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  THE WORD MADE FLESH
  By Doug Fortune

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (John 1:1,14)

The essence of Christianity is the Word being made flesh... the engrafted living Word that is able to bring salvation to our mind, will and emotions- our soul, our flesh. “Of His own will begat He US with the WORD of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.... and receive with meekness the engrafted Word, which is able to save your souls.” (James 1:18, 21) Yes, Jesus Christ was uniquely THE Word made flesh, “Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person...” (Heb. 1:3), but His desire is that the engrafted Word find expression in US, His many sons (and daughters); “For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory...” (Heb. 2:10) This is also the essence of the dominion mandate of Gen. 1:26-27 and the essence of the great commission of Matt. 28:19 (which is really the dominion mandate of Gen. 1:26-27 re-stated in the New Testament).

If then, the Word being made flesh is so central, let us explore HOW this happens. We are going to look at three things: the EAR canal, the VOICE canal, and the BIRTH canal; or said another way, perception, proclamation, and procreation. Since we know that the Word was made flesh in the womb of Mary, and brought to fruition in the body of Jesus Christ, perhaps there is a prototype we can glean from. “And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus... Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee... For with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy WORD.” (Luke 1:30-31, 34-35, 37-38)

Here we see that the WORD, Who was in the beginning (John 1:1), ‘sent word’ to Mary through a messenger. In the Greek, word (logos) means ‘something said including the thought’; the root word lego means ‘to lay forth, to relate in words usually of systematic or set discourse.’ A word is the AUDIBLE expression of a thought, and a thought reveals who we ARE; “as he thinketh in his heart, SO IS HE...” (Prov.23:7) So, by definition, we understand that the Word is the AUDIBLE expression of Who God is.

The EAR Canal- Perception
Bear with me now, while we explore something: Most of us think of sound as what people HEAR (although scientists think in terms of waves). Given that definition, SOUND is established as a sonic reality when a sound wave oscillating through the air is perceived by vibrating the ear drum. In scientific reality, there are waves all around us, but only those waves that are PERCEIVED become sound, at least ‘sound’ as we think of it. The human ear is uniquely designed to take those waves all around us that have frequencies between 20 Hz and 20,000 Hz, and ‘funnel’ them into our consciousness. Or in other words, to take that which we are surrounded by, the vast array of waves, and make it personal. When exposed over a period of time to loud and constant sound waves, one’s hearing can become dull. In hearing loss, it is the higher frequencies that are lost first, thus taking the distinction out of sounds.

In the spiritual sense, we are also surrounded by the Word Who was in the beginning (John 1:1), the AUDIBLE expression of Who God is. There are also many other spiritual ‘sound waves’ clamoring noisily for our attention... opinions of men, fear and unbelief, prejudice and ignorance, and the list could go on. When we focus on and listen to those other ‘sound waves’, we loose sensitivity to the HIGHER frequency of the Word, the AUDIBLE expression of Who God is. “Then came there a VOICE from heaven... The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel SPAKE to him.” (John 12:28-29) Here we have two groups of people who apparently heard the same sound. However, it would seem that some heard a voice- the distinction of words, and some just heard thunder, an indecipherable rumbling. Some had ‘ears to hear’, some were ‘dull of hearing’.

Just a few verses previous to the messenger bringing the Word of the Lord to Mary, there is a very similar message for Zacharias concerning the birthing of John. If you remember the account, it would seem that Zacharias had been listening to those other ‘sound waves’- opinions of men, fear and unbelief, prejudice and ignorance. Dull of hearing, he had lost sensitivity to the HIGHER frequency of the Word, to him it was just thunder. Take note of the vast difference in Mary’s response to the Word, “be it unto me according to thy WORD.” (Luke 1:38) Even today, not all have ‘ears to hear’ the message that the Father desires to spiritually ‘impregnate’ us, in order that we may give ‘birth’ to a holy thing, a Manchild, a mature Church. Like Zacharias, some just hear thunder, an indecipherable rumbling.

The VOICE Canal- Proclamation
As we just saw, Mary’s proclamation was “be it unto me according to thy WORD.” (Luke 1:38) She not only had ears to hear, she also joined HER VOICE with the Word, therefore establishing it as a reality in her life. Keep in mind that this was no light thing for her to proclaim, for to be pregnant and unmarried in that culture and period in history was absolutely devastating. For Mary, any thought of being socially acceptable or living the ‘American dream’ so to speak, was entirely out of the question now. In fact, under the letter of the Law, she could be stoned to death. She had to entirely ‘die’ to self to make that proclamation, “be it unto me according to thy WORD.”

