Talking Points with President Woodford: The Word Made Flesh
“The Word became flesh” (John 1:14)—it’s a simple summary of what Christmas is all about. But it also points us to Easter and everything in between. It’s the miraculous story of how the Word of God came into our flesh and blood, into our hurts and heartaches, into our foolishness and frailty, to live as one of us in order to redeem all of us.
Sometimes it’s easy to miss the magnitude of this event. The most powerful being in the entire galaxy came into this world just as we did. He started as an embryo; His heart began to beat some 18 days after being conceived by the Holy Spirit in the Virgin Mary. And there, in His mother’s womb, He continued to grow.
In fact, during each trimester of Mary’s divinely arranged pregnancy Jesus grew and developed like most every other baby. By 11 weeks, just like most babies, His limbs and features would be almost fully formed, each body part intricately and delicately made. During this time, He would have been kicking, stretching, and even hiccupping as His diaphragm developed. Do you ever wonder - when did Mary start to feel Him move in her womb? Did she have morning sickness? Was Jesus born on His due date? Have you ever thought how it could be that the God who created time could have a due date?
God entered our state of being for a reason. Sinners need a Savior. The hurting need healing. The frightened need comforting. And the dead need a resurrection. Therefore, the immortal had to put on mortality. The invincible had to be made to bleed. The eternal had to become finite. Not simply to see what it feels like, though He certainly did experience our humanness in every respect, but rather to bring light to a land covered in darkness. To be sure, we need His light right now!
Have you ever paused to think about what it meant that an all-powerful, all-knowing, and almighty God willingly chose to become like you and me? The church year’s seasons of Advent and Christmas especially let us pause and take it in.
The very Word that was there in the beginning creating the stars, sun, moon and the earth; the very Word that created the dinosaur, the dingo, and the duckbilled platypus; the very God who by His Word spoke all things into being—who formed man from the dust of the ground and has more power in a single eyelash than all of us put together—He willingly confines Himself inside a mother’s womb for nine months, and is born as a helpless baby boy.
That Jesus makes His earthly beginning in His mother’s womb is so profoundly important for these grey and latter days. The Creator became part of creation. It is a marvel to behold. His very gestation and infancy affirm the dignity and worth of all born and unborn babies. It is a reminder that as people of faith we stand for the preciousness of children.
Likewise, that Jesus was born of a woman shows the incredible wonderment and joy of motherhood. It affirms the marvel of femaleness and the God created wonders of the female body. As people of faith, we stand for the family and celebrate the family, especially what it means to be a godly woman, godly wife, and godly mother.
And where abortionists look to prey upon vulnerable mothers and butcher their babies—to crush their skulls, harvest their organs, and sell the tissue of their innocent, defenseless, precious babes—Jesus Christ was born of a woman, born as a defenseless, precious babe in order to take away the sins of the world, which include the sins of those who commit such atrocities.
As loud as we must shout at the government and those who promote and provide the atrocities of abortion in all forms, we must shout all the louder about the preciousness of every mother and every child in a mother’s womb. They are beloved by God. We must be ready to come alongside her through the pregnancy and especially during the months after the baby is born to show her she is precious even as that baby is precious; to show them both we want life in abundance for both of them.
Likewise, we must shine the light of love and hope upon any mother who has had an abortion. We want to wrap any burdened conscience and any grieving heart in the forgiveness and love of Jesus. There is no sin too big, no act too great for our Lord Jesus to forgive by his shed blood on the cross. That’s why He came to this earth. That’s why the Word became flesh.
The birth of Jesus sets into motion an epic battle of good versus evil, of light versus darkness, of truth versus lies. When Jesus came into the world something spectacular occurred for all of humankind. The Gospel of John says it like this: 4In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Jesus came into the flesh to declare the light always wins. Darkness doesn’t stand a chance. Jesus is the Light no darkness can overcome! After all, Jesus is a truth sayer and a devil slayer. He is a death defeater and a life completer. And that means He comes as bad news buster and a Good News hustler. He has baptismally claimed you as His very own in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. You are His and He is yours. The light always wins!
Yet, sometimes it feels like we are in the darkness of Good Friday more than the light of Easter Sunday. But you and I know the story does not end in darkness. It does not end at “crucified, dead, and buried.”
Three days later Jesus walked out of that tomb as the King of all kings and the Lord of lords. This means Jesus is a darkness destroyer and a light deployer. He is a sin taker and a saint maker. He is the light no darkness can overcome! So let the light of Christ shine in your words and deeds.
You and I can stand for the family. You and I can stand for godly men and women. We can stand for faithful husbands and wives, moms and dads, and help every mom and every child know they are precious.
You and I can lift up our young men and young women, teach our children, raise them in the way of the Lord, bring up the next generation of faith filled, truth speaking, devil stomping, baptized believers, who will never back down, never give up—who will fight for what’s right, and stand firm on the foundation of Jesus Christ crucified and raised from the dead.
That’s what we are going to do! Stand firm and lift high the cross of Jesus Christ. He is the Word made flesh. He is the Light no darkness can overcome.
Rev. Dr. Lucas V. Woodford
President, MN South District, LCMS
