Christmas Reflection: Who was the baby born in Bethlehem?
Who was the baby born in Bethlehem?
By Johnny McClaughlin
Each Christmas season invites our culture to theological reflection of the highest order. The nativity scene, familiar and serene, presses upon us profound questions. Has the God of the universe walked the dusty streets of this world? And if He has, what are the implications for our lives?
The apostle John, writing as a man who spent years walking alongside Jesus, confronts these questions with clarity and conviction. His gospel was written, “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:31). In other words, John wants his readers to grasp the identity of the child born in Bethlehem because their eternal destiny depends on it.
John’s testimony is simple yet profound: the baby born in Bethlehem is the Son of God, the Creator and the Saviour of those who would place their trust and faith in Him.
The Baby Born in Bethlehem Is the Son of God
John opens his gospel with language intentionally echoing Genesis, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). The One whom John calls “the Word” is the eternal Son of God.
The Baby Born in Bethlehem Is the Creator
John continues, “All things were made through Him” (John 1:3a), consequently the child in Mary’s arms is the One who flung stars into space. He is the architect of galaxies, the giver and sustainer of life. Further, the incarnation of the Son of God announces divine care. God does not merely observe our struggles from afar; He enters into them. This truth is sharpened when John declares, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). The eternal Son of God not only fashioned the world, He stepped into it. Spurgeon captured the wonder of the incarnation, “Infinite, and an infant. Eternal, and yet born of a woman.”
The Baby Born in Bethlehem Is the Saviour
Despite His identity as the Son of God and the Creator of the ends of the earth, John tells us when Christ entered the world, “the world did not know Him” (John 1:10c). Yet to those who did receive Him, “He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12b). The incarnation is therefore not merely revelation; it concerns salvation because the Christ-child offers adoption into the family of God which is the greatest gift offered this Christmas through repentance and faith in His name. He invites the weary, the confused, the broken, the anxious and the sin-burdened to find real life in His name.
