The TakeAway
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The TakeAway
The Glory Unveiled: When God Dwelt Among Us
The mystery of incarnation—God wrapping Himself in human flesh—stands as Christianity's most profound paradox. When John writes that "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us," he uses language deliberately echoing the ancient tabernacle, where God's presence once dwelled among Israel. But this dwelling was different. Not a sacred tent but a sacred person. Not a temporary visitation but an eternal union of divine and human.
Pastor Harry takes us deep into the meaning of "glory" throughout scripture—not just splendor or radiance, but the full weight and significance of God's character made visible. While Moses could only glimpse God's back from the cleft of the rock, Jesus reveals God face-to-face. The tabernacle once separated humanity from God's overwhelming presence; Jesus bridges that separation. What was once veiled is now revealed.
Perhaps most movingly, Pastor Harry shares how a child's simple question—"Why did Jesus have to die on the cross?"—led him to profound insight: the cross wasn't merely the means of our salvation but the stage where God displayed every aspect of His glory simultaneously. Justice, wrath, love, mercy, wisdom, and faithfulness all converged in a single moment, revealing God's beauty in its fullness. This "grace upon grace" doesn't just replace the Law that Moses brought; it fulfills it, bringing not merely diagnosis of our condition but its cure.
As we walk away from this message, we're challenged to consider how we might live as reflections of this glory—not through perfect performance but through surrendered faith. When we truly grasp that the eternal God has made His dwelling with us, we discover the purpose we were created for and the joy that comes from living for His glory rather than our own. Join us on this journey to behold the God who has come near.
Please visit www.chosenbydesign.net for more information on Pastor Harry’s new book, "Chosen By Design - God’s Purpose for Your Life."
What does it mean that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us? In this episode of the Take Light, pastor Harry invites us to slow down and reflect on the profound mystery of John 1, verses 14-18. The eternal Word, god Himself, entered our world not with overwhelming might, but in the humility of human form. When John writes that Jesus dwelt among us, he echoes the ancient imagery of the tabernacle, a place where God met with his people, and points us to the deeper truth that in Christ, god has come to dwell with us permanently. This isn't a fleeting visitation. It is the glorious unveiling of God's heart to be near his people, to be known and to pour out grace upon grace. In this message, pastor Harry calls us to behold the glory of God wrapped in flesh, the grace of God extended to sinners and the intimacy of a God who wants to be seen, known and loved. Here's Pastor Harry Behrens, with today's teaching.
Speaker 2:Hello, welcome again to the Takeaway. I'm your host, pastor Harry Behrens. Before we dive in, let's take a moment to briefly recap where we've been so far in our journey through the gospel of John. In our last three episodes we saw that Jesus is the eternal word through whom all things were made, that he is the life and light of men shining in the darkness, and that John the Baptist came as a witness to prepare hearts to receive the true light who gives the right to become children of God. These first 18 verses of John's gospel are the foundation for everything that follows. John is establishing the identity of Jesus as the eternal word made flesh so that we would believe he is who he says. He is the Son of God, full of grace and truth.
Speaker 2:As we continue through this gospel, we will consistently refer back to these verses to gain deeper understanding of John's message and how it reveals Jesus as both fully God and fully man, and as the only way to know the Father. Now, in today's message, we reflect on the mystery of the incarnation, when the eternal word became flesh and dwelt among us. It's one of the most powerful truths in all scripture that the eternal, glorious God took on human form and made his dwelling among us. So let's look at John, chapter 1, verses 14 to 15. The apostle John writes and the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we have seen his glory Glory is of the only son from the father full of grace and truth. His glory glory is of the only son from the father full of grace and truth. The word dwelt in the Greek literally means to pitch a tent or, more deeply, to tabernacle. It pulls us back to the days of Moses, when God's presence filled a tent in the wilderness and led his people step by step. Exodus 25, 8 says and let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell in their midst. Let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell in their midst.
