For many Christians, the birth of Christ is an event primarily relegated to celebration once a year, during the month of December.1 Between the lights, gifts, and music, the emphasis on Christ’s incarnation often subtly turns into a mere seasonal affair, serving to undermine the permanent significance of Christ coming to Earth in human form. How can Christians work to fix this?
Remembering the Divine Motive
Why did Jesus come to Earth at all? In short, Christ came to Earth because he loves sinners. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16, emphasis added). As Joshua Jipp puts it, “The world, then, is created by God and is the object of God’s love, and this provides the reason for the incarnation of the Son and his saving mission.”2
John 3:16 is a popular verse, no doubt. Interestingly, though, the verse is often specifically relegated—by Christians—to the crucifixion and not often applied at all to the incarnation, which is a shame, as the former would never have occurred without the latter! The motive behind both the incarnation and the crucifixion is God’s love, and we forget this at our peril.
Constant Reflection and Gratitude
In light of the theological and eternal significance of the incarnation, the only response is constant reflection and gratitude. The effects and implications of the incarnation were not a part-time, seasonal event, and thus our response should likewise not be such. Our goal, daily, should be to look to Christ and give thanks for what he has done for us (Heb. 12:2; 1 Thess. 5:18).
Practically speaking, the best way to engage in daily Christ-focused reflection and gratitude is to remember the already-but-not-yet nature of God’s kingdom. Christ’s New Covenant kingdom began (or was “inaugurated,” as many theologians like to phrase it) during his life, ministry, death, and resurrection. However, this kingdom won’t be fully consummated until Christ returns, again, in glory (Matt. 25:31; Luke 1:32–33). Keeping this in mind helps us remember the past and anticipate the future, faithfully.
Living in Anticipation of the Second Advent
The first advent of Christ lays the groundwork for His impending second advent. While the first advent story explains how Christ, the Word, became flesh in the womb of a virgin, the second advent looks forward to Christ’s return as the enthroned King, enacting the final restoration of creation. As Putman explains, “Jesus launched the kingdom of God with his first coming in the incarnation… God has always reigned as the sovereign king over all creation… But when Jesus came into the world, he revealed to us what the kingdom of God was like and made a way for us to enter it.”3
See, the incarnation is not a mere “past event.” It also serves as a glorious foreshadowing of Christ’s future second coming. Reflecting on the incarnation of Christ year-round is a great first step in the effort to honor Christ as Lord (1 Pet. 3:15) and to live in “eager expectation” (Phil. 1:20–21) of Christ and his wondrous deeds, both now and in the age to come.
What This Means for Our Witness to the World
While constant reflection on and gratitude for the incarnation is the primary focus of this article, there is one last point to consider: the apologetic impact of such focus on the outside, non-believing world.
I often remind my students that Matthew’s famous Great Commission passage (Matt. 28:18–20) is not optional; it is a command. Many Christians forget that. Here is the simple reality: the incarnation of Jesus is a core pillar of the Gospel message. Indeed, it is impossible to make disciples if one is unaware of who Jesus is and why he came to Earth in the first place. When Christians downplay the incarnation 11 months out of the year, this surely damages our public witness. Faithfully fulfilling the Great Commission command, therefore, requires more of us. It means telling the full story of Christ, keeping in mind that he has entrusted us, the Church, to be his ambassadors (2 Cor. 5:20).
