As we mentioned last week, John is not like any of the other gospels, in fact, John is not like any other book ever written. Matthew, Mark and Luke are referred to as the Synoptic gospels because each of them gives a basic synopsis of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection but the gospel of John is different. John didn’t write to tell us what Jesus did during a thirty-three-year course of time so that we could conclude who He is, John wrote to tell us who Jesus was from the beginning, is in the current and would be for all of eternity. John the apostle is also John the Revelator. The man who left his nets when Jesus said “Follow Me” is the same man that heard Jesus’ concluding words of Scripture, “Surely I am coming quickly.” John walked with Jesus on earth but then he saw Jesus, looking like a Lamb who had been slain take the scroll that no one else had been found worthy to open and then open each of its seven seals. John watched Jesus die, was the first apostle to arrive at His empty tomb, was present each time Jesus appeared to the apostles after the resurrection and was one of the men staring into the sky after His ascension but He also saw Him mount a white horse and gather the armies of heaven with Him to begin the furious ride to the battle that will defeat the beast and all of God’s enemies. John writes to say “the One I walked with was the One who started everything and the One who is returning to finish the battle.” I believe that John’s gospel was written after he had seen the revelation so he’s not writing in hope of a future he’s writing as a witness of it. John has literally returned from the last day so that he can write to us in this day about the One whose majesty has been established since before the first day. John wants us to see Christ from the beginning so that we can believe on Him until the end. Therefore, John’s story of the incarnation is not about mangers, angels, wise men and shepherds, John writes to tell us about what transcends us, John writes of the Word of God, the Light of God and the Lamb of God. Most of the time an author will tell you his purpose for writing right up front, in the beginning so that you can keep it in front of you as you read, John does the exact opposite. In the next to last chapter of the book John writes, in 20:30-31 “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” At the end of the book John tells us that he was writing to persuade us of the truth of Jesus’ identity from the beginning of creation until the end of eternity (I realize there is no such thing) so that we might become disciples and have the abundant life that He has in Himself but has not kept only for Himself. He is writing as John Piper has said “to awaken faith in unbelievers and sustain faith in believers.” John is not writing to tell us who Jesus was, He is writing to tell us who He is, who He has always been and who He will always be. John is not writing about an incarnation that happened in the past tense, he is writing about an incarnation that continues to this day, an incarnation that we can’t fully celebrate or rightly understand until we realize that the true purpose of all of this was not an infant in a manger but the true purpose of the incarnation was and is a King on His throne. Every Christmas we must remember Christ’s birth only so that we will continue to prepare for His return.