FBCD_FaithEssentials_June_FlipBook

Todd Gaddis

all creation. For in Him all the fullness of Deity exists in bodily form” (Colossians 1:15, 2:9). I never tire of stressing this vital truth. It’s what separates Christianity from all other cults and false faiths proliferating around us. Many other religions and “isms” throughout the globe acknowledge the existence of Jesus. They even endorse Him as an effective prophet and teacher. Yet, they deny His Deity, rejecting Him as the only path to salvation. And since there’s never been a time when He wasn’t, it is evident Jesus assisted in creation. As the Bible states: “All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being” (John 1:3). Let us now speak of incarnation, that pivotal point where eternity invaded time and Jesus became one of us. But instead of heading back to Bethlehem, let’s go back before Bethlehem. As “The Angel of the LORD,” Christ made numerous pre- incarnate appearances in the Old Testament. The first of these Christophanies as they’re called, took place in the wilderness of Shur after the maidservant Hagar received harsh treatment from Abram’s wife Sarai and fled the house (Genesis 16; 7-15). Perhaps the most notable examples took place when Jacob wrestled “a man” for a blessing (Genesis 32:24-32), the “Angel of the LORD” appeared to Moses in a burning bush (Exodus 3:1-6), and the “son of the gods,” the fourth man who protected Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace (Daniel 3:19-30). Digging deeper into this discussion of Christ’s incarnation, carefully consider these three key characteristics related to it: Humble servant— Although Jesus is God, He “did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond servant” (Philippians 2:6,7). He willingly left a blissful heaven, ETERNITY INVADES TIME

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