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The Lord Said to My Lord

Response to comment [from a Catholic]: "Jesus is God in a mysterious way."

True. Mary called him Lord too (Lk 1:46).

McGee, J. Vernon: Thru the Bible Commentary. electronic ed. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1981, S. 4:215

[Denying the trinity] "There he goes again..."

Response to comment [from a "Christian"]: "Lord is a title of authority/power. Christ was given all authority and power [except over God, whom he is subject to]."

Jesus is the second person of the trinity. Understand Jn 1:1.

The Word (John 1:1–3, 14)

Much as our words reveal to others our hearts and minds, so Jesus Christ is God’s “Word” to reveal His heart and mind to us. “He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father” (John 14:9). A word is composed of letters, and Jesus Christ is “Alpha and Omega” (Rev. 1:11), the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. According to Hebrews 1:1–3, Jesus Christ is God’s lastWord to mankind, for He is the climax of divine revelation.

Jesus Christ is the eternal Word (vv. 1–2). He existed in the beginning, not because He had a beginning as a creature, but because He is eternal. He is God and He was with God. “Before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58).

Jesus Christ is the creative Word (v. 3). There is certainly a parallel between John 1:1 and Genesis 1:1, the “new creation” and the “old creation.” God created the worlds through His word: “And God said, ‘Let there be.... ’ ” / “For He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast” (Ps. 33:9). God created all things through Jesus Christ (Col. 1:16), which means that Jesus is not a created being. He is eternal God.

The verb was made is perfect tense in the Greek, which means a “completed act.” Creation is finished. It is not a process still going on, even though God is certainly at work in His creation (John 5:17). Creation is not a process; it is a finished product.

Jesus Christ is the incarnate Word (v. 14). He was not a phantom or a spirit when He ministered on earth, nor was His body a mere illusion. John and the other disciples each had a personal experience that convinced them of the reality of the body of Jesus (1 John 1:1–2). Even though John’s emphasis is the deity of Christ, he makes it clear that the Son of God came in the flesh and was subject to the sinless infirmities of human nature.

In his Gospel, John points out that Jesus was weary (John 4:6) and thirsty (John 4:7). He groaned within (John 11:33) and openly wept (John 11:35). On the cross, He thirsted (John 19:28), died (John 19:30), and bled (John 19:34). After His resurrection, He proved to Thomas and the other disciples that He still had a real body (John 20:24–29), howbeit, a glorified body.

How was the “Word made flesh”? By the miracle of the Virgin Birth (Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:18–25; Luke 1:26–38). He took on Himself sinless human nature and identified with us in every aspect of life from birth to death. “The Word” was not an abstract concept of philosophy, but a real Person who could be seen, touched, and heard. Christianity is Christ, and Christ is God.

The revelation of God’s glory is an important theme in the Gospel. Jesus revealed God’s glory in His person, His works, and His words. John recorded seven wonderful signs (miracles) that openly declared the glory of God (John 2:11). The glory of the Old Covenant of Law was a fading glory, but the glory of the New Covenant in Christ is an increasing glory (see 2 Cor. 3). The Law could reveal sin, but it could never remove sin. Jesus Christ came with fullness of grace and truth, and this fullness is available to all who will trust Him (John 1:16).

Wiersbe, Warren W.: The Bible Exposition Commentary. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1996, c1989, S. Jn 1:1

Response to comment [from a "Christian"]: "We only believe in truth. Jesus is NOT God. He is Not God the son. He is the son of God, a man. Your traditions have confused you. Scripture does not back up your thoughts."

Do you agree with csuguy's position? He misunderstands "Son of God".

The Son of God (John 1:15–28, 49)

John the Baptist is one of the most important persons in the New Testament. He is mentioned at least eighty-nine times. John had the special privilege of introducing Jesus to the nation of Israel. He also had the difficult task of preparing the nation to receive their Messiah. He called them to repent of their sins and to prove that repentance by being baptized and then living changed lives.

John summarized what John the Baptist had to say about Jesus Christ (John 1:15–18). First, He is eternal (John 1:15). John the Baptist was actually born six months before Jesus (Luke 1:36); so in this statement he is referring to our Lord’s preexistence, not His birth date. Jesus existed before John the Baptist was ever conceived.

Jesus Christ has fullness of grace and truth (John 1:16–17). Grace is God’s favor and kindness bestowed on those who do not deserve it and cannot earn it. If God dealt with us only according to truth, none of us would survive; but He deals with us on the basis of grace and truth. Jesus Christ, in His life, death, and resurrection, met all the demands of the Law; now God is free to share fullness of grace with those who trust Christ. Grace without truth would be deceitful, and truth without grace would be condemning.

In John 1:17, John did not suggest that there was no grace under the Law of Moses, because there was. Each sacrifice was an expression of the grace of God. The Law also revealed God’s truth. But in Jesus Christ, grace and truth reach their fullness; and this fullness is available to us. We are saved by grace (Eph. 2:8–9), but we also live by grace (1 Cor. 15:10) and depend on God’s grace in all that we do. We can receive one grace after another, for “He giveth more grace” (James 4:6). In John 1:17, John hinted that a whole new order had come in, replacing the Mosaic system.

Finally, Jesus Christ reveals God to us (John 1:18). As to His essence, God is invisible (1 Tim. 1:17; Heb. 11:27). Man can see God revealed in nature (Ps. 19:1–6; Rom. 1:20) and in His mighty works in history; but he cannot see God Himself. Jesus Christ reveals God to us, for He is “the image of the invisible God” (Col. 1:15) and “the express image of His person” (Heb. 1:3). The word translated “declared” gives us our English word exegesis, which means “to explain, to unfold, to lead the way.” Jesus Christ explains God to us and interprets Him for us. We simply cannot understand God apart from knowing His Son, Jesus Christ.

The word Son is used for the first time in John’s Gospel as a title for Jesus Christ (John 1:18). The phrase “only-begotten” means “unique, the only one of its kind.” It does not suggest that there was a time when the Son was not, and then the Father brought Him into being. Jesus Christ is eternal God; He has always existed.

At least nine times in John’s Gospel, Jesus is called “the Son of God” (John 1:34, 49; 3:18; 5:25; 10:36; 11:4, 27; 19:7; 20:31). You will recall that John had as his purpose in writing to convince us that Jesus is the Son of God (John 20:31). At least nineteen times, Jesus is referred to as “the Son.” He is not only the Son of God, but He is God the Son. Even the demons admitted this (Mark 3:11; Luke 4:41).

John the Baptist is one of six persons named in the Gospel of John who gave witness that Jesus is God. The others are Nathanael (John 1:49), Peter (John 6:69), the blind man who was healed (John 9:35–38), Martha (John 11:27), and Thomas (John 20:28). If you add our Lord Himself (John 5:25; 10:36), then you have seven clear witnesses.

John gave the record of four days in the life of John the Baptist, Jesus, and the first disciples. He continues this sequence in John 2 and presents, as it were, a “week” in the “new creation” that parallels the Creation week in Genesis 1.

On the first day (John 1:19–24), a committee from the Jewish religious leaders interrogated John the Baptist. These men had every right to investigate John and his ministry, since they were the custodians and guardians of the faith. They asked him several questions and he clearly answered them.

“Who are you?” was a logical question. Was he the promised Messiah? Was he the Prophet Elijah who was supposed to come before the Messiah appeared? (Mal. 4:5) Great crowds had gathered to hear John, and many people had been baptized. Though John did no miracles (John 10:41), it was possible the people thought that he was the promised Messiah.

John denied being either Elijah or the Messiah. (In one sense, he was the promised Elijah. See Matt. 17:10–13.) John had nothing to say about himself because he was sent to talk about Jesus! Jesus is the Word; John was but “a voice”—and you cannot see a voice! John pointed back to Isaiah’s prophecy (Isa. 40:1–3) and affirmed that he was the fulfillment.

