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God compressed himself into a space on the mercy seat above the ark of the Covenant. In the greatest “communication” God compressed Himself, voiced himself, into human flesh, showing up as man. What powerful mystery! Even the Apostle Paul declared the Flesh-God, a profound mystery.
Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great:
He appeared in a body,
was vindicated by the Spirit,
was seen by angels,
was preached among the nations,
was believed on in the world,
was taken up in glory. 1 Tim 3:16
Our Mystery is substantial, not ethereal! Our auditory, visual, and tactile senses discern the Word becoming flesh and dwelling among us. The shepherds and later the wisemen witness The Mystery. Later still the followers of The Word testified to it.
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched – this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 1 John 1:1-2
I prefer calling Christmas “Incarnation Day.” God became incarnate among us wearing human flesh to save creatures made of flesh. “Incarn,” means “in flesh.” All of us are born with flesh, but how exceptionally unusual for God to show up wearing it!
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death–that is, the devil. Heb 2:14
The story of Christmas is a rescue mission, but the hero is not a local. He is from out-of-town. Jesus comes down from highest heaven to redeem us! Heaven’s purposeful war strategy utilized a virgin, a baby, a cross and tomb, and a few other items like hosts of angels. These weapons decimate the judgments of death and hell and all their powers!
One of the greatest powers Jesus conquers is the spirit of the antichrist! The antichrist is “anti-flesh.” Note how the Apostle John warns us;
Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. 2 John 7
Who is the antichrist?
Most people think of the antichrist as a man who is a really bad dude. “We’ll have to watch out for him when he shows up.” The far greater danger is “the spirit of antichrist,” which is already in the world. If we cannot discern and overcome that spirit we will be cannon fodder for individuals who operate as antichrists. Many Christians have been decimated by the subtleties of the spirit of antichrist. The Apostle John warned us:
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming, and now it is already in the world. 1 John 4: 1-3
Have you noticed how stealthily, how subtly, this satanic spirit has operated? Each Christmas the radio plays more “Santa and sleigh-bells” and less “Christ-has-appeared-among-us.” I noticed in a large box store that out of hundreds of “Christmas” cards only two had a Christ-message. The message of incarnation, God taking on flesh, has been watered down to dissolve its potency. Nativity has been replaced by naivety.
The anti-Christ is the diabolical Grinch who steals, “Today in Bethlehem is born for you a Savior.”
What is antichrist’s malicious, seductive, intent?
Satan doesn’t want earthlings to know Jesus walked among them in flesh.
Antichrist reduces Jesus to a vague, warm, but powerless, spiritual feeling.
He clouds the realization that Jesus is physical, concrete and touchable.
He obscures Jesus physical incarnation and His ultimate tangible, sizzling, dazzling return.
He muddles the reality that Jesus raises us physically at the resurrection.
Antichrist slanders Jesus, saying:
“Jesus only appeared to have flesh.”
“Jesus can’t relate to you because he doesn’t understand your fleshly struggles.”
“Jesus is powerless to help you in your day-to-day fleshly world.”
“Don’t expect Jesus to do anything world-changing. He will only grant you an indistinct ‘spiritual’ comfort.”
“Don’t expect to live a life of overcoming sin because nobody who has flesh can overcome.”
“Don’t expect much from Jesus because there is not much to Him. He’s vague and insubstantial.”
The spirit of the anti-Christ is fine with us “spiritualizing” everything. This deceiving spirit is fine with otherworldly ideas of our Jesus, but not striking, bold moments of awareness of His tangible presence.
YOU MAY HAVE ALREADY BEEN SEDUCED BY ANTICHRIST IF:
You divide the world into “spiritual” and “material.”
You have an abstract, theoretical, or hyper-spiritual image of Christ.
You are more interested in going to heaven than seeing heaven physically transform earth.
Your hope is in dying and going to heaven rather than the resurrection of the dead.
You settle for Jesus healing the “spiritually” blind and deaf, but don’t expect Jesus to heal the blind and deaf physically.
You don’t expect to see tangible answers to your prayers.
PROCLAMATIONS FOR CRUSHING THE ANTICHRIST SPIRIT
Sometimes we must shake ourselves and speak out loud the reality of our substantial Savior. We can take the truths of Incarnation Day and crush the nay-saying antichrist! Speak out truths like these:
I am a Christian materialist!
There is no division between spiritual and physical.
Jesus pre-existed eternally and “incarnated” as a baby for me.
Jesus solidly, physically lives for me.
My High Priest sympathizes with me because He became like me.
He knows the pain of my stubbed toe, and personal rejection.
He knows what it is to be exhausted and feel hunger.
He knows the pleasures of family and friends.
Jesus touches me in tangible ways, not just vague mystical ways.
When I pray I expect my Lord to respond with tangible answers.
He delivers and heals my flesh.
My Lord Jesus Christ is solid!
Jesus was born in the flesh
Lived among us in the flesh
Ministered to mortals wearing flesh
Died in flesh
Rose in flesh
Ascended in flesh
He reigns in Heaven in flesh. [What does that tell us about heaven?]
He is returning in flesh, to our material world.
The antichrist was overcome at the cross. I will no-longer allow the antichrist to slink around. I uncover and expose Him! I certify the physical victory!
My Lord Jesus has crushed the world of denial of the antichrist by coming in the flesh to save all flesh!
Steven C Johnson
LandingStripEnterprises.Com
To further fortify yourself in God’s wonderful plan to dwell in flesh and bless His creatures made in flesh look to the Scriptures below. They will be bullets for your gun that you may decimate the spirit of the antichrist.
INCARNATION BULLETS FOR YOUR GUN
Scriptures are bullets for our spiritual guns. Take the following incarnation passages to pow, bang and rat-a-tat-tat against the power of the antichrist. Abide in our dearest Lord Jesus and let His word abide in you. It is open season on Giants. Happy hunting!
Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
Mic 5:2 But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times.
John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Rom 8:3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering.
Gal 4:4 But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law
Phil 2:5-8 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.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death-
even death on a cross!
Col 1:15-20 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginningand the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
2 Cor 5:19 God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
Heb 1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.
Heb 1:6 And again,when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says,
“Let all God’s angels worship him.”
Heb 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
Heb 2:14 Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—
Isa 9:6-7 For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.