The only Son of God […] came down from heaven;
he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary,
and was made human.
Nicene Creed
Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord […]
was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary.
Apostles’ Creed
The Son became incarnate and was made human.
He was fully God and fully man.
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.
John 1.14a
I don’t know about you, but this is one of the most profound, awe-inspiring mysteries of our faith; I could ponder its truth for a lifetime without ever plumbing its depths. So, I confess it by faith; I marvel at it and gladly confess my inability to fathom it.
In recent decades, the term ‘incarnational ministry’ has come into use, especially in missions and church planting circles. It emphasises our call to live humbly as embodiments of God’s presence, and lays particular stress on developing close relationships with people who are from cultural contexts different to our own. However, the parallels between the incarnation of the eternal Son of God and our attempts at inter-cultural mission have severe limitations. Christ’s incarnation was a miracle of such magnitude that it has limited usefulness as a model for mission. Any journey we take to reach others is infinitely shorter than his. Furthermore, he left a place of sinless perfection, whereas we live in a fallen world. Our own culture is steeped in sin, and when we enter someone else’s, it is also tainted by sin. Certainly, cultures display their rebellion in different ways, but our common humanity unites us all. As the prophet Isaiah once wrote, ‘We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way’ (Isa 53.6a).
For these reasons, I am not convinced the term ‘incarnational ministry’ is that helpful. I do believe, though, that our confession of faith in the incarnation has implications for Christian ministry. In particular, they relate to how we view the body.
THE BODY IS GOOD
It isn’t hard to identify the limitations of our bodies. Many of you will be wearing spectacles to correct your eyesight as you read this. Some will be in pain. You may be on a waiting list for a hospital appointment or operation. In recent weeks, you may have presided at or attended a funeral, when a body was committed to the grave or the fire. Our bodies are weak and prone to decay; they are ‘wasting away’ (2 Cor 4.16).
Aware of this, we might conclude that the body is bad. We wouldn’t be the first. Historically, ideas from Greek philosophy have influenced Christian thinking, contributing to popular misconceptions. Some theologians have taught that we should deny the body, marking this belief through celibacy, or even beating the body into submission as a path to greater holiness. Some traditions have taught that our destiny is to become disembodied spirits in the clouds. This is mistaken. Our bodies are certainly subject to decay within this fallen world, but we are, in fact, awaiting ‘the redemption of our bodies’ (Rom 8.23).
We know that ‘everything God created is good’ (1 Tim 4.4a). That includes the body. The fact that the incarnate Son of God inhabited a body confirms this.
So, the body is good.
Having said that, it can be used in both good and bad ways. This leads to my second point.
THE BODY HAS A PURPOSE
When I trained and worked as a medical doctor, I devoted myself to understanding how the body works, what can go wrong with it, and what we can do to put it right. My medical training didn’t involve philosophy or theology, however, so I was never encouraged to ask, ‘What is the body for?’ I tried to help people live longer with fewer physical restrictions, but I was not expected to have an opinion on what they should do with their extra life and health.
To explain why sexual immorality is such a serious sin, the apostle Paul wrote, ‘The body […] is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body’ (1 Cor 6.13). Paul adds that the believer’s body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and was bought ‘at a price’ (1 Cor 6.19-20). The body belongs to God by virtue of creation, redemption, and the indwelling of the Spirit. He is its maker, purchaser, and tenant. That’s why sexual sin is so serious. It is a ‘sin against [your] own body’ (1 Cor 6.18) because it joins your body, which belongs to God, to someone who is not ‘one flesh’ with you in marriage.
Paul is quite clear about the purpose of the body. It is for the Lord! That’s why ‘true and proper worship’, means to ‘offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God’ (Rom 12.1). Jesus, the incarnate Son of God, has shown us what that looks like. He lived resolutely according to his Father’s will, even though it meant a life that was cruelly shortened. Living longer and being healthier are good things, but only if we’re clear about the purpose of our bodies. We belong to our triune God; he is our maker, purchaser, and tenant, so we must follow his directions. He does not lead us to ignore or fight against the proper constraints of our bodies. He calls us to be faithful as we await the redemption of our bodies.
This is my final point.
THE BODY NEEDS REDEMPTION
In Romans 6, the apostle Paul assures us that believers in Jesus will ‘certainly […] be united with him in a resurrection like his’ (Rom 6.5). Yet, later in chapter 8, when writing about our eternal hope, he says that we’re waiting for ‘the redemption of our bodies’ (Rom 8.23). Why use the word ‘redemption’ instead of ‘resurrection’?
I think verse 18 helps us understand his choice of words.
I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.
Rom 8.18
Paul wants us to understand something important about the nature of our redemption. The only other appearance of the word in Romans occurs in chapter 3. We read that ‘all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus’ (Rom 3.24).
And yet we wait (Rom 8.23).
We have already been justified. We now stand in God’s grace. Yet we still have not received the glory for which we hope (Rom 5.2).
The apostle wants to make it very clear that our redemption in this life does not give us immunity from suffering. Hence our ‘present sufferings’. God may heal our bodies now, but not totally. The redemption that came by Christ Jesus will extend to our bodies, but that will only be fully realised when God renews all things. That is why the eternal Son needed to become incarnate. He has redeemed us, that’s certainly true, but that redemption is only fully completed in our newly resurrected bodies on the final day. Until then, we live in bodies that are limited.
We are frail and we are fallen.
Even before they sinned, Adam and Eve had physical limitations—the need for food and sleep. Living with the results of the Fall, accumulated over time, we have more. Our genes are sometimes faulty, we have damaged the environment, we are growing old, and one day, we will all die. We must accept these limitations, including the need to adapt to our diminished capacities as we age. There may be lament as the years go by, because we know these limitations resulting from the Fall aren’t in line with God’s ultimate good purpose. And yet we can have real hope because one day, our bodies will be redeemed.
SO WHAT?
What difference do these three truths make for Christian ministry?
They have implications for our teaching. We need to help people understand that the body is good so they can avoid body-denying heresies. We must explain that the body has a purpose, which is to serve and glorify God. Though the Lord does sometimes heal, we can free people from false promises of perfect health or total healing in this life, whilst assuring them of the resurrection to come.
These truths also have implications for our own lives and the way we care for others. We should endorse the goodness of other people’s bodies by caring for their material needs. We can extend compassion to them through our words and through appropriate touch, by which I mean physical contact that is welcomed, non-sexual and culturally appropriate. We must use our own bodies for the Lord’s purposes, making healthy choices not only regarding our diets but in the way we avoid sexual temptation. We should be patient with others as their bodies decline due to advancing age, and accept the inevitable decline of our own bodies as a sign that we are in desperate need of resurrection.
Christian leaders, ‘We believe the Son of God was made human’. We know that the body is good and we know its purpose. We are embodied humans and, following in the footsteps of our Lord, we come alongside our fellow embodied humans to share his love.
For by doing so, we bear testimony to our Saviour, the perfect embodied human.
So, make this your confession today, ‘I believe in the incarnation’.