Having ascertained who John was, the committee then asked what he was doing. “Why are you baptizing?” John got his authority to baptize, not from men, but from heaven, because he was commissioned by God (Matt. 21:23–32). The Jewish religious leaders in that day baptized Gentiles who wanted to adopt the Jewish faith; but John baptized Jews!

John explained that his baptism was in water, but that the Messiah would come and baptize with a spiritual baptism. Again, John made it clear that he was not establishing a new religion or seeking to exalt himself. He was pointing people to the Saviour, the Son of God (John 1:34). We shall learn later that it was through baptism that Jesus Christ would be presented to the people of Israel.

Wiersbe, Warren W.: The Bible Exposition Commentary. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1996, c1989, S. Jn 1:15

Response to comment [from a "Christian"]: [Agrees with csuguy denying the trinity of Jesus] "Hi friend, yes I agree with csuguy's thoughts on God and Jesus. Let me ask you a few questions if I may. Who did Jesus say he was? Does Jesus have a God? How many God's are there? If you answer these questions from scripture you will see that Jesus is the son of God, not God the son. There is no God/Son just a man who is the son of God. Jesus was the perfect man to be the sacrifice for our sins. He is now Lord of all creation, elevated to that position by his God. There is no trinity friend, that is a fable from the past. The church made that dogma in two pieces in the fourth century."

Jesus claimed to be God. Jesus does not have a god; he is God. There is one God.

Divinity of Jesus: As Jehovah, Isa. 40:3, with Matt. 3:3; Jehovah of glory, Psa. 24:7, 10, with 1 Cor. 2:8; Jas. 2:1; Jehovah our righteousness, Jer. 23:5, 6, with 1 Cor. 1:30; Jehovah above all, Psa. 97:9, with John 3:31; Jehovah the first and the last, Isa. 44:6, with Rev. 1:17; Isa. 48:12–16, with Rev. 22:13; Jehovah’s fellow and equal, Zech. 13:7; Phil. 2:6; Jehovah of Armies, Isa. 6:1–3, with John 12:41; Isa. 8:13, 14, with 1 Pet. 2:8; Jehovah, Psa. 110:1, with Matt. 22:42–45; Jehovah the shepherd, Isa. 40:10, 11; Heb. 13:20; Jehovah, for whose glory all things were created, Prov. 16:4, with Col. 1:16; Jehovah the messenger of the covenant, Mal. 3:1, with Luke 7:27. Invoked as Jehovah, Joel 2:32, with 1 Cor. 1:2; as the eternal God and Creator, Psa. 102:24–27, with Heb. 1:8, 10–12; the mighty God, Isa. 9:6; the great God and Savior, Hos. 1:7, with Tit. 2:13; God over al, Rom. 9:5; God the Judge, Eccl. 12:14, with 1 Cor. 4:5; 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Tim. 4:1; Emmanuel, Isa. 7:14, with Matt. 1:23; King of kings and Lord of lords, Dan. 10:17, with Rev. 1:5; 17:14; the Holy One, 1 Sam. 2:2, with Acts 3:14; the Lord from heaven, 1 Cor. 15:47; Lord of the sabbath, Gen. 2:3, with Matt. 12:8; Lord of all, Acts 10:36; Rom. 10:11–13; Son of God, Matt. 26:63–67; the only begotten Son of the Father, John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9. His blood is called the blood of God, Acts 20:28. One with the Father, John 10:30, 38; 12:45; 14:7–10; 17:10. As sending the Spirit equally with the Father, John 14:16, with John 15:26. As unsearchable equally with the Father, Prov. 30:4; Matt. 11:27. As Creator of all things, Isa. 40:28; John 1:3; Col. 1:16; supporter and preserver of all things, Neh. 9:6, with Col. 1:17; Heb. 1:3. Acknowledged by Old Testament saints, Gen. 17:1, with Gen. 48:15, 16; 32:24–30, with Hos. 12:3–5; Judg. 6:22–24; 13:21, 22; Job 19:25–27. Unclassified Scriptures Relating to the Divinity of: Ex. 23:20, 21; Psa. 24:10 1 Cor. 2:8; Psa. 45:6, 7 Heb. 1:8. Isa. 6:1 John 12:41. Isa. 8:13, 14 1 Pet. 2:8. Isa. 9:6 Tit. 2:13. Isa. 40:3, 9, 10 Matt. 3:3. Mal. 3:1 Matt. 11:10. Matt. 1:23 Isa. 7:14. Matt. 8:29 Luke 8:28. Matt. 9:6; Matt. 22:43–45 Psa. 110:1. Matt. 28:17, 18; Mark 5:6, 7; Luke 4:12, 33, 34; Luke 9:43, 44; John 1:1, 2; John 5:17, 18, 21–23; John 10:30–33; John 12:45; John 20:28; Acts 7:37–39; Acts 20:28; Rom. 1:7 1 Cor. 1:3; 2 Cor. 1:2; Col. 1:2; Phil. 1:2; 1 Thess. 1:1; 2 Thess. 1:1, 2; 2 Tim. 1:2. Rom. 9:5; 1 Cor. 8:6; 1 Cor. 10:9 Num. 21:6. 1 Cor. 15:47; Gal. 1:1, 3; Eph. 1:2; Eph. 6:23; Phil. 2:6 vs. 5–11.; 1 Thess. 3:11; 2 Thess. 2:16, 17; 1 Tim. 3:16; Tit. 2:13; Heb. 1:8, 10 Psa. 102:24–27; vs. 1–14, with Gen. 1:1.1 John 5:20.

Jn 1:1-18: "John takes us back, beyond Creation, to show that Jesus has been God the Son from eternity past. He existed before His birth, coequal with God the Father, the source of light and of life itself (1:1–5).
Before He began His ministry on earth the presence of Jesus, the preexistent Word, was announced and pointed out by John (vv. 6–9). Yet, though He made the world itself, and came to a people He as God had called out long ago, He was neither recognized nor received by His own (vv. 10–11). Here John introduces a central theme of his Gospel. Those who do receive Him, by believing on His name, become the children of God (vv. 12–13). The awesome truth is that in Jesus God Himself did become flesh and live among us (v. 14). Jesus is the turning point of sacred history, the source of a grace that surpasses law, the visible expression of the unseen God (vv. 15–18).

Key verse. 1:14: God has been among us.

Personal application. See the glory of God in Jesus.

Key concepts. Creation Isaiah 40. Light John 8. Belief Romans 4. Flesh Genesis 2. World 1 John 2. Law Joshua 1. Grace Galatians 2. Son of God Galatians 3-4."

INSIGHT
“The Word” (1:1). The Gk. word is logos, which usually emphasizes the message of a spoken word. John’s point is that a key role of the Second Person of the Trinity has always been communication. The Son is the Spoken Word, the living expression of all that God has ever sought to communicate about Himself.
With God, and was God (1:1). John’s point is that Jesus is both identical with the God of the O.T. and yet is distinct from Him. The concept, so familiar although mysterious to us, was stunning in the world of the 1st century. The Jews emphasized the uniqueness and unity of the O.T.’s one God. The pagans imagined a class of beings they called “gods.” But John affirms that God is one, yet exists in distinct, separate personalities.
The concept is difficult, but the teaching is clear. The Word (Jesus) existed eternally with God as one God.
Jesus as Creator (1:3). John credits the Word with Creation. Psalm 19 exalted the created universe for speaking so plainly of God without language, so that its message can be “heard” in every language. Additional testimony is found in Col., which calls Jesus the “image of the invisible God” and says “all things were created by Him” (Col. 1:15–17).
Here in John the tense of “were made” (egeneto) implies a creative act, not a process. Jesus spoke, and the universe sprang into existence.
Life (1:4). The word zoe is used 36 times by John. This distinctive term for “life” draws attention to the vitalizing principle which makes physical life possible and even more often to eternal life. The saying that life was “the light of men” means that as the source of all life, Jesus is the focus of all our hopes.
Light and dark (1:5). These are frequently contrasted by John, representing not only the forces of good and evil, but also reality and illusion. The powers of darkness are ranged against the light revealed in Jesus, but have proven unable to “overcome” (katelaben is best taken this way, rather than as “understand”).
“The world” (1:10). Here kosmos suggests the society as a whole. Christ made humankind and created the biosphere in which we live. But when He came to join us, humanity had no awareness of who He was or the significance of His presence.
All who receive him (1:12–14). But Jesus was recognized as God incarnate by some! These “received” Him. This image, receive, is the first John uses to define “believe.”
If you do not see a gift held out to you, or if you see it but do not accept it as real, you won’t stretch out your hand to take it. Believing in Jesus involves seeing Him presented as God’s Son, accepting that description as real, and simply stretching out your hand to accept God’s gift of eternal life. You then become what you were not: a child of God."

