John 1:1-8 The Word is Life and Light WC McCarter
Introduction
The prologue of John’s Gospel is well known among
Christians today. Many of us can easily recite the opening lines. The first
eighteen verses declare some of the most profound things revealed to mankind.
Yet, can you imagine reading these opening verses for the very first time? What
would you think? How would you react? Imagine living your life well into your
adult years never hearing anything about the Gospel and then getting your hands
on this letter and reading the opening lines.
The concept of the “Word” (Greek “logoV”) was well known among both Jews and Gentiles. The Jews
discussed the logoV as the divine revelation
delivered to the prophets of old. All that God had said in the past was
considered the Word. Remember, God is a speaking God. He has always revealed
Himself in Words. In fact, God spoke the universe into existence. The Jews
could easily understand this, thus the author to the Hebrews writes, “God, who
at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the
prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son. . . .”
The Greeks had an even more complex understanding of the logoV. The philosophers were constantly talking about “reason.” They believed
that there was a superior power that guided the universe. They believed in a
higher power, a reason, a mind which they called the logoV. However, they did not think that this “word” was personal in any way.
The philosophers thought that this was just some power that floated around.
An interesting
exercise is to read the prologue of John’s Gospel as a pagan might have to see
the real point that John is making. All of the “He’s” that you see in our
English Bibles are third person singular which means that they can also be
translated as “she” or “it.” You understand that it is masculine, feminine, or
neuter based on the context. So, let’s read John 1:1-18 the way the Greeks and
even the Jews would have in the first century. I’ll read and you listen. Imagine
that you are a Greek philosopher hearing this for the first time.
READ Scripture-
This is the Word of God
In the Beginning
(1-2)
Each of the Gospel writers chose a different place to
begin telling their account of Jesus Christ. Matthew and Luke both begin with
genealogies and then tell about the events surrounding the birth of Christ
before they tell about the ministry of John the Baptizer. Of course, Matthew
and Luke have their own personalities and purposes which are shown in their
respective writings. For example, the genealogies are given from two different
perspectives. Mark, on the other hand, is a fast-paced Gospel account. He gets
to it and tells the story quickly. His beginning doesn’t start in the manger,
but with the ministry of John and then quickly into Christ’s ministry. And what
about John’s Gospel account? We know that his is very different from the other
three in a variety of ways. His beginning goes much farther back than the other
three. His beginning goes back to the beginning of beginnings.
“In the beginning” strikes a certain chord in our ears,
doesn’t it? It draws us back to the first book of the Bible, Genesis, which
starts with those same words. Genesis starts with the words, “In the beginning
God. . . .” John starts with, “In the beginning was the Word.” I think the
apostle is immediately pointing us in the direction that he wants us to go. His
is a Gospel that was written so that you may believe, that is, so that you may
come to faith in Christ and so that you may continue to believe. How do I know
that this is his purpose? Look with me at John 20:30-31. He wants you to
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and he wants you to have
eternal life. So, from the beginning of his Gospel account, he points you to
those ends. I think that John is intentionally paralleling the first words of
Genesis here because he wants to show us that God and the Word are the same.
The same God who created in the beginning is the God who put on flesh.
So, in the first phrase of John’s Gospel we are taken
into a doctrine that is not fully comprehensible. How can a mere human fully
understand that God and the Word had no beginning; that they simply existed
before anything was created? It cannot be fully understood by any of us, and
there is no shame in it. After all, we are talking about God.
In the beginning was the Word. This was before there was
anything in the universe. In fact, this was before there was a universe. In the
beginning the Word just was. Next we are told that the Word was “with God.”
Then we are told that the Word “was God.” Verses like this have taught
Christians the doctrine of the Triune God for 2,000 years. If the Word is God
and yet is with God, then in some way the Word is divine yet distinct from God
(the Father). Now, many of you know that Jehovah’s Witnesses translate this
third phrase differently than all other English translations of the Bible. Of
course, that in and of itself should throw up a red flag. Why do they do this?
They translate “the Word was God” as “the word was a god” because there is no
definite article (“the”) in the Greek text making big G God clear. There are
grammatical rules that we will not get into that can answer that issue
(Colwell’s Rule).
Creation and Life
(3-4)
The answer that solves the issue for me comes in verse
three when the apostle says, “All things were made through Him, and without Him
nothing was made that was made.” The Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that Jesus
Christ is a created angel. Yet, the book of Hebrews is clear that Christ is not
an angel, but is distinct from them in every way and stands over them in every
way. Christ is the creator and sustainer of all things. That is exactly what
John is saying here in verse three. Christ was not created because “without Him
nothing was made that has been made.”
Through Christ all things were made, the things we can
see and the things we can’t see. Thus, it is understandable that life is in
Him. John usually means “eternal life” when he refers to life in his Gospel. The
Lord Himself claims to be life on a few occasions as recorded by John. He says,
“I am the resurrection and the life.” He also says, “I am the way, the truth,
and the life.” The same life that was given in the original creation has also
been given to those of the new creation.
Light Shines (5)
The Lord also claims to be the light. He says, “I am the
light of the world.” In verse five, John begins to tell the Christmas story.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it (or it
can also be translated “has not overcome it”). I think we should keep both
translations in mind. It is sad on the one hand that the world does not
comprehend the coming of Jesus Christ, but it is joyous that the world cannot
overcome what He has come to accomplish. Jesus said on His last night with His
disciples, “Fear not, for I have overcome the world.” Just as the creation
story tells us that darkness was over the face of the deep, but God said, “Let there be light” and there
was; so, too, light has shined triumphantly into the darkness of the sinful
world. Jesus is the Light of creation and salvation. Light excelled forth when
that baby was born in Bethlehem that could not be thwarted. Darkness could not
overcome that light no matter how dark it may have been. Consider Herod’s
rampage and killing of all the baby boys around Bethlehem; the devil’s
temptation of Christ out in the wilderness; the Pharisees and scribes who
constantly challenged the Lord; the mobs who tried to stone Him; the
crucifixion and burial; and everything in between. None of that darkness could
either comprehend His light or overcome His light.
The Witness of the
Light (6-8)
The apostle now brings us to the part of the story that
all four of the Gospels want to preserve. The man named John who was conceived
miraculously, raised up to be a prophet, proclaimed the coming Christ, and was
martyred for his witness. John was sent from God, there is no question about
it. The purpose of John’s ministry is stated at the end of verse eight, “that
all through him might believe.” There have been many great men and women
throughout history, but they were all mere humans. There is only one Light and
all those who have gone before or after who trust in the Lord bear witness of
that Light. This light is the salvation of the world.
Conclusion and
Christian Application
(1) This
Christmas, dive into the depths of what it means to be a Christian. Dig deep
into the well of holy Scripture.
(2) Tell your
kids and grandkids that this celebration is more than materialism, Santa Claus,
and such. Tell them that it is about the Word becoming flesh; that God Himself
has broken into human history in the person of Jesus Christ to redeem us.