December 8th, 2009 by Kristi Stephens

I’ve been thinking a lot about the names of God this Christmas. Probably because for weeks we’ve been thinking about, working on, and finally have our names of God ornaments up.

You’ll have to wait until next week to see how they’re displayed. ;) [I love it!!]

Each morning I come downstairs to be greeted by the site of the names of God hanging prominently in our living room. I think more than any Christmas ever before, I have been pondering the Truth of who Jesus really is. We are so often content to leave Him as a baby in the manger. He’s understandable there. It’s simple there. Right?

The first name of God we wrote was Elohim. In Genesis 1, the name Elohim is used over and over and over and over again. While this name is a generic term for God [even used for pagan gods elsewhere in the OT, just like our English word "god" is the same as "God"], the context of this first introduction to our God tells us much about who He is. If Genesis 1 was the only portion of Scripture we had, we would know that this Elohim is truly all-powerful, self-sufficient, eternal, the creator of all, and plural and yet also somehow singular… a majestic and awesome God who chose to create.

Now if we flip over to John 1:1-3, we find out a bit more about God’s plurality and yet singularity. In the beginning [sound familiar?] was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God.

Not only that, but we find out that we are talking about the very same Elohim as in Genesis 1, for John 1:3 tells us, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” In his whole Bible commentary, John MacArthur notes that the fact that Jesus is called “The Word” here even hearkens back to the fact that God had created all things by His Word.

The real kicker is John 1:14 – “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.”

Ponder that for a moment. Elohim, the all-powerful, self-sufficient, eternal God who created all things became flesh. That cute little baby in your nativity scene reminds us that God chose to come to us in a way that we will never fully comprehend. Think about what that entailed:

• The infinite God wrapped Himself in finiteness
• The eternal, omnipresent Elohim bound Himself within time and space
• The supernatural entered and somehow joined himself to the natural
• The All-Powerful One chose to become a helpless human infant, dependent upon those He created to care for Him

As a dear woman in our church shared at our Christmas Tea, imagine Jesus as a toddler, sitting on Mary’s lap. As any loving mother she carefully is teaching Him words and delighting in His simple vocabulary. She points to the small lamp on the table and says in a loving, sing-songy voice – “Light! Can you say ‘light’?” Jesus, The Word, Elohim – the one whose very word spoke light into existence has humbled Himself to the point of needing His creatures to instruct Him.

The Word became flesh.

This Christmas as you gaze at your nativity scene and sing “away in a manger,” remember that this wasn’t just any chubby little baby – this was Elohim. The creator of all.

As you fight the crowds at the mall and rude drivers on the road, remember Jesus’ unbelievable example-

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
Philippians 2:5-7

Jesus didn’t fight for His ‘rights.’ He didn’t demand that people recognize His worth and value. He humbled Himself to become flesh – to dwell among us… all to become our servant and die on our behalf.

Suddenly, Christmas isn’t so understandable and simple.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16