Speaker 2:Exodus, chapter 40, 34, 35 says Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent because the cloud settled on it and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Now, back then God's glory was real, but it was veiled. It was majestic but distant. Now John proclaims that the same glory has come again, not in a cloud, not in a sacred tent, but in a person. He says we have seen his glory.
Speaker 2:Jesus is not just the messenger of God's presence, he is the presence. He is the true and better tabernacle. What once was temporary is now eternal. What once was symbolic is now personal. In Christ, the divine and the human meet perfectly. He is the ultimate meeting place between heaven and earth. Just as the Israelites approached the tabernacle to draw near to God, we now draw near to God through Christ.
Speaker 2:John 2, verses 18-22, makes this even clearer Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. But he was speaking about the temple of his body. This points us forward to Revelation 21-3, where he says Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. As John chapter 114 tells us, the word became flesh, a real historical incarnation, and dwelt. This is pitched his tent among us, echoing the tabernacle of old. We saw his glory, not a distant splendor, but the divine beauty revealed in his person. He was the only son, full of grace and truth, a phrase that echoes God's covenant character in Exodus 34, 6-7, which says the Lord passed before him and proclaimed the Lord. The Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty. Jesus is the temple, jesus is the glory, jesus is the presence of God. Come near Now.
Speaker 2:This idea of dwelling in glory stretches back even further than John's gospel. In Exodus, 31, 21 to 23, we read and the Lord said Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, and while my glory passes by, I will put you in the cleft of the rock and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take away my hand and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen. Moses longed to see God's glory. He didn't want merely direction, he wanted encounter. And God, in his mercy, hid Moses in the cleft of the rock, shielding him from the fullness of his holiness while allowing him a glimpse of his glory. That moment was a shadow of something greater.
Speaker 2:Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10.4,. For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ. Moses was hidden in the rock and in the safety he beheld the passing glory of God, but we are hidden in Christ, and in him we behold the fullness. Hebrews 1.3 says Jesus is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature. We don't just see his back, we see his face, as 2 Corinthians 4.6 declares. For God, who said Let light shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Let that sink in. In Jesus. We see what Moses longed to see. And just as Moses was placed in the rock by God's initiative, we are placed in Christ by grace. You didn't climb into the cleft. You didn't earn that access. God placed you there. He hid you in the rock so that you wouldn't be into the cleft. You didn't earn that access. God placed you there. He hid you in the rock so that you wouldn't be destroyed by his holiness. Instead, you are drawn into his presence.
Speaker 2:Now let's pause here and talk about this word glory. We read it all throughout the Bible In the Psalms, in the prophets, in the gospels, in the letters of Paul. We sing about it in worship, we pray it, we quote it. But here's the truth. Most people read the word glory without ever stopping to think about what it actually means, and if you ask them to define it, many couldn't.
Speaker 2:In the Old Testament the word translated glory, carries the idea of weight, heaviness or significance. It means something of great value and worth, something that is solid and unshakable. In the New Testament the word for glory points to radiance, splendor and honor, the beauty and majesty of someone or something revealed for all to see. So when the Bible speaks of the glory of God, it's talking about the display of everything God is his holiness. It's his power, his wisdom, his mercy, his justice, his love, all his perfect attributes shining out for creation to see and respond to. Think of it this way Glory is God's holiness made visible. Holiness is who he is, in his perfection. Glory is that perfection put on display, the seraphim crying out holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory. They don't say the whole earth is full of his holiness, because holiness is God's inner perfection. Glory is that holiness going public, and this is why God says in Isaiah 42, 8, I am the Lord. That is my name. My glory I give to no other. God will not share his glory because there is no one else who is what he is. His glory is the public display of his unique, infinite worth, and here's where it becomes personal.
