Audio – Visual
And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the Only Begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14
Became Flesh – Every teacher and every leader knows that if you want the audience to remember what they learn, you have to present it in as many integrated ways as possible. That means you need words, pictures, personal engagement and repetition. Should we be surprised that God uses the same multimedia approach? In broad brush, the Old Testament is God’s audio revelation. The Incarnation is God’s visual teaching tool. Jesus arrives in order to show us Who God is. And every step of God’s self-revelation involves personal engagement and the requirement for repetition. If you are a fully-tuned-in follower, you are open to sound, sight and action.
That is exactly the methodology of the incarnated life. Don’t just give me your words. Show me your life – and then, walk this path with me!
Today’s Word is one-dimensional teaching. It suffers the limitation of words. Because it has only these feeble letters to work with, it provides just a small glimmer of the greater reality. But come with me to Haiti or Honduras, journey to the orphanage in Zambia or the street mission in Winter Garden, and you will get the rest of the picture. Words aren’t enough. They only change your thinking. You need an incarnated image-bearer to change your life.
Jesus taught with words. But it was His life of total obedience that transformed those first century men and women. He was the visual representation of the Father. He was the ikon, the exact duplicate, in living flesh. No wonder men stood in awe. Jesus used God’s educational plan. Listen – obey – follow me. Is that the plan you use? Are you listening so intently that every word from God is incorporated into your thinking? Are you obedient to every transforming thought? Does your action demonstrate this transformation? God never delivers the next lesson until you have mastered the first one. He is not interested in “fact” gathering. He is interested in wisdom that results in changed behavior.
“God among us” is the banner cry of the incarnated follower. The Spirit empowers men and women who become image-bearers of God among us. And all of God’s image-bearing attributes show up in His incarnated children. There is only one begotten Son, but there are plenty of sons and daughters by adoption, and all of them are designed to incarnate the character of the Father. You are God’s visual aid to the world. When the people of the world see you, do they see the image-bearer of God, or do they see their own image in a mirror?