Jesus makes an interesting statement in John 5:30, “I can of mine own self do nothing: as I HEAR, I JUDGE: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.” The word translated as judge, krino in Greek, is a legal term meaning to distinguish, i.e. decide mentally or judicially; by implication, to try, decree, determine, go to law, pronounce sentence. So as with Mary, we see the same process with Jesus, He HEARD the Word of the Father, and joined His VOICE with the Word, therefore establishing it as a reality.

2 Cor. 13:1 states this principle so clearly; “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every WORD be established.” The word translated as witnesses, martus in Greek, is the root from which we get the English word martyr. It means a witness- literally, judicially or figuratively; by analogy, a martyr. What an appropriate word! Mary was a living martyr, dead to the desires of self, to be able to say “be it unto me according to thy WORD.” Jesus was a living martyr, dead to the desires of self, to be able to say “I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.” This is not just a casual agreement, it is the power of covenant!

When that verse says “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every WORD be established”, most of us have been taught that this is the formula for establishing doctrine. Yes, it is certainly wise and prudent to base our teaching upon the agreement of the Word, Old and New Testament, allowing the Logos (written Word) to interpret itself. However, that is not really what that verse is speaking of, for the word used there is not logos, it is RHEMA- the God-breathed, living, NOW-Word of God. With that understanding, the verse seems to be saying, “In covenantal agreement with Word of the Father, through the proclamation of living martyrs (dead to the desires of self) shall every RHEMA, God-breathed, living, NOW-Word be established!” My friend, this is not ‘Kingdomized’ name it and claim it, blab it and grab it! This is ruling and reigning in Christ. This is bringing the Kingdom of heaven to bear upon the earth. This is the ‘real thing’!

The BIRTH Canal- Procreation
Perhaps you are thinking about now, “How can this be?” Well don’t worry, Mary asked the same question in Luke 1:34. The angel’s answer to Mary rings just as true for us today, “For with God NOTHING shall be impossible.” (Luke 1:37) I believe also that there is much to be gleaned from the proclamation of the messenger; “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” (Luke 1:35)

Notice first that the holy thing being birthed is called “the Son of God.” Of course Jesus Christ was uniquely the only begotten Son of God, but John 1:12-14 tells us that “as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the SONS OF GOD, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but OF God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us...” The word translated as ‘among’ in that verse, en in Greek, is a primary preposition denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by implication) instrumentality (medially or constructively), i.e. a relation of rest, IN. That verse reads literally “and pitched His tent, encamped IN us.” Indeed, as the Word is made flesh and He encamps IN us, we become the SONS OF GOD.

Let us further examine the proclamation of the messenger to better understand this procreation. “The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee” The Literal Bible reads, “the angel said to her, Spirit Holy will come upon you...” Let us consider something that is often overlooked. It seems so much emphasis, especially in the Pentecostal / Charismatic community, is put upon the INDIVIDUAL Person of and manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Now, 2 Cor. 6:17 is quite clear when it says, "he who is joined to the Lord becomes ONE SPIRIT with Him..." (Amplified Bible) Yes, you read that correctly, our human SPIRIT is joined in ONENESS to the SPIRIT of God.

Yet so often the emphasis seems to be on the manifestation of the Holy Spirit APART from the agency of man. “The Holy Spirit really showed up at our meeting!”; “Come, Holy Spirit, fall afresh on us today!” It would seem that at times our paradigms are “geographically and directionally challenged.” (Sorry, that’s my attempt at humor.) In reality, the Holy Spirit showed up because YOU showed up... there’s no reason for the Holy Spirit to ‘fall’, because the Holy Spirit dwells in men and women. God’s plan is rather that the Holy Spirit RISE within His people. It is the fundamental difference between ‘God on the outside’ (Old Covenant) and ‘God on the inside’ (New Covenant). In Greek it is pneuma hagios, or Spirit Holy... in other words a spirit that is holy. When we receive the Holy Spirit, we now have a spirit that is holy because that Spirit is the ‘breath’ or essence of God Himself... the emphasis is on the Holy Spirit IN US, the corporate Body of Christ.

“The Holy Spirit shall come upon you...” The word translated as ‘come upon’ is eperchomai in Greek, meaning to supervene, i.e. arrive, occur, impend, attack. It is from epi, which means super imposition, and erchomai. Erchomai is the middle voice of a primary verb used only in the present and imperfect tenses. The middle voice is that use of the verb which describes the subject as PARTICIPATING in the RESULTS of the action. The present tense may be used to describe an action that, begun in the past, CONTINUES in the present, the emphasis is on the PRESENT time. The imperfect is often used to describe an action or state that is IN PROGRESS. Like the present tense, the imperfect tense displays an internal aspect. That is, it portrays the action from within the event, without regard for beginning or end. The imperfect (like the present) takes a motion picture, portraying the action as it unfolds. As such, the imperfect focuses on the PROCESS of the action. In other words, this verb is describing the COMING upon as something that has begun, yet continues presently as a process that is not complete.

