“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and Word was God. 2. The same was in the beginning with God. 3. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made. 4. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5. And the light shines in darkness; and the darkness does not comprehend it.”
One of John‘s main purposes was to reveal the deity of Jesus. (Of course another great purpose was to show that Jesus came in the flesh – God incarnate, all of God and all of man.) John states his purpose immediately in the first five verses of his gospel. He refers to Jesus as “the word.” Jesus is God’s ultimate revelation, or word, about himself. (See Hebrews 1:1-3.) John reveals Jesus as Son of God and Son of man. Verses 1-2 reveal Jesus as eternal: “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.” The Word was there in the beginning, in other words He has always existed. That’s why Jesus could say in John 8:58: “Before Abraham was I am.” Jesus meant exactly what He said, as incredible as it sounded then, and now. In verse 2, we have one of the most startling and controversial declarations: “And the Word was God…” Jesus was not only with God; He was/is God. How could John have made it clearer? Jesus is eternal because He is God. We do not have to understand it, or even explain it, but we need to believe it and live it. Observe in verse 3, that Jesus was in on the creation: “All things were made by Him and without Him was not anything made that was made…” Paul wrote basically the same thing in Colossians 1:18: “For by Him (Jesus) were all things created, that are in heaven and that are in earth…” Again, what could be clearer? Our eternal, wonderful, Savior is also our creator. In verse 4a, we discover that Jesus is life: “In Him was life and the life was the light of men.” In John 14:6, Jesus declared: “I am the way and the truth and the life…” He did not say “I know all about life.” He said “I am the life.” What does this mean? One thing that it means is that Jesus is the giver of life. As creator, Jesus made life possible in the first place. Another thing that it means is that Jesus gives us real, abundant life – eternal life that begins here and ends in eternity with Him. It means that Jesus gives meaning and purpose to life. Jesus did not just create life and step away. He became involved in our lives and sustains us in all of life. In Colossians 1:17, Paul wrote: “And (Jesus) is before all things, and by Him all things consist.” This means that Jesus holds all things together, and that includes our lives. In verse 4b-5, we discover that Jesus is light: “….and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in darkness and the darkness does not comprehend it.” In John 8:12, Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.” Jesus came to shed God’s light on all the world, to shed light on who God is and on the loving nature of God. People who prefer darkness do not understand light; therefore, they reject it. This is a shame, for the light is available to all who will put their faith and trust in Him. Matthew 5:14a and 16 shows us what our responsibility is in sharing this light: “You are the light of the world…Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Jesus gives His light to us and we are to reflect it to the world by how we live, speak, serve and witness. Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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