Step 1—God became a man named Jesus Christ
Two verses in the book of John describe the first step God took. John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Then John 1:14 says, “And the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us.”
When we put these two verses together, we see something remarkable. The Word, who is God, became flesh. God became a man! This first step of God becoming a man is known as incarnation.
This step is truly amazing. The infinite, eternal God of the universe became a man of flesh and blood, Jesus Christ. Jesus lived a human life limited by time and space and experienced all kinds of human suffering. Yet He was the only man in all of human history who was without sin. During His thirty-three and a half years on the earth, He fully expressed God in every aspect of His living. We can see His wonderful humanity, the way He lived, and the words of grace and truth He spoke when we read the four Gospels.
Through incarnation, Christ put on a physical body of flesh and blood, making it possible for Him to die for us. His perfect, unblemished life qualified Him to accomplish redemption for us on the cross.