From these definitions we see that there first has to be a supervening, a super imposition of the Spirit of God upon us- giving us a NEW SPIRIT (Ezek. 36:26). Here is the reason why: in order for a ‘Holy Thing’, a Manchild, to be birthed, it must proceed from a ‘womb’ that is holy, a NEW SPIRIT, fertilized by ‘seed’ that is holy. 1 Peter 1:23 in the Amplified Bible says, “...you have been regenerated - born again - not from a mortal origin (seed, sperm) but from one that is immortal by the ever living and lasting WORD of God.”

Let us continue... “the power of the Most High will overshadow you” The word translated as overshadow, episkiazo in Greek, means to cast a shade upon, i.e. to envelope in a haze of brilliancy, figuratively to invest with preternatural influence. It would seem that the emphasis of the Second Day (Pentecostal / Charismatic mindset) has been the Holy Spirit ‘coming upon’ us. This ‘coming upon’ us is important because it readies us for the ‘overshadowing’, but the ‘coming upon’ is not an end unto itself.

I see the emphasis of the Third Day mentality shifting to ‘overshadowing’. I don’t know that I can articulate it that well, but this ‘overshadowing’ seems to be a spiritual impregnating of sorts, much like God’s glory overshadowing Moses on the Mount in Ex.33:19; “And He said, I will make all My goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee.” When you study out the Hebrew definitions of that verse (see the chapter on Glory in my book ‘No Veil- Restoration of the Tabernacle of David) it seems to be saying that God caused His goodness, His Nature to cover over, to spiritually impregnate, to overshadow (sounds a bit like Mary) Moses’ face, Moses’ countenance, Moses’ nature. Then He decreed His name, His bloodline, His mark upon Moses’ face, countenance, nature. Is it any wonder that we see Moses manifesting the glory, the nature of God on his face, on his countenance as he comes down the Mount?

We also see a glimpse of this ‘overshadowing’ on the Mount when Jesus was enveloped in a cloud of light... it affected the way His disciples saw Him and it will affect the way people see us. “And after SIX days (remember, we are moving into the seventh millennial day) Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, and was TRANSFIGURED before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light... Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three TABERNACLES...”(Matt.17:1-2,4). In verse four, we find Peter speaking prophetically as he suggests putting up tabernacles... he is speaking of the Feast of Tabernacles- the seventh Feast, which is the Feast that the Church is NOW moving into. The Feast of Tabernacles speaks of the continual manifest indwelt presence of the Lord in His ‘Temple not made with hands’- His Body, as we manifest His nature, His LIKENESS, His GLORY. This is the Word being made flesh!

It is of importance to note that the Feast of Tabernacles is preceded by the Feast of the Blowing of Trumpets, and the Feast of Atonement. This all fits so perfectly with the symbolism of the Blowing of Trumpets- remember the ‘sound waves’ we talked about earlier?... the Word Who was in the beginning (John 1:1), the AUDIBLE expression of Who God is. The Feast of Atonement, when all sin was atoned for, is symbolic of the ‘coming upon’ to give us a NEW Spirit, a ‘womb’ that is holy. The Feast of Tabernacles is the ‘overshadowing’, the Word being made flesh, the BIRTH canal, procreation.

Fortunately, I don’t remember the events of my own birth, however I am blessed with four children. I was in the delivery room and involved the birth of all four. Part of the wonder and amazement each time was how something as large as a baby managed to get through the birth canal. To the natural mind, it sure didn’t seem possible. Yet each time, the ‘impossible’ happened, and we gave birth to a baby. One thing was always absolute... there was certainly no ‘extra room’ in the birth canal, the baby was pressed on all sides. “We are pressed on every side, yet not straitened; perplexed, yet not unto despair; pursued, yet not forsaken; smitten down, yet not destroyed...” (2 Cor. 4:7-9) My friend, if your life right now could be described as being pulled through a knot-hole backwards, perhaps you are in the birth canal of your destiny! If you are wondering why it seems that you are being pressed, stressed, messed, and repressed, perhaps it is because you are about to be BLESSED! Just remember, birth is a rather messy business, so don’t be surprised when things begin to ‘break loose’... you’re in the delivery room of the Word being made flesh.

Let us press forward in understanding the EAR canal, the VOICE canal, and the BIRTH canal. Let us advance in our perception, proclamation, and procreation. Let us grasp the essence of Christianity, which is the Word being made flesh... the engrafted living Word that is bringing salvation to our mind, will and emotions- our soul, our flesh.