Richards, Larry: The Bible Reader's Companion. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1991, S. 678

Response to comment [from a "Christian"]: "Actually, that's what trinitarians do. I was a trinitarian - then I accepted the fact that it just doesn't add up with scripture."

If that is true, then you have become what the Bible calls a "castaway" (2 Ti 3:8-17). Christians are to try the spirits. Others reject and discard the faith. A proper understanding of Jn 1:1 is necessary.

"† 1:1 — In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Right at the beginning of his Gospel, John tells us that Jesus was far more than just a great teacher or a mighty prophet; in fact, He was God. Jesus is “the express image” of God’s person (Heb. 1:3).
† 1:14 — And the Word became 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.
Whatever Jesus did, He did with grace. Whatever He said, He said in truth. He was not gracious some of the time and less gracious other times, any more than He varied in the amount of truth He spoke.
† 1:29 — The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”
Jesus is our Passover Lamb who willingly took the punishment we deserve (1 Cor. 5:7). God “made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21).
† 2:5 — His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
Jesus’ mother did not understand everything her Son said or did, but she understood enough to know that it was always wise to do what He said. It still is.
† 2:17 — Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.”
The disciples would not have been able to remember this text (Ps. 69:9) if they were not already familiar with it. For God to use His Word to encourage and instruct us, we have to spend time in it.
† 2:22 — … when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.
Sometimes we hesitate to spend time in God’s Word because we don’t feel as though we’re getting anything out of it. But often a text does not “click” in our minds until some time later.
† 3:17 — “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
While Jesus says that all judgment has been committed to Him (John 5:22), He insists that He did not come to earth to judge us but to save us. As James says, “Mercy triumphs over judgment” (James 2:13).
† 3:18 — “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already .… ”
Those who place their faith in Jesus will never be condemned, because Jesus has already taken their punishment upon Himself. But those who reject Jesus as Savior must bear the full penalty of their sins."
Stanley, Charles F.: The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible : New King James Version. Nashville, TN : Nelson Bibles, 2005, S. Jn 1:1-3:18

Response to comment [from a pagan]: "'God' is eternally 'One'...relationship between minds...gods are a 'community' where Love can be maximized/experienced in 'mutual association'..."

No. God certainly is love. But God is not good if he does not judge sin. It is wise to know who God is (Jn 1:1). Jesus created the universe. He is the Word.

Verses 1-5

"Austin says (de Civitate Dei, lib. 10, cap. 29) that his friend Simplicius told him he had heard a Platonic philosopher say that these first verses of St. John’s gospel were worthy to be written in letters of gold. The learned Francis Junius, in the account he gives of his own life, tells how he was in his youth infected with loose notions in religion, and by the grace of God was wonderfully recovered by reading accidentally these verses in a bible which his father had designedly laid in his way. He says that he observed such a divinity in the argument, such an authority and majesty in the style, that his flesh trembled, and he was struck with such amazement that for a whole day he scarcely knew where he was or what he did; and thence he dates the beginning of his being religious. Let us enquire what there is in those strong lines. The evangelist here lays down the great truth he is to prove, that Jesus Christ is God, one with the Father. Observe,

I. Of whom he speaks—The Word—ho logos. This is an idiom peculiar to John’s writings. See 1 Jn. 1:1; 5:7; Rev. 19:13. Yet some think that Christ is meant by the Word in Acts 20:32; Heb. 4:12; Lu. 1:2. The Chaldee paraphrase very frequently calls the Messiah Memra—the Word of Jehovah, and speaks of many things in the Old Testament, said to be done by the Lord, as done by that Word of the Lord. Even the vulgar Jews were taught that the Word of God was the same with God. The evangelist, in the close of his discourse (v. 18), plainly tells us why he calls Christ the Word—because he is the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, and has declared him. Word is two-fold: logos endiathetos—word conceived; and logos prophorikos—word uttered. The logos ho esoµ and ho exoµ, ratio and oratio—intelligence and utterance. 1. There is the word conceived, that is, thought, which is the first and only immediate product and conception of the soul (all the operations of which are performed by thought), and it is one with the soul. And thus the second person in the Trinity is fitly called the Word; for he is the first-begotten of the Father, that eternal essential Wisdom which the Lord possessed, as the soul does its thought, in the beginning of his way, Prov. 8:22. There is nothing we are more sure of than that we think, yet nothing we are more in the dark about than how we think; who can declare the generation of thought in the soul? Surely then the generations and births of the eternal mind may well be allowed to be great mysteries of godliness, the bottom of which we cannot fathom, while yet we adore the depth. 2. There is the word uttered, and this is speech, the chief and most natural indication of the mind. And thus Christ is the Word, for by him God has in these last days spoken to us (Heb. 1:2), and has directed us to hear him, Mt. 17:5. He has made known God’s mind to us, as a man’s word or speech makes known his thoughts, as far as he pleases, and no further. Christ is called that wonderful speaker (see notes on Dan. 8:13), the speaker of things hidden and strange. He is the Word speaking from God to us, and to God for us. John Baptist was the voice, but Christ the Word: being the Word, he is the Truth, the Amen, the faithful Witness of the mind of God.

II. What he saith of him, enough to prove beyond contradiction that he is God. He asserts,

1. His existence in the beginning: In the beginning was the Word. This bespeaks his existence, not only before his incarnation, but before all time. The beginning of time, in which all creatures were produced and brought into being, found this eternal Word in being. The world was from the beginning, but the Word was in the beginning. Eternity is usually expressed by being before the foundation of the world. The eternity of God is so described (Ps. 90:2), Before the mountains were brought forth. So Prov. 8:23. The Word had a being before the world had a beginning. He that was in the beginning never began, and therefore was ever, achronos—without beginning of time. So Nonnus.

2. His co-existence with the Father: The Word was with God, and the Word was God. Let none say that when we invite them to Christ we would draw them from God, for Christ is with God and is God; it is repeated in v. 2: the same, the very same that we believe in and preach, was in the beginning with God, that is, he was so from eternity. In the beginning the world was from God, as it was created by him; but the Word was with God, as ever with him. The Word was with God, (1.) In respect of essence and substance; for the Word was God: a distinct person or substance, for he was with God; and yet the same in substance, for he was God, Heb. 1:3. (2.) In respect of complacency and felicity. There was a glory and happiness which Christ had with God before the world was (ch. 17:5), the Son infinitely happy in the enjoyment of his Father’s bosom, and no less the Father’s delight, the Son of his love, Prov. 8:30. (3.) In respect of counsel and design. The mystery of man’s redemption by this Word incarnate was hid in God before all worlds, Eph. 3:9. He that undertook to bring us to God (1 Pt. 3:18) was himself from eternity with God; so that this grand affair of man’s reconciliation to God was concerted between the Father and Son from eternity, and they understand one another perfectly well in it, Zec. 6:13; Mt. 11:27. He was by him as one brought up with him for this service, Prov. 8:30. He was with God, and therefore is said to come forth from the Father.