Speaker 2:Romans, chapter 3, verse 23, says for all have sinned and fall short of Of the glory of God. That means we were created to reflect his glory in the world, but sin, it, causes us to fall short Not just from obeying him but of displaying him. Sin doesn't just break God's rules, it robs God of the glory he has due through our lives, and this is why Jesus came. John 1.14 says do through our lives, and this is why Jesus came. John 1 14 says we have seen his glory, glory as of the only son from the father, full of grace and truth. In Jesus, the invisible God becomes visible. The word takes on flesh. So we could behold the holiness of God on display In his compassion towards sinners, his authority over creation, his obedience to the father and, ultimately, in his compassion towards sinners, his authority over creation, his obedience to the Father and, ultimately, in his sacrifice on the cross. When we talk about the glory of God, we're talking about the most real and weighty reality in existence the beauty, power and worth of God displayed, and that glory is not just something we will see one day in eternity. It is something we are called to live for and reflect right now. And this is where the rest of John's prologue becomes even more stunning, because when we understand what glory truly means, glory truly means every phrase in these verses becomes deeper, heavier and more personal.
Speaker 2:Now, before we move on, I want to give you a picture of this from a recent personal experience. Not long ago, I was talking with a group of kids, and I love conversations with children, not because I think I can convince them of deep truths, but because children have a way of asking questions that cut right to the heart. They often ask what adults don't dare to ask, and they do it with a simplicity that exposes how much we take for granted. I walked up to them and I started talking to them about God and our purpose in this world. To strike up a conversation, and one boy he couldn't have been more than seven or eight looked up and asked why did Jesus have to die on the cross? Now I could give the standard answer he died for our sins. And in fact, the boy quickly said before I could say anything, I know he died for my sins, but why did he have to die on the cross? Now that's a different question and honestly, in that moment I didn't have the simple answer I felt he was looking for. For weeks afterward, I thought about it, I prayed, I went back to scripture and here's where I landed.
Speaker 2:Jesus had to die on the cross because in that one moment, god put the fullness of his glory on display. God put the fullness of his glory on display. Every attribute of God his justice, his wrath, his love, his mercy, his grace, his wisdom, his faithfulness was revealed at the same time, in the same place, through the same act. The cross wasn't just the means of our salvation. It was the stage where God showed us who he truly is and all his beauty. Everything before the cross points forward to it and everything after the cross points back to it. So if I could answer that boy right now, I would say this Jesus had to die on the cross because God wanted to show us how beautiful he is.
Speaker 2:His glory is his beauty. It's not simply what he does, it's who he is. And on the cross he didn't reveal just part of himself, he revealed all of himself. This is why Paul can say, the glory of God is seen in the face of Jesus Christ, because at the cross we behold the full display of God's glory. Nowhere else in history do we see it all at once. So now that we've seen what glory truly is, we can begin to recognize it. When we see it, it changes what we treasure and it changes what we pursue. So with that fresh in our minds, let's hear how John continues his thoughts in verses 16 to 17.
Speaker 2:For from his fullness we have all received grace upon grace, for the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. The phrase here, grace upon grace, paints the picture of waves rolling onto the shore, one after another, without end. This is the kind of grace Christ gives, not just a momentary relief, but an abundant, overflowing mercy that comes fresh every single day. Let this settle in your heart. You are not living on yesterday's grace, you are walking today in today's grace.
Speaker 2:The law given through Moses was holy and righteous, it revealed God's standards, but it could not change the heart. As Paul reminds us in Romans 7, 12, the law is holy and the commandment is holy and righteous and good, but the law could only point out our need. Grace through Jesus Christ meets that need. The law exposed the sickness. Christ brings the cure. Exodus 34 6 tells us that God is abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. That same description now walks the earth in flesh and blood. Jesus did not come to modify God's character, he came to reveal it. What the law foreshadowed Jesus fulfills. As Moses brought the law on tablets of stone, jesus brings the fullness of grace in a living, breathing body. He is the better Moses, the better mediator and the better covenant. Lamentations 3, 22-23 says the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Now, verse 18 says this is the crescendo of John's prologue.
Speaker 2:Throughout the Old Testament, glimpses of God's glory were seen, but never his full essence. Not Moses, not Isaiah, not even the prophets, but Jesus, the one. Scripture calls the unique and only God, the one-of-a-kind God who eternally dwells in the heart of the Father he has made himself known. The phrase at the Father's side implies not just nearness but deep eternal intimacy. Jesus does not merely speak for God, he is God. He does not represent divine truth, he embodies it.
