Every Christmas, we sing about a baby in a manger. And that baby was real. He got hungry, He got tired, and He cried like any other newborn. But here is the amazing thing. That same baby was God Himself. Today I want to talk about why that matters, and why Jesus had to be both.

Let’s start with who He is. The Gospel of John opens by saying that in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Then, a few verses later, John tells us the Word became flesh and lived among us. Jesus did not stop being God when He came to earth. He added humanity to His deity.

And Jesus Himself did not hide it. He told the religious leaders, “Before Abraham was, I am.” They knew exactly what He was claiming, and they picked up stones. When Thomas saw the risen Lord, he fell down and said, “My Lord and my God.” Jesus did not correct him. He accepted it. A mere man would have said, “Stop, don’t worship me.” Jesus never did.

So why did He have to be God? Because the debt we owed was bigger than any man could pay. Our sin is against an infinite, holy God. No angel, no prophet, and no good person could cover it. The Lord says in Isaiah that besides Him there is no Savior. Only God could save us, so God came.

Now, why did He have to be a man? Because God cannot die, and the payment for sin was death. The book of Hebrews says that since we share flesh and blood, Jesus shared in it too, so that through His death He could set us free. He had to be one of us to stand in our place.

There is a second reason, and it is a sweet one. Hebrews also tells us we have a high priest who understands our weakness, because He was tempted in every way we are, yet without sin. He knows what it is to be tired, lonely, and grieved. When you pray, you are not talking to someone who has no idea what you are going through.

Put it all together and you see the beauty of it. First Timothy says there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. He reaches up to God, because He is God. He reaches down to us, because He is man. Take away either one, and there is no bridge.

That is why we hold so tightly to this truth. A Jesus who is only a good man cannot save you. A Jesus who is only God cannot sympathize with you. But the Jesus of the Bible, fully God and fully man, can do both.

Let’s pray. Father, thank You for sending Your Son to be our Savior and our friend. Help us never to lose the wonder of it, and draw near to anyone who does not yet know Him. Let them hear that He is both able and willing to save. In Jesus’ name, amen.