3. His agency in making the world, v. 3. This is here, (1.) Expressly asserted: All things were made by him. He was with God, not only so as to be acquainted with the divine counsels from eternity, but to be active in the divine operations in the beginning of time. Then was I by him, Prov. 8:30. God made the world by a word (Ps. 33:6) and Christ was the Word. By him, not as a subordinate instrument, but as a co-ordinate agent, God made the world (Heb. 1:2), not as the workman cuts by his axe, but as the body sees by the eye. (2.) The contrary is denied: Without him was not any thing made that was made, from the highest angel to the meanest worm. God the Father did nothing without him in that work. Now, [1.] This proves that he is God; for he that built all things is God, Heb. 3:4. The God of Israel often proved himself to be God with this, that he made all things: Isa. 40:12, 28; 41:4; and see Jer. 10:11, 12. [2.] This proves the excellency of the Christian religion, that the author and founder of it is the same that was the author and founder of the world. How excellent must that constitution needs be which derives its institution from him who is the fountain of all excellency! When we worship Christ, we worship him to whom the patriarchs gave honour as the Creator of the world, and on whom all creatures depend. [3.] This shows how well qualified he was for the work of our redemption and salvation. Help was laid upon one that was mighty indeed; for it was laid upon him that made all things; and he is appointed the author of our bliss who was the author of our being.

4. The original of life and light that is in him: In him was life, v. 4. This further proves that he is God, and every way qualified for his undertaking; for, (1.) He has life in himself; not only the true God, but the living God. God is life; he swears by himself when he saith, As I live. (2.) All living creatures have their life in him; not only all the matter of the creation was made by him, but all the life too that is in the creation is derived from him and supported by him. It was the Word of God that produced the moving creatures that had life, Gen. 1:20; Acts 17:25. He is that Word by which man lives more than by bread, Mt. 4:4. (3.) Reasonable creatures have their light from him; that life which is the light of men comes from him. Life in man is something greater and nobler than it is in other creatures; it is rational, and not merely animal. When man became a living soul, his life was light, his capacities such as distinguished him from, and dignified him above, the beasts that perish. The spirit of a man is the candle of the Lord, and it was the eternal Word that lighted this candle. The light of reason, as well as the life of sense, is derived from him, and depends upon him. This proves him fit to undertake our salvation; for life and light, spiritual and eternal life and light, are the two great things that fallen man, who lies so much under the power of death and darkness, has need of. From whom may we better expect the light of divine revelation than from him who gave us the light of human reason? And if, when God gave us natural life, that life was in his Son, how readily should we receive the gospel-record, that he hath given us eternal life, and that life too is in his Son!

5. The manifestation of him to the children of men. It might be objected, If this eternal Word was all in all thus in the creation of the world, whence is it that he has been so little taken notice of and regarded? To this he answers (v. 5), The light shines, but the darkness comprehends it not. Observe,

(1.) The discovery of the eternal Word to the lapsed world, even before he was manifested in the flesh: The light shineth in darkness. Light is self-evidencing, and will make itself known; this light, whence the light of men comes, hath shone, and doth shine. [1.] The eternal Word, as God, shines in the darkness of natural conscience. Though men by the fall are become darkness, yet that which may be known of God is manifested in them; see Rom. 1:19, 20. The light of nature is this light shining in darkness. Something of the power of the divine Word, both as creating and as commanding, all mankind have an innate sense of; were it not for this, earth would be a hell, a place of utter darkness; blessed be God, it is not so yet. [2.] The eternal Word, as Mediator, shone in the darkness of the Old-Testament types and figures, and the prophecies and promises which were of the Messiah from the beginning. He that had commanded the light of this world to shine out of darkness was himself long a light shining in darkness; there was a veil upon this light, 2 Co. 3:13.

(2.) The disability of the degenerate world to receive this discovery: The darkness comprehended it not; the most of men received the grace of God in these discoveries in vain. [1.] The world of mankind comprehended not the natural light that was in their understandings, but became vain in their imaginations concerning the eternal God and the eternal Word, Rom. 1:21, 28. The darkness of error and sin overpowered and quite eclipsed this light. God spoke once, yea twice, but man perceived it not, Job 33:14. [2.] The Jews, who had the light of the Old Testament, yet comprehended not Christ in it. As there was a veil upon Moses’s face, so there was upon the people’s hearts. In the darkness of the types and shadows the light shone; but such as the darkness of their understandings that they could not see it. It was therefore requisite that Christ should come, both to rectify the errors of the Gentile world and to improve the truths of the Jewish church."

Henry, Matthew: Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible : Complete and Unabridged in One Volume. Peabody : Hendrickson, 1996, c1991, S. Jn 1:1

Response to comment [from a "Christian"]: "I haven't rejected Christ--just one fallible model that tries to explain the relationship between Christ and the Father."

What about that relationship? Why did Jesus invade time? The Bible says that Jesus came to reveal the invisible God (Col 1:15). Jesus made known the Father (Jn 1:18). His birth fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah (Isa 7:14).

Jesus came to fulfill God's covenant with David. God promised a perpetual dynasty, the root of Jesse (Isa 11:10) a branch shall grow (Isa 11:1). Jesus' birth fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah (Jer 23:5). God's son invades time for this purpose.

Peter gave a great sermon at Pentecost: Jesus died, he was buried, he rose again. Without the birth of Jesus, the Davidic covenant without not be complete. Only Jesus could save the Davidic line. Only Jesus could invade time to prove this.

Jesus came so that we could become sons of God. God had a requirement of blood for sin. Adam and Eve made some fig leaves. Though it was a nice gesture, God had a different requirement. There was a squeal in the garden for the first time. An animal had to loose its life. The animal skins became a covering (atonement means covering). The life of the flesh was in the blood (Lev 17:11). The penelty for sin could not be paid for by bulls, sheep or man. The sacrifice had to be perfect. It was impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sin (Heb 10:4).

Jesus came to do the will of the Father. The Father's requirement was satisfied through him. For our sake, Jesus was made sin, one who knew no sin for us (2 Cor 5:21).

Jesus did not come to give us Christmas or an example. He came to be our Savior. At the right time, God the Father sent his Son (Gal 4:4).

We do not have to thank him only at Christmas. We can thank him anytime (Woodrow Kroll).

"The trinity tries to explain how the Son relates to the Father, not what he came to do for the Father. Namely, they try to assert that the Son, Father, and HS are all 1/3 of God (though they wouldn't use that wording)."

That is not what Trinitarians believe. The Son is not 1/3; the Father is not 1/3; the Holy Spirit is not 1/3 of the godhead. The Father is 100% God. The Son is 100% God. The Holy Spirit is 100% God. It is not 1 + 1 + 1 = 3. It is 1 x 1 x 1 = 1 (Deut 6:4). When we get to heaven and see God, we see one figure on the throne (Re 4:2).

Response to comment [from a "Christian"]: "So, God can die?"

God is eternal (De 33:27; Ps 90:2; Re 4:8-10) and immortal (1Ti 1:17; 6:16).

[Castaway (2 Ti 3:8-17)] "Who is the castaway, him or you? Do not relay of just the English translations for your conclusions. All have errors here and their. So they must be compared. John 1 is a very misunderstood verse. The word "logos" translated into "word" is very misleading. Check out other resources, what do you have to lose...?"

It is always a good idea to compare translations.

