INCARNATIONAL CHRISTIANITY

This is a relatively new term to me, but coming just after we have celebrated the incarnation of Jesus for another year, I think I know what it means. When Jesus left His place in heaven to become the babe in Mary's womb, this to me was the greatest miracle that ever could be! Our Creator God becoming flesh and blood, in order to put a face on God, so to speak, that we might see what our invisible [to the human eye] God is really like, we call the "incarnation". Paul explains this process in (Phil 2:5-8), where in the NLT verse 6-7 we read "Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, He gave up His divine plivileges, He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being when He appeared in human form". And after Jesus had completed the work of redemption, by dying for our sins on the cross, he made provision for us to become the physical "body" to take His place on this planet. He said He would send the Holy Spirit to be with us and "in us" (John 14:17).

Thus as I see it, when we receive salvation by the act of recognizing we are sinners, confessing our sin. and receiving Jesus as our personal Savior, the Holy Spirit comes into our life. He is the one who never leaves us, and therefore wherever we go and whatever we do, we are the incarnation of Christ. When we read the book of Ephesians where Paul describes the Church that Jesus said He would build, we should see that we are the body of Christ on planet earth. Our head is Jesus Christ, who is seated at the right hand of the Father, and we are His body. This is a tremendous privilege and responsibility, to be His "ambassadors", or representatives on planet earth!

I recently read a book by Jerry Cook called "The Monday Morning Church", in which he stresses this point that we are the Church not only on Sunday morning when we "go to church", but every day of the week! When are we ever going to wake up and realize that what we have seen and experienced as "church" in our Western society is nothing like what Paul describes in his NT letters? I recently read an article by Wolfgang Simson in which he made the following statement "Church as we know it is preventing Church as God wants it". I don't know brother Simson personally but I sure agree with this statement. I think Jerry Cook would also agree with it as he describes the changes that will be necessary to become the Monday Morning Church. In the introduction to his book Jerry uses a term "strategic placement", by which he means God has placed each one of us in certain places "to be the presence of Christ that opens the door for His revelation as Savior to an unbelieving world". Isn't that what this being a follower of Jesus is all about? This is what I would consider "Incarnational Christianity"! Just some food for thought!

Sincerely submitted
Gramp