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John 1:1-5 – Jesus, The Eternal Word
John starts out with the words, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.” – John 1:1-2. This shows us that Jesus is God and was there at creation just as in Genesis 1:1. Genesis 1:26 uses the words “us” and “our” indicating God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit were there – “Let us make man in our image.” Each person is fully God and is one God. We call these three persons the Trinity. The ‘Word’ used here is Jesus. We usually refer to the Word as the Bible. The Word whether it is Jesus or the written Word is powerful. It contains the power of life and death. The Word of God gave everything the power to exist. There was never a time when the Word was not in existence. Even Jesus called Himself God. “Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I AM’”. – John 8:58. Believing who Jesus says He is, is basic to the Christian faith. He is our saving faith. He is our Lord. He is the center of all creation. He is the center of our Christian belief.
John goes on to say that “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” – John 1:3. ‘All things’ mean everything in the universe both in the past, the present and the future. We see this in Colossians 1:15-17 and again in Hebrews 1:1-3. He made the visible and the invisible. Christ is the Creator. He is part of the Trinity along with God the Father and the Holy Spirit. He was involved with every aspect of creation.
John 1:4-5 – “In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.” We see in many Scriptures the symbols of light and darkness. Light refers to biblical truth, holiness, purity, and Jesus Himself. Darkness refers to lies, sin, spiritual blindness, and Satan who is the prince of the power of the air who promotes spiritual darkness and rebellion against God.
Examples of light in the world are those who speak Biblical truth and share the gospel with the world. They don’t hide their testimony. They are not ashamed to bless their food when in a restaurant. They know God and live accordingly. They love and care for others. They go beyond the church walls to take the light out where it is dark.
Examples of darkness in the world are those who are spiritually blind. They are willfully blind and reject God and His ways. They choose to be resentful instead of forgiving, or deceitful instead of truthful. They don’t turn to God, but turn to people for attention, pleasure, partying, or some form of sensuality. They are out for themselves instead of others. They are evil and live in sin and they enjoy it.
Principle: Jesus is the eternal Word, the Creator of everything.
Do you believe Jesus is who He says He is?
John 1:6-8, 15 – The Word’s Witness
John the Baptist’s aim and life work was to testify that the true Light would be coming into the world. “There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe.” – John 1:6-7. The man John can be confusing. This is referring to John the Baptist not John the author of this book. John wrote that John the Baptist was not the light, but that Jesus was.
My primary purpose and focus of my life is to glory God in all I do. It isn’t always easy to be a Christian, but an easy life was never promised. I believe in Jesus and always try to do His will – that is when I know what that is. Sometime it’s a struggle to know if it is His will or mine.
What does it mean to believe? Even Satan believes. To really believe is to believe in Jesus Christ, to know that He exists, and to follow Him in His every Word and in every area of life. It is to trust Him, recognize Him as Savior, and that He is the only way to the Father. When we believe, we become a child of God and are part of His family. It means to decide and accept facts as truth. We desire to belong to Christ and commit to live as Christ lived and have Christ as our example. Once we truly believe we are a new creation and have a new life, an eternal life.
John the Baptist described Jesus in verse 15. He said:
The significant truth is that Jesus is God!
So now that you know these truths, you should believe in Jesus because He is greater than anyone or any prophet; He provides abundant grace; He is greater than Moses and the law; He is God’s ultimate revelation to us. (John 1:15-18)
It isn’t easy to always follow and do His every Word. We are only human, but we are to never give up and keep on trying. He is there to guide and direct us and also forgive us when we fall short.
Principle: The significant truth is that Jesus is God!
John 1:9-13 – Jesus, The True Light
John said that Jesus came into the world, but the most people did not recognize Him. Even His own (referring to Israel) did not receive Him (John 1:10). The world as a whole rejected their Creator and Deliverer, though some did receive Him. All who received Him and believed in His name became the children of God by being born again. (John 1:10-13)
People are still rejecting Jesus today. They think He was only a teacher or prophet and that there are others ways to Heaven. Satan has filled them with doubt and self-absorption, pride and lust for the world’s desires. People are taught to be independent and be self-reliant. Many think they don’t need Jesus; whoever He says He is. They think Hell isn’t real and everyone will go to heaven because God is love. They simple do not believe He is God. They don’t take Jesus at His Word. They fear social rejection or persecution. They live in the moment and think the world is more appealing than eternal things. They are like the man in Matthew 19:16-23 and are not willing to lose their earthly possession in order to gain an eternal relationship with Jesus.
John 1:12 – He gave people the right to become God’s children by receiving Him, believing in Him and who He claims to be, trusting in Him, obeying and following His commands.
John 1:13, “children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God”. John is reminding us of the nature of birth. Those who received Him are born of God, not of human effort or achievement. This is a new birth that changes your life. We are preoccupied with Jesus in our thoughts, conversations, and all activities. We act like Jesus. He becomes our example.
You can you know you are a child of God, because “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.” – 1 John 5:1. It’s that simple. Believe it!
Have you received Jesus as your Lord and Savior?
We will discuss being born again in chapter 3. Think about these questions.
Principle: Jesus is the true Light of the world.
John 1:14-18 – The Word Became Flesh
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” – John 1:14. The Word or Jesus was born of flesh through Mary, but has the Spirit of God. Jesus became human just like us. God is a Spirit. When we die our bodies will die, but since we are made in the image of God our spirit will live on either in heaven or hell.
John 1:16 – “From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.” Grace is God giving what we do not deserve. First He gives us salvation, then He is constantly giving us grace making us more like Him. His grace has no limit.
John goes on to say that Jesus existed before him and that we have all received grace. The law (Ten Commandments) was given to Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus. (John 1:15-17). The law didn’t show God’s grace, but demanded holiness. It was given so people would know the moral standards God expected of them; however, no one could obey all these laws. They were too difficult so God sent Jesus. God wants to forgive us for our sins, but we must repent. When we confess and repent of our sins and trust and believe in Jesus, we are forgiven. Jesus comes to give us grace and truth. Jesus didn’t come to replace the law, but to complete it.
“No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.” – John 1:18. No one can see the face of God, but of course Jesus has. We see Jesus in the flesh, but not God the Father who is in heaven. To see Jesus is to see God.
Principle: Jesus is God’s ultimate revelation to us.
I love the song “I Can Only Imagine” by Mercy Me.
I can only imagine what it will be like
When I walk by Your side
I can only imagine what my eyes will see
When Your face is before me
I can only imagine
Yeah
Surrounded by Your glory
What will my heart feel?
Will I dance for You Jesus?
Or in awe of You be still?
Will I stand in Your presence
Or to my knees will I fall?
Will I sing, Hallelujah?
Will I be able to speak at all?
I can only imagine
I can only imagine
Whether you use the words saved, born again or eternal life, they all describe a new life in Jesus. When you receive Him as your Savior, He gives you a new birth and a new identity. He is the Light in the darkness. As you study the book of John ask God to help you to be the kind of witness John was.
Next time we will continue our study of John 1. Have a blessed day and thanks for visiting my site. -- I encourage you to trust in Jesus.
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