"John 1:1 is probably the strongest passage in the NT for declaring the deity of Jesus Christ. Because of this many who deny this biblical doctrine, especially cultists, have attempted to undercut it by arguing that this passage only teaches that Jesus is “a god” and so not fully Deity. This confused position falls on at least two grounds. Such a view is polytheistic, the belief in more than one god. Second, it betrays a misunderstanding of Greek grammar. Verse 1 of the first chapter of John reads, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The last portion of 1:1 is the major point of contention. It reads in the Greek theos en ho logos, or literally, “the Word was God.” God, or theos, occurs in this verse without the Greek article ho, so that some have contended that the lack of the article in the Greek text should cause the statement to be translated “the Word was a god.” The best understanding for the translation, however, as recognized by Greek scholars, is that since theos is a predicate and precedes the noun logos and a verb, it is natural for it to occur here without the article. Greek scholars are agreed that the verse should be translated as it regularly is in modern and ancient translations, clearly affirming that Jesus is indeed God."
Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1999, S. Jn 1:1

[God or "spokeman of God?"]

"1:1–18 These first verses of the gospel according to the apostle John are among the most elegant and profound that may be found in the Word of God. They take us before the beginning of creation and move us into the time and space of human history. They reveal, like no other portion of Scripture, that the Jesus who came into human history (1:14) was the Creator God of Gen. 1:1. These verses identify the eternal relation of the Father and the Son and reveal that we may have light and life through our reception of Him—the One who is ultimate revelation of the Father.

1:1 In the beginning: Genesis 1:1 starts with the moment of creation and moves through time to the creation of humanity. John 1:1 commences with the beginning of creation and contemplates eternity past. Before the creation of a material universe there was the Word (Gk. logos). The Word was preexistent (note the contrast with v. 14, where the eternal Word “became” flesh). The term Word means “that which is spoken, a statement, a speech.” In the Jewish translation of the OT into Aramaic, this term was used for God. It was also used in Greek intellectual circles to denote the controlling reason of the universe, the all-pervasive mind which ruled and gave meaning to all things. John has the OT concept in mind. The Word here is the expression or the manifestation of God (1:14, 18). John is obviously referring to Jesus Christ (John 1:14, Rev. 19:13). Thus, this Gospel begins with the thought that Jesus, the Word, the unique manifestation of God, was already continuously in existence when the material universe was created. The fact that the Word was with God suggests a face-to-face relationship. In the ancient world, it was important that persons of equal station be on the same level, or face-to-face, when sitting across from one another. Thus the word with indicates a personal relationship, but also implies equal status. The Word, Jesus Christ Himself, is an active Person in communication with the Father (1 John 1:2). Moreover, the Word was God. The Greek construction emphasizes that the Word was of the very quality of God while still retaining His personal distinction from the Father. If John had used the definite article before God, He would have taught a unitarianism of the Father rather than plurality in the Godhead. Thus, the Gospel of John opens with a simple, single sentence affirming the preexistence (eternality), personality and deity of the Logos, Jesus Christ. He is distinct from God and yet is God.

1:2 Neither the Person of Christ, nor His Sonship, came into being at a point in time. Rather, the Father and the Son have always been in loving fellowship with one another.

1:3 All things were made (Gk. ginomai) through Him: Before creation the Word was (1:1). The tense speaks of continuous existence. Creation itself, however, was made (1:3); matter is not eternal. God the Father created the world (Gen. 1:1) through God the Son (Col. 1:16, Heb. 1:2). Christ was not part of the creation. All that is creation was made through Him; He is the Creator God. The biblical teaching on creation, confirmed in this verse, is that it is completed. Some who hold to evolutionary views and to reincarnation advocate an ongoing work of creation. Creation, however, ceased at the original creation by God recorded in Gen. 1; He is now sustaining His creative work (5:17).

1:4 Note that life is not said to have been created; life existed in Christ (5:26; 6:57; 10:10; 11:25; 14:6; 17:3; 20:31). Humans are dependent on God for life. Our existence, spiritually and physically, depends on God’s sustaining power. In contrast, the Son has life in Himself from all eternity. The life, Jesus Christ, is also the light of men. This image conveys the concept of revelation. As the light, Jesus Christ reveals both sin and God to humans (Ps. 36:9). Later in this Gospel, Christ declares Himself to be both the life (11:25) and the light (8:12). Death and darkness flee when the life and light enter. The dead are raised and the blind receive their sight, both physically and spiritually.

1:5 light shines in the darkness: Christ entered this dark world to give it spiritual light (Is. 9:2). The word translated comprehend can mean (1) to take hold of; (2) to overpower; or (3) to understand. Therefore, this verse may mean that darkness did not positively take hold of or understand the light, or that darkness did not negatively overcome the light. Both statements are true. Humans did not appropriate or understand the light, nor did they overtake or overpower it. Although Satan and his forces resist the light, they cannot thwart its power. In short, Jesus is life and light; those who accept Him are “sons of light” (12:35, 36). As the creation of light was the beginning of the original creation (Gen. 1:3), so when believers receive the light, they become part of the new creation (2 Cor. 4:3–6)."

Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1999, S. Jn 1:1-5

"[H]e is a man, not God."

Incorrect. Jesus is 100% God and 100% man. An understanding of Jn 1:1 is necessary.

1:1–5 The pre-existent Word

"The opening words of this gospel bear a striking parallel with the opening words of Genesis. John’s own particular contribution is to show that the Word existed before creation. This is implicit in the opening words In the beginning was the Word. Although the verb is used in the past tense, the idea is of continuity. The Word that now is was in existence before the world began. This at once introduces a profound theme, made more profound by the subsequent two statements. The Greek preposition translated with suggests the idea of communion. The thought is lit. ‘towards God’, which requires some distinctiveness between God and the Word. But the next phrase adds a further aspect, since it affirms that the Word was God. This cannot be understood in an adjectival sense (the Word was divine), which would weaken the statement. Since the Greek has no article before God, the term must be taken setting out a characteristic of the Word. Since God is a noun, John must be affirming the Godhead of the Word. It involves not only divinity but deity.

John at once proceeds to declare the creative activity of the Word. The Greek focuses attention on the agency of the Word. This idea is further underlined by excluding all possibility of creation apart from the Word. The close association between God and the Word in v 1 is also seen in their part in creation. The part taken by Christ in creation is a theme which recurs many times in the NT. Such an emphasis would exclude gnostic ideas of intermediaries within creation which were designed to protect God from contamination with an essentially evil world. John’s further assertion that the Word was life is a logical sequence from his creative activity. This idea is basic to this gospel and is highlighted in the statement of purpose in 20:31, that the readers might have life in him.

The close connection between life and light is not unexpected. In the physical world life is dependent on light, and this idea is here transferred to the spiritual world. The statement in v 5 must be interpreted by the mention of light in v 4. There it is an illumination which comes to everyone generally and would seem to refer to the light of conscience and reason. In v 5, however, the focus falls on the environment which is described as darkness. The light, which is closely linked with the Word, must be regarded as personal. It must mean the spiritual enlightenment which humankind has received exclusively through the coming of the Word. The following statement, but the darkness has not understood it, could be translated as ‘has not overcome it’. Both interpretations express a truth, and both are illustrated in the body of the gospel. But the former fits the context better, especially in the light of vs 10–11."

lit. literally

NT New Testament

Carson, D. A.: New Bible Commentary : 21st Century Edition. 4th ed. Leicester, England; Downers Grove, Ill., USA : Inter-Varsity Press, 1994, S. Jn 1:1

Response to comment [from a "Christian"]: "[T]hat is a fairytale. Jesus is NOT 100% God and 100% man. He is 100% MAN. Your right about understanding John 1. You don't, so I suggest you look at some of the past posts to find out about it. As Pierac would say, "Take off your church glasses and seek truth". Discard tradition and start over."

It is a good idea to go back and understand the beginning of time (Jn 1:1):

Overview

The Gospel of John speaks more clearly than any other of the deity of Christ. There can be no doubt: the Bible does teach that Jesus of Nazareth was fully God as well as truly man.

