Good News Made Flesh

The Glory of Proximity

Scripture Reading: John 1:14–18

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. 

We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, 

who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” 

John 1:14

Yesterday, we saw the "unveiling" of God’s cosmic faithfulness in Revelation. Today, John 1:14 brings that vast glory down into the dirt of the road. The phrase "made his dwelling" literally means He pitched his tent (eskenosen) among us. In the Old Testament, the Tabernacle was a portable tent where God’s glory resided in the middle of a wandering, messy people. By "becoming flesh," Jesus did not stay in the "traditional privilege" of the stars; He moved into the neighborhood of our human struggle.

As B.B. Warfield noted, this was the ultimate act of self-sacrifice. Christ was "led to forget Himself in the needs of others," refusing to let His dignity or His rights keep Him at a distance. He didn't just send a message or a check; He entered the "midst of men." He became vulnerable to our hunger, our fatigue, and our "cries of suffering".

We often think of glory as something blinding and untouchable, but John says we see God's glory specifically in the flesh. This is the "Good News": God is not a "Jesus of the Stars" who watches our "emotional wrecks" from a distance. He is the God of the "Gutters" who touches the wounds the Priest and Levite passed by.

His glory is revealed as a perfect balance of Grace and Truth:

Truth: The light that shows us exactly who we are, without the masks we wear to appear "spiritually over-active."

Grace: The love that says, "Now that I see the truth of your mess, I am staying in the tent with you anyway."

Verse 18 tells us that Jesus has "made Him known." In a world where most people "ignore the cries of the suffering," Jesus acts as the ultimate Good Samaritan. He shows us a Father who is not a distant judge, but a God who gets His hands stained with the blood and dust of our lives. To follow Him is to "imitate the Incarnation"—to stop seeking our own ease and instead find our glory in being "at the disposal" of those who need us.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, we marvel that You did not remain in the heavens but chose to pitch Your tent in the middle of our broken world. Thank You for being the Word made flesh, proving that Your glory is found in radical proximity to our pain. Teach us to forget ourselves this day so that we might carry Your grace and truth into the lives of those around us. Amen.