December 19 – Dwells with Us
14 The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John testified concerning him and exclaimed, “This was the one of whom I said, ‘The one coming after me ranks ahead of me, because he existed before me.’”) 16 Indeed, we have all received grace upon grace from his fullness, 17 for the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God. The one and only Son, who is himself God and is at the Father’s side—he has revealed him. John 1:14-18
Dwells with Us (December 19 Devotional)
A year and a half ago, we moved. We sold our house and my in-laws sold their house, and we all moved into a large house. We live on the main floor, and my in-laws live in the lower level walkout (complete with their own living area, kitchen, bathroom, etc.).
It has actually been fantastic! We love living in the same place, especially when so many families have been forced to stay apart during the global pandemic. Dwelling together means that we share family movie night, fresh-baked brownies, puzzles, and more.
Together for better or worse
However, it also means that we have times when we get frustrated, angry, bored, or sad, and we share those times too. When we dwell together, sheer proximity causes us to experience the good, the bad, and the mediocre en masse. We knew each other before, but we have gotten to know one another even better in the past year and a half.
14 The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14
Dwells with us
Here in the book of John we find the idea that Jesus (The Word – see December 16 Devotional) became flesh and dwelt among us. As I was thinking about this idea of God with Us, or Emmanuel, it occurred to me that it doesn’t just mean that Jesus lived on earth in a house and did human-type things.
He came and lived a human life complete with pain, joy, suffering, frustration, anger, betrayal, laughter, love, boredom, and sadness. He lived the full range of emotion and experience so that we will never be alone. He dwells with us in the fullness of that idea. When Jesus dwells with us, we never have to go through anything alone. He has been through it and will be right there with us in it.
Revealed
No one has ever seen God. The one and only Son, who is himself God and is at the Father’s side—he has revealed him. John 1:18
God is revealed in the life of Jesus. It is incredibly hard for us to relate to the unseen Creator, but Jesus came to earth to reveal the mercy and grace of God to us. We can know Him and He knows us because He dwells with us.
December 19 Devotional Action Step:
Have you been holding back from sharing the innermost parts of yourself with Jesus? He wants to be intimately involved in all our deepest emotions.
Take a few moments in prayer today to share your joys, fears, triumphs, and troubles. He dwells with us and longs for us to dwell with him.
Prayer:
Dear God, thank you for sending Jesus to dwell with us. Help us to truly dwell with Him in the center of our lives, sharing every experience with Him. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Access to the other posts in this series and the free printables for this December can be found at the Series Overview page. Come join me as I pursue the peace and joy on the Savior’s birth throughout the month of December!