This teaching does not, of course, rest only on what we find in John’s Gospel. There are many other passages that affirm Jesus’ deity. Among the most powerful are:

Colossians 1:15–20. Jesus who expresses the invisible God was Himself the Creator of all things, and has priority over all.

Hebrews 1:1–13. Jesus is the “exact representation” of God’s being, and sustains all things by His own powerful word. He is, as God, above all created beings, including the angels who are so superior to mortal man.

Philippians 2:5–11. Jesus, though “in very nature God” voluntarily surrendered the prerogatives of Deity to become a true human being. Now that He has been resurrected He has been exalted again, and in the future every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

It is this Jesus, God from before the beginning, whom John wants to show us in his Gospel. And from this Gospel John wants to teach us how to respond, from the heart, to Him as Saviour and Lord.

è Grace. “Grace” reveals both God and man. It shows human beings as helpless, trapped in sin. And it shows God willing and able to meet our deepest needs.

Commentary

The last of the apostles laid down his pen. His fingers brushed away one of the tears that still came so easily when he thought about the death and resurrection of his beloved Jesus. Even after all these years, he could still feel the same sorrow and joy he had felt so intently then.

John had been bewildered when Jesus died, and amazed by His resurrection. It had taken John and the others so long to understand, so long to really know who Jesus was … no, is.

John remembered those days just after the Resurrection when Jesus again walked with and taught His disciples. Taking up his pen again, the apostle bent over his manuscript to add: “Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:30–31).

John, the last of the apostles to die, gave us in his Gospel one of four portraits of Jesus written in the decades after Christ’s death and resurrection. John’s Gospel is unique in a number of ways. It was written long after the others, possibly some 40 years after the end of Jesus’ life on earth. Unlike the other Gospels, which were written to present Jesus to different cultural groups, John was written as a universal Gospel. It is to all people of all times, and particularly to the church. John’s purpose is to unveil the Man, Jesus, and to reveal Him as God.

Of course, the other Gospels present the deity of Jesus, but the central message and focus of John’s Gospel is Jesus’ deity. John’s many years of ministry had taught him the importance of believers coming to know Jesus as God. John wrote his book for this purpose: “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” (italics added).

But why is this so important? And why is the present tense so important: that Jesus is the Christ. Not was. Is!

It’s important because when we recognize Jesus as the God who lives now, we also discover that we “may have life” now through His name.

John was making no retreat from the facts of the Christian faith. John’s failure to speak of Christ’s birth does not deny the historic events that actually took place in space and time. It does not imply that these are unimportant. It is simply that John’s goal was to help you and me see, through the historic Person, the living Christ who is present with us even now. John wanted us to understand not only who Jesus was, but who Jesus is. John wanted us to grasp the fact that in our personal relationship with the living Jesus we can experience new life as a present reality.

So, in the Gospel of John, the writer selected and organized historical events in order to unveil the living Jesus of today. As we see His glory, we will find in Him the vital source of a new life of our own.

Why is it so important that Jesus be unveiled? Recently I talked with a girl in her junior year in college, who wondered about her future. Should she continue in her church ministry major? Or take a course in some specialty that will prepare her for a job? How can she look ahead and know what is best for her to do?

Yesterday I spoke with a friend whose wife has asked him to move out. He knows that much of the pain both feel right now has been his fault: they are each struggling with deep hurts and even deeper uncertainties about their futures. Whatever choices they make now will shape the future for their children as well as for themselves.

From your own life, or the lives of members of your class or group, you can add other illustrations. You can point to incident after incident which bring home the fact that we must live in the constant company of uncertainty, and with the possibility of loss. For each of us, the future is hidden behind a veil. We are forced to make our choices blindly, hoping but never sure that what we do will turn out for the best, and hoping as well that the things we fear will never happen.

No wonder it was so important for John to unveil Jesus. We cannot know our personal futures. But we can be free to live with joy when we strip away the veil of history, and see there a Jesus who is the Son of God, and who brings us new life, now.

♥ Link to Life: Youth / Adult

Have your group members work in pairs to list “things I can’t control.” Then combine to write a group list on the chalkboard. Let members add new things as they think of them. And be sure that, along with the weather, terrorism, and other international or universal things, your group members include what happens to them tomorrow, the outcome of their choices, etc.

Discuss: “Which of these areas make you most uncomfortable or anxious?”

Lead into the study of John’s Gospel by pointing out that John presented a Jesus who is God—living today, and able to bring us a new life as well as to exercise His own control over those things which are beyond ours.

Eternity Unveiled: John 1:1–5

With the first words of the Gospel of John we see that John’s task is to unveil. The other Gospels begin with the birth of Jesus or with an account of His human ancestry. Matthew and Luke emphasized that a man, a human being, was actually born in the normal way to a young woman named Mary in the ancient land of Judea at the time Herod the Great was living out his last days. John, on the other hand, tells us immediately the Child born then was the eternal God! His origin was not at His physical conception, but, as Micah said, his “origins are from of old, from ancient times” (Micah 5:2). And Isaiah called Him “Mighty God, Everlasting Father” (Isa. 9:6).

John’s way of taking us back to eternity was to identify Jesus as “the Word” who was “in the beginning.” Moreover, this Word “was with God, and the Word was God.” Finally John said plainly that “the Word became flesh and lived for a while among us” (John 1:14).

The Word. The Bible gives many titles or names to Jesus. When He is called “the Word,” we are reminded of His role in the Godhead from the very beginning. Human speech has the capacity to unveil thoughts, feelings, and emotions; to reveal the person behind the words. Jesus is God expressing Himself through Jesus.

When Philip asked Jesus to show the disciples the Father, Christ answered in gentle rebuke. “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father” (14:9). Another time Jesus explained to His disciples, “No one knows who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him” (Luke 10:22).

This title, “the Word,” teaches that Jesus is now, and always has been, the One through whom God expresses Himself. But how did God express Himself in history past, even before the Incarnation? Obviously God was known before Jesus’ birth.

In Creation (John 1:3). Paul wrote that “what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the Creation of the world God’s invisible qualities … have been clearly seen” (Rom. 1:19–20). The material universe itself speaks of a Maker, loudly shouting His handiwork:

Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.

Psalm 19:2–4

This Word of Creation is the word of Jesus before the Incarnation. “Through Him all things were made,” John said. “Without Him nothing was made that has been made.” From the very beginning Jesus has expressed God to humankind.

In life (John 1:4). But it was not just in the creation of inanimate matter that Jesus communicated God. On the spinning sphere hung in the emptiness of space, the Creator placed living creatures. These living creatures are different from dead matter; they moved, ate, responded to stimuli, and reproduced themselves. The creation of life was a voice testifying to God.

Only One who was a living Being Himself could be the source of other life. Dead matter does not generate life now, nor has it ever.

And then, among all the living things, the Creator planted another kind of life that was made “in Our image, in Our likeness” (Gen. 1:26). Not just life, but self-conscious life, came into being. This life that came from Jesus the Creator remains deeply rooted in Him. Our very awareness that we are different from all other living creatures is another wordless testimony to the existence of the God whose likeness we bear. Jesus gave us life itself, and by that life He expressed God to us.

In light (John 1:5). This final term introduces one other way in which God has expressed Himself through the preincarnate work of Jesus. In John’s writings the terms light and darkness are often moral terms. Light represents moral purity, holiness, righteousness, good. In contrast, darkness as a moral term represents evil, all those warped and twisted ways in which sin had perverted the good in man, and brought pain to individuals and society. “The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood [or, extinguished] it.”

