And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14 ESV

Long before I became a Christian I was once stopped on the streets of Boston by a preacher who had a very simple message for me. He said, “I want to tell you about Jesus: That’s J-E-S-U-S Jesus!” he shouted, but I didn’t know why I couldn’t understand how God could love me and even less why this man was almost shouting as he told me. But now, almost 50 years later, the lines that penetrated my heart that night remain lodged wonderfully in my memory. Sometimes around Christmas I hear, “Jesus is the reason for the season.”  But is Jesus, really God’s reason for your Christmas?

In the Gospel of John we do not hear a traditional telling of the birth of Jesus. His story begins far earlier than Bethlehem. John looks back to before the dawn of time. He tells us of when Jesus, the Word of God, was already with the Father. Then he says that the first Bethlehem night was special because in the manger, God’s Word became flesh.

If Jesus had never come He would have only been the word not spoken. If no child was laid in the manger that night we could never see God’s glory. If no news from angels had been given to shepherds how would we have ever known the grace and the truth He came to bring? But God did speak. Jesus did come! He came to be with us and die for our sins so that we could have eternal life!