Speaker 2:Hebrews 1.3 declares he is the radiance of the glory of God, in the exact imprint of his nature. To see Jesus is to see the Father, to know the radiance of the glory of God in the exact imprint of his nature. To see Jesus is to see the Father. To know Jesus is to know the heart of God. Moses once pleaded Lord, show me your glory. And in Jesus that longing is finally answered. God has not remained hidden. He has come near. He has wrapped himself in the flesh so that we might behold him, know him and walk with him. And that means we don't have to stand at a distance, like Moses did, shielded from the fullness of God's presence. In Christ, the veil is torn, the way is open and the glory of God is no longer a sight to fear but a savior to follow. We behold his glory today every time we see his grace at work in our lives, every time his word renews our minds and every time his spirit shapes us to look more like him. The glory Moses longed for is the glory you and I are invited to see and reflect right now.
Speaker 2:So, as we close this section of John's Gospel from verses 1 through 18, we're left with more than theology. We're left with a call to respond. How do we apply these truths. How can we, who were created for his glory, live in a way that reflects his presence and experiences his joy? First, we must walk by faith, not by sight. That doesn't mean blind belief. It means a trust that is rooted in what God has already revealed. We believe because he has made us alive. In him and in that believing we behold To experience his joy.
Speaker 2:We must live for his glory, not through perfect performance, but through surrendered faith. We don't need to get everything right. We need to let everything go. We must trust him to work in us and through us. Only then will we experience the reality that the eternal God, the one who spoke galaxies into existence, now lives in us. He wasn't just a man who lived 2,000 years ago. He lives today. He has made his dwelling with us and he invites us to come near, to approach him, to surrender to him so that he might manifest his glory in and through our lives. And when he does, we receive the greatest gift of all, not just a blessing from God, but God himself.
Speaker 2:The takeaway is this you are made for his glory, and when you live for his glory, you'll find his joy. John 15, 8-11. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. And the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be full.
Speaker 2:Let's pray, father God, thank you again for your word, thank you for the power and the authority of it that we can look to it for a foundation of truth. This is a deep theological. For the power and the authority of it that we can look to it for a foundation of truth. This is a deep theological truth that your glory was fully on display on the cross. We miss this so often as believers. We read that word glory so often and never stop to reflect what it means.
Speaker 2:You have desired to put your beauty on display throughout all eternity and you accomplished that and did that on the cross through your son, jesus Christ, who is the radiance of your glory. He radiates your beauty outward. We can look to him and say God, you displayed all of yourself on the cross and the result of that is our salvation. It's not the why. The why was to show yourself. We're the result, and for that you get the praise To the praise of your glorious grace that you so lovingly poured out on us. You are amazing, god. We thank you for your love, we thank you for your grace and we behold your glory and are in all of you. Oh God, I pray that you would open the eyes and ears of our listeners, that they would see that for themselves, that when they open up the scriptures and read it, that this will be set in their minds forever. We love you and we thank you In Jesus' name. Amen.
Speaker 2:Now as always, I want to thank you for joining us today, and I hope this episode has helped you take a step closer in your relationship with Jesus and that you now have a deeper understanding of just how much God loves you, and we really want you to know Him.
Speaker 2:Before we go, I want to encourage you to send us any questions or comments you may have using the text us link in the episode description. Your input helps us shape future episodes that speak directly to your needs and help you grow in your faith. It's our desire that this ministry be a tool to reach the lost and equip the saints for a life that brings glory to God. Now, in our next episode, we'll move into John, chapter 1, verses 19 to 28, with a message titled who Are you? In this passage, we see John the Baptist questioned by the religious leaders about his identity and his mission. His answer will challenge us to examine how we see ourselves, how we point others to Christ, and whether our lives make much of Him or much of ourselves. You will not want to miss it, god bless, and we'll see you next time. On the Takeaway.