The moral light is one of the most powerful and pervasive evidences of God’s existence. Paul described pagans who have never known God’s Old Testament revelation of morality, yet they “show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them” (Rom. 2:15). There is a moral awareness planted deep in the personality of every person. Different societies may develop different rules to govern, for instance, sexual behavior. These rules may be glaringly different from the pattern set in Scripture. Still, in every culture, there is the awareness that sexual behavior is a moral issue, and that no individual can simply have any other person he or she wants, at any time or in any way.

The deep-seated conviction that there is a moral order to things is present in every human society. But society is in darkness; even though some sense of moral order and rightness exists, people in every society choose to do what they themselves believe is wrong. So conscience struggles, and individuals accuse themselves (or perhaps try to excuse as “adult” behavior they know is wrong).

Moral awareness in a world running madly after darkness is another testimony to us that light comes from the preexistent Word. Light, like creation and life itself, shouts out the presence of God behind the world we see.

Then, finally, the Word took unique expression in space and time. “The Word became flesh and lived for a while among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

♥ Link to Life: Children

Boys and girls, like adults, have difficulty understanding how one God can exist in three Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Many analogies have been suggested, none of which can capture the reality of the Trinity. Simply put, this as other things concerning the nature of God, are simply beyond human understanding.

Still, it’s helpful for children to use analogies. They are inadequate, but they do at least help. What are some of the better analogies? An egg, while it has shell, white, and yoke, is one egg. A poorer analogy notes that water, a single chemical substance, can be found as liquid, water vapor, and ice. Another poorer analogy notes that one person can be a husband, a father, and an employee.

We will never penetrate the mystery, for nothing in our universe partakes of the triune nature of God. How wonderful that we can trust the Word, which unveils reality even though we cannot yet grasp the reality revealed.

♥ Link to Life: Youth / Adult

What does the Bible say about Jesus, who existed as the Word long before Creation? Take one or two approaches:

(1) Have your group members explore the passages summarized in the overview (Col. 1:15–20; Heb. 1:1–13; and Phil. 2:5–11).

(2) Or the Bible shows that the three Persons of the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) have different roles or tasks. One passage which speaks of this is Ephesians 1:3–14. Work together as a group with this passage, identifying the works of each Person.

Then discuss: “In what ways were the tasks assigned to Jesus an unveiling, or revealing, of the grace of God?”

Richards, Larry ; Richards, Lawrence O.: The Teacher's Commentary. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1987, S. 708

Response to comment [from a "Christian"]: "If God were seen by men, or at least his face, they would die. Men saw Jesus all the time, some even saw him in his glorified state - and yet none died. God revealed himself through Christ by giving him knowledge, power, authority - and through Christ following his will. God did not come down to earth, he sent his Son in his stead. The Father remains in heaven."

Yet, the Father, the Son and the Spirit are one. As Hank Hanegraaff puts it: One What, Three Whose.

No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him [John 1:18].

“No man hath seen God at any time;”

“The only begotten Son, which is in the

bosom of the Father,”

“He hath declared him.”

Notice the first: “No man hath seen God at any time.” Why? He will explain it in this gospel; the Lord Jesus will tell the woman at the well, “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24)—for God is spirit. No man has seen God at any time. What about the appearances in the Old Testament? God never revealed himself in the Old Testament to the eyes of man. What, then, did they see? Well, go back and read the record. For instance, Jacob said that he saw God, but what he saw was the angel of the Lord who wrestled with him. That was a manifestation, but he did not see God, because God is a Spirit. “No man hath seen God at any time.”

The second statement is, “the only begotten Son.” The best Greek text is that of Nestle, the German scholar. He has come to the definite conclusion that it is not the only begotten Son, but the only begotten God. I prefer that also. “Which is in the bosom of the Father” tells us a great deal. He did not come from the head of God to reveal the wisdom of God; He did not come from the foot of God to be a servant of man. (Have you ever noticed that although we speak of the fact He was a servant, whose shoes did He ever shine? Did He ever run an errand for anybody? He did not. He said, “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38). He was God’s servant—He came to serve Him, and as He served the Father, He served men.) He did not come from the feet; He did not come from the head; it was from the bosom of the Father that He came. He came to reveal the heart of God: He was “the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father.”

The third statement completes verse eighteen: “he hath declared him.” The Greek word here is exegesato. Ago is “to lead” and ex is “out.” It means that what Jesus Christ did was to lead God out into the open. Do you know anything bigger than that? A little trip to the moon is nothing in comparison. Here He comes out of eternity past, the God of this universe, the Creator of everything, taking upon Himself human flesh, and bringing God out into the open so that men can know Him. My friend, the only way in the world you can know God is through this One, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ came to reveal God because He is God.

I am not through with these statements; there is something else here. Let’s put together the first verse in each of these three groups and see what we come up with:

“In the beginning was the Word,”

“And the Word was made flesh,”

“No man hath seen God at any time.”

You could not see God—God is spirit. He had to become flesh; He had to become one of us in order for us to know Him. We could not go up there to understand Him; He had to come down here and bring God down where we are.

Now let’s put the second statements together from each of the three groups:

“The Word was with God,”

“And dwelt among us,”

“The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father.”

Consider this One for a moment—the angels bowed before Him, He was with God, on an equality with God. The apostle Paul wrote of Him, He “… thought it not robbery to be equal with God” (Phil. 2:6). That is, He did not go to school to become God; it was not something He worked overtime to attain. It was not a degree that He earned. He did not try to be God; He was God. I do not mean to be irreverent, but He did not say to the Father when He came to this earth, “Keep your eye on Gabriel; he is after My job; watch him while I’m gone.” He did not have to do that—nobody could take His place. He was God. Here He comes: born in Bethlehem, a few little shepherds there, not many; He goes up to Nazareth, thirty years hidden away in Nazareth. God, out of eternity coming down and going to Nazareth, working in a carpenter shop. Why? So you can know God. The only way you will ever know Him, my friend, is to know this One. “The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father” is the only One who can reveal God to us.

Now notice the third statement in each group:

“The Word was God”

“And we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth”

“He hath declared him.”

When He was down here, He was still God, full of grace and truth. And He declared Him; He is the only one who can lead Him out in the open where we can get acquainted with Him.

We are not through with this. I want you to see something else. How do you divide up this universe? I sat with a man who designed the shield that has been on all these space crafts to make their re-entry. He is a scientist who is an authority on heat. As we had lunch together in New Jersey, he said, “You know, this universe is made up of just three things. I believe that God has put His fingerprints on everything—the Trinity is everywhere.” Then he explained what he meant. The universe is divided up into time, space, and matter. Can you think of a fourth? The very interesting thing is that time, space, and matter include everything that is in this universe as you and I know it. Then time can be divided into just three parts: past, present, and future. Can you think of a fourth? And what about space? Length, breadth, and height. Is there another direction? Also there is in matter energy, motion, and phenomena. Those are the three divisions of the three divisions. The universe in which we live bears the mark of the Trinity.

Now notice the way in which the Incarnation is geared into this observation. Verse 1:

Time: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God.”

Space: “The Word was made flesh”—became flesh, came down into space. Where? To Bethlehem, a little geographical spot—and even this earth was a pretty small spot for Him to come to—and He pitched His tent here among us. We beheld His glory, full of grace and truth.

Matter: “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” Because He became matter, became a man, took upon Himself humanity, men could see and know God. This is the time, space, and matter of the Incarnation. Let’s divide each of these into three.

Past: “In the beginning was the Word.”

Present: “The Word was made (became) flesh” (in our day).

Future: “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son … hath declared him.” The apostle Paul, at the end of his life, said, “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection …” (Phil. 3:10). That will be for the future—to really know Him; today we actually know so little because we are finite.

Then look at space, divided into length, breadth and height.

Length: “In the beginning was the Word.”

Breadth: He came down to this earth and was made flesh.

Height: No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father—He has come from the heights to set Him before us.

Consider the divisions of matter: energy, motion, and phenomena.

