Mind-blowing words that we have demystified

We humans can express things with our words that are really mind-blowing. Then we repeat the phrase frequently enough that the expression begins to lose its impact. For example, think about the first time you told someone, “I love you.” Do you remember the nerves? Do you remember the dry mouth and heart pounding? Now, we say it as a matter of routine. Sometimes we say, “I love you,” and then have to follow that up with some sort of emphasis. Our use of the phrase has demystified it.
Now, I am not advocating that we stop saying, “I love you.” This reflection really isn’t about that phrase at all. I mention that phrase as an example. I want to look at another phrase that is even more mind-boggling, and we have demystified it as well. Namely, “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.” These words from the beginning of St. John’s Gospel are mind-blowing, yet we often rush over them and do not let their full meaning sink into our hearts and minds.
Jesus was and is the Divine Word. He is God. He chose to humble Himself and to take on human nature (quick aside: Jesus was a divine person who had/has a divine nature and a human nature, but He is only one person). Think about that for a minute. If I could unite myself to a canine nature, the abasement I would suffer would not even come close the abasement that the Creator of the universe suffered by taking on the nature of one of His creatures. And the reason for Him to take on our nature was so that He could die on the cross for our sins. Everything else from His ministry could have been accomplished without taking on a human nature. He could have appeared to have a body so that He could teach and heal.
But His purpose was to save us by paying the price for our sins (“For the wages of sin is death …” Romans 6:23). We humans owed a price to God, but none of us had anything worthy of God. Everything we had was given to us by God. The Divine Word had to take on a human nature so that when He died on the cross it was an offering from a man, but a man who was also God (so the offering was sufficient).
“The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.” Let us not pass by these profound truths just because they are familiar.
— Pat Arensberg is the Director of the Office for Evangelization and Family Life. Email him at [email protected] 
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