On the Incarnation

One of the few books that appeared on both the Renovare Top 25 list and the listpeople submitted is Athanasius’ “On the Incarnation”. I don’t plan on reading and blogging about every book on these lists. However, I found it hard to resist a book called “On the Incarnation” less than a week before Christmas. What better time to consider the incarnation?
 

There is a great contrast between how Athanasius considers the incarnation and how we will celebrate it this week. For a book on the incarnation, there is almost no mention of what we consider the “Christmas story”. In roughly 90 pages, Athanasius never mentions shepherds or angels, he never talks about a snarky innkeeper or a Messiah-holding manger. It is not that Athanasius does not believe in the veracity of these historic events. In fact, the one element he does talk about several times is the virgin birth. Athanasius does not focus on the dramatic events of the Bethlehem night; instead he focuses on why God came in flesh. Athanasius writes, “The Lord did not come to make a display. He came to heal and to teach suffering men. For one who wanted to make a display the thing would have been just to appear and dazzle the beholders. But for Him Who came to heal and to teach the way was not merely to dwell here, but to put Himself at the disposal of those who needed Him.”

Instead of focusing on the displays and events of a singular starry night, Athanasius understands the incarnation through the resurrection and the crucifixion. The significance of incarnation manifests itself in God’s love for humanity that results in God making God’s self known through the life, teaching, and miracles of Jesus, so that all people might be saved.

During this Christmas season, may we not be overcome by the dazzle and the displays, but remember the bigger picture of who Jesus is and what Jesus came to do.