Energy: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God—that’s energy. How did this universe come into existence? God spoke. Every rational person has to confront this problem of how this universe began. That is the reason evolution has been popular—it offers to the natural man an explanation for the origin of the universe. You must have an explanation for it if you do any thinking at all. Where did it come from? Well, here is the answer: “In the beginning was the Word.” God spoke. That is the first thing that happened. When God speaks, when the Word speaks, energy is translated into matter. What is atomic fission? It is matter translated back into energy—poof! it disappears. Creation began with energy. In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God. The Word was God.

Motion: The Word was made flesh. He came out of heaven’s glory and He came to this earth.

Phenomena: The greatest phenomenon in this world is Jesus Christ. The wonders of the ancient world, the wonders to see in our day are nothing in comparison to the wonder of the Incarnation—God became man!

These statements are bigger than any of us, and yet they are so simple. We have read them, probably memorized them, yet no man can plumb the depths of them. “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.….No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him” (vv. 1, 14, 18).

These three verses are the great building blocks; now let us consider some of the cement that holds them together.

All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made [John 1:3].

The Lord Jesus Christ is the Creator. Not only did He exist before Bethlehem, but He created the vast universe including the material out of which man constructed Bethlehem. All things were made by Him; He is the instrument of creation. Nothing came into existence without Him.

In him was life; and the life was the light of men [John 1:4].

Now we are confronted with something else—two of the simplest things in the world: light and life. Zoe and phos are the two words in the original language. From zoe we get zoology, the study of life; and from phos we get photo or anything that is built on it, such as photograph—it is light. These two things are so common that we take them for granted. Life—we see it everywhere. There may be a great deal of life right where you are at this moment. You go out in the woods and you see the same thing—life. It greets you on every hand, but can you explain it? You see in the Sunday pictorials and the sensational magazines that men now have discovered the source of life. But if you read them, you find that they have not found the source at all, though they think they are close to it. They put the microscope down on a green leaf. One moment they see that a little cell is arranged one way and is dead as a doornail. The next moment the thing is rearranged in another way, and it is alive. And then the thing starts growing and doubling, dividing and multiplying itself. Why does it do that? Life.

The other common thing is light. What is light? I listened to Irwin Moon try to explain it (and Irwin gave the best explanation I have heard), but when he got through I was not sure if light is a real something or if it is just waves, because they can cut the thing off and still light will go through. As you know, certain kinds of light will go through objects that would stop waves. What in the world is light?

You see, we are dealing with things that are fundamental, though men today with all their scientific gadgets know so little about them.

“In him was life”—all life is in Jesus Christ. “In him was life; and the life was the light of men.” You and I live in a universe that is spiritually dark. The fact of the matter is, it is physically dark to a certain degree. But God said, “… Let there be light …” (Gen. 1:3) and these light holders are placed about throughout His universe like street lights in a big city. We are told that when a man gets away from this earth a short distance, he is in total, absolute darkness, and it is frightening to be out where there is nothing from which the sun can be reflected. Our little globe is out in a dark universe, yet that is nothing compared to the spiritual darkness that envelops it. When the sun disappears, there is physical darkness over the land; but twenty-four hours a day there is spiritual darkness here, awful spiritual darkness. Man does not know God; man is in rebellion against God; man is in sin that blinds him to God. In the Lord Jesus Christ there is life, and the life that He gives is the light of men. In fact, His life is the only thing that can kindle light in the heart of an individual. An unregenerate man has no spiritual life within him. This is the reason that when you present to him Jesus Christ, he says, “I don’t get it. I don’t understand that at all.”

I used to go down to the jail in Cleburne, Texas, and speak to the men. It was not a large jail and I could talk to them in a conversational tone. I would start off talking about football (because in Texas football is a religion!), and those hardened men would get enthusiastic about it. I talked also of other things and they were interested. Then I would turn the conversation to something spiritual, and I could see the darkness come over their faces. I might just as well have been talking to corpses. And that is what they were—men dead in trespasses and sins. This world today is in spiritual darkness, and the Lord Jesus Christ has brought the only light there is in the world. He is the light. “In him was life; and the life was the light of men.”

And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not [John 1:5].

That word “comprehend” is an unfortunate translation. And a wiseacre did not help it by rendering it, “and the darkness was not able to put it out.” That is no translation at all. The word in the Greek is katelaben, meaning actually “to take down.” It is the picture of a secretary to whom the boss is giving dictation, and she stops and says, “I can’t take that down. I am not able to take it down.” The light shines in darkness and the darkness is not able to take it in. That is it exactly. Someone said to me, “Boy, was I in darkness before I received Christ! And I don’t know why I didn’t see.” Well, that is it: you were in darkness and you did not see. The darkness just cannot take it in.

Now this is something quite interesting, and it is not true of physical light. You go into a dark room, and the minute you switch on the light, the darkness leaves, it disappears. Darkness and light cannot exist together physically. The moment you bring light in, darkness is gone. The minute light is taken out, darkness will come right back in. But spiritual light and darkness exist together. Sometimes there is a husband who is saved and a wife who is unsaved—or vice versa. Here is a believer working next to another man who says, “What do you mean when you talk about being a Christian? I do the best I can. Am I not a Christian?” There you have light and darkness side by side and the darkness just cannot take it in. That is exactly what is said here, “The light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.”

He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not [John 1:10].

That was the tragedy—the world was in darkness, spiritual darkness, and did not know Him. Even today we are seeing the rise of atheism and unbelief, and we will see it more and more in the days that lie ahead. A great many people do not seem to recognize that unbelief and atheism go naturally with the natural man. Somebody says to me, “Oh, did you read in the paper what Dr. So-and-So of a certain seminary wrote?” Yes, I read it. “Well, isn’t it awful?” No, I do not think so. He would upset my apple cart if he said that he believed the Bible, because he is an unbeliever by his own statement. He says that he does not believe in being born again, that he does not believe he has to receive Christ in order to be saved. Now I do not expect that man to say he believes the Bible. That would be absolutely contrary to his statements. The so-called theologians and theological professors who espouse the “God is dead movement,” present us with the preposterous, untenable claim that they are Christian atheists! Obviously atheism precludes the possibility of being Christian, yet unbelief has moved into our seminaries and pulpits across the land. The world does not know Him.

He came unto his own [his own things], and his own [people] received him not [John 1:11].

He came into His own universe but His own people did not receive Him.

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name [John 1:12].

“But as many as received him, to them gave he power.” The word power is not dunamis power like dynamite, physical power, but exousian power which is delegated power, authority. “But as many as received him, to them gave he the authority to become the sons of God [children, tekna of God], even to them that believe on his name.”

Notice that this is for “them that believe on his name.” And always with the word “believe” there is a preposition. You see, faith, as the Bible uses it, is not just head knowledge. Many people ask, “You mean all that I have to do is to say I believe?” Yes, that is all you have to do, but let’s see what that implies. With the verb “to believe” there is always a preposition—sometimes en (in), sometimes eis (into) or sometimes epi (upon). You must believe into, in, or upon Jesus Christ. Let me illustrate with a chair. I am standing beside a chair and I believe it will hold me up, but it is not holding me up. Why? Because I have only a head knowledge. I just say, “Yes, it will hold me up.” Now suppose I believe into the chair by sitting in it. See what I mean? I am committing my entire weight to it and it is holding me up. Is Christ holding you up? Is He your Savior? It is not a question of standing to the side and saying, “Oh, yes, I believe Jesus is the Son of God.” The question is have you trusted Him, have you believed into Him, are you resting in Him? This chair is holding me up completely. And at this moment Christ is my complete Savior. I am depending on Him; I am resting in Him.

McGee, J. Vernon: Thru the Bible Commentary. electronic ed. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1981, S. 4:370-374

The Lord Said to My Lord