Why did He do it?

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

The greatest miracle of all, at least in my mind, is the incarnation of the Son of God. As important as the resurrection is, it is little wonder that the eternal Son of God did not remain dead. But that the infinite Son of God would dwell on earth as a real human? That is beyond miraculous! We all know that a gallon of milk cannot be contained in a quart container. So how much more impossible is it that the infinite Son of God could dwell in a finite body? This is a miracle indeed!

But why did He do it? He did it so that He could die to pay the penalty for the sins committed by His people. No mere man could do that because all mere men are sinful, and therefore are unable to die for another’s sins, since they have their own sins to pay for. Only God is sinless and therefore worthy to die for other people’s sins.

But God cannot die! So to die to pay for His people’s sins, the Son of God became a man—so He could die! When He became a finite human being who could die, He did not cease to be God, even for an instant! God cannot cease to be God!

The Son of God became a human being, while remaining God, to die for His people—to pay for their sins. Thus the Christmas manger and the Good Friday cross are inseparably connected—as is Easter’s empty tomb.

As we celebrate Christmas, let us meditate on why Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and that He triumphantly accomplished what He came to do!