The incarnation may be the pivotal point in all of scripture. Next to the creation that opens the Bible and the re-creation that closes the Bible, the incarnation stand as the point where the re-creation and restoration of all of creation begins.
The Trinity requires that we consider the importance of the incarnation.
In the incarnation we find the sending God arriving to meet his creation in their own form. The Godhead puts on human flesh so that evil can be conquered and redemption can be offered. In the incarnation, we find the nature and character of the godhead embodied in Jesus Christ. In Christ, we are presented with the character and nature of God in a way that we can understand and experience – the physical touch of the very real Godhead. It is in the incarnation that we realize the depth of love the Godhead has for us and that we have a great high priest who not only understands our life but can intercede for us on the basis of that understanding. We can identify with them through the incarnation as we see the great lengths that the Godhead would go through to identify with us.
The incarnation was not just about saving people from their sins. The incarnation was about the Godhead conquering evil, restoring creation and redeeming mankind. All of creation is under re-creation because of the incarnation, resurrection and ascension. The impact of sin affects all of creation, from the birds of the air to the ground on which we walk (Hosea 4:3). The incarnation, however, is working to see the purity of the Garden of Eden restored all over the earth. This includes humankind. And it is in the incarnation that the restorative process begins.
The incarnation is the embodiment of the nature and character of the Godhead.
The incarnation provides us with an indication of the nature and character of the Godhead. Through the incarnation we see how the Godhead related together (the perichoresis). In the incarnation we see that God so loved the world, and that love was focused primarily on those whose lives were enslaved to sin and to religious legalism. Jesus lived among the fringe of society, those who knew the pain and struggle of life and wanted to be free of the consequences evil had brought upon them and that they had brought upon themselves. He touched those who had not felt a human touch in years. He healed those whom society believed was living in sin. He wept over the suffering and evil that was rampant in the world. And he offered hope from it all. He offered healing and love. He offered the presence of God to those who were longing for for it.
The MIROR church is the expression of the incarnation in its context.
The MIROR church is a reflection of the Trinity and as such has an incarnational aspect. The purpose of the MIROR church is to be the embodiment of the Godhead in the church’s context. The same nature and character of the Godhead is reflected outward as the church incarnates the loving, healing, freeing and restoring nature of the Godhead. It is part of the restorative and re-creative process that began with the original incarnation.
What does this mean for the church? It means that its focus is on those outside the community. It takes the faith community into the world, feeding off the sending (or missional) aspect of the Trinity. It works among the hurting, starving, broken, and dying of society, partnering with the Spirit to bring healing, forgiveness, hope, and the overwhelming provision and love of God.
This also means that the primary goal is not to draw them into the church’s own specific community of faith but to allow communities of faith to sprout where the church has touched the world. This can be across the road or across the ocean.
In living an incarnational life, the MIROR church is a reflection of the heart of Trinity.
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