as the Israelites passed through the waters of the Red Sea, Jesus starts His public ministry by passing through the waters of John’s Baptism. Immediately after passing through the water, Jesus — like the Israelites — was led out into the wilderness.   After that, He lived among the apostles in His tent of human flesh, guiding and leading them. And ultimately, following His death and resurrection, Jesus ascended into the promised land of heaven.

John’s purpose in writing his Gospel is overtly evangelistic. He is desperately trying to get you to see what he sees. John 20:31 says, “These things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His Name.”

The tragedy that grieved John so much was that some would not see what he saw or worse, that they would see it but reject it. John invites you to believe in the One whom all Old Testament history points to as well. Jesus comes to you in your slavery and bondage to sin and delivers you.

Your life may still feel like wandering in the wilderness much of the time, but Jesus Christ promises He will be with you always. He will never leave you or forsake you. He will lead you and guide you through all the struggles and temptations you face. And if you believe on His name, when you die, He will lead you to the ultimate promised land of eternal life with God Himself!

Obviously overwhelmed by Jesus’ love, John 1:16 says: “From the fullness of His grace we have all received one blessing after another!”

Merry Christmas to all!