Friday
Friday
The Reflection of John
The Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.
1 John 4:14
It is all but certain that the apostle John lived to a ripe old age and that he was the last surviving apostle. So it will be good to hear his mature reflection on the meaning and purpose of the incarnation: “The Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.” It is a straightforward statement about Christmas in which the four nouns stand out: the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
The world is John’s term for godless society, which is displeasing to God and under his just judgment.
The Savior indicates that the world needs salvation. For, though the words sin and salvation belong to a traditional vocabulary that embarrasses some and confuses others, we cannot jettison them. They express vital realities that it would be foolish to ignore. Salvation is freedom—freedom from guilt, judgment, self-centeredness, fear, and death.
The Son is the Savior we need, being both God and man, whose birth we celebrate at Christmas and whose death is the only ground on which God can forgive our sins today. For, to quote another of John’s summary statements, God “sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (v. 10).
Moreover, the Father sent the Son to be the world’s Savior. The Son did not come of his own accord. Still less did he wrest salvation from a Father reluctant to give it. No, the Father sent him. The Father took the initiative in his great love. For in giving his Son, he was giving himself.
For further reading: 1 John 4:7–16