Jesus is - A Study of John 1:1-12
Jesus is The Alpha and Omega - The Amen - The Atoning Sacrifice for our Sin - The Author of Life - The Author and Perfecter of our Faith - The Author of Salvation - The Beginning and End - The Bread of Life - The Bridegroom - The Chief Cornerstone - The Good Shepherd - Our Deliverer - The One who is Faithful and True - The Faithful Witness - The Firstborn From the Dead - The Firstborn over all creation - The Gate - Our Great High Priest - The Head of the Church - Heir of all things - Our Hope of Glory - The Image of God - Emmanuel (which means, "God with us") - The Judge of the living and the dead - The King Eternal - King of kings and Lord of lords - King of the Ages - The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world - The Way the Truth and the Life! Jesus is all of those things and much more! The Bible is packed with titles for Jesus.
And every single one of them reveals something about His character, His nature and/or His great love for us! John opens his Gospel with this wonderful, mystical passage-calling Jesus "The Word" who was with God and who was, is and indeed forevermore will be - God.
He also declares that Jesus is "the light (the life source) of men" - an amazing statement - we'll get into that later.
You're gonna be fire up as we learn together what John is communicating to us in this passage.
It's awesome! It's life-changing.
It will make you thankful that you're a Christ-follower, if you are one, and it will cause you want to become one, if you're not already! John 1:1-5 (NIV) "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2He was with God in the beginning.
3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
4In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
5The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
" John wants us to understand three awesome truths about Jesus.
Truth One: Jesus is the LOGOS of God Logos is the Greek word that is translated "Word" here in John's opening passage.
We read this passage and it sounds intriguing and kind of mystical.
We think, "Hmmm, 'WORD', that's cool.
What's John getting at here?" If we think about it a little bit we can see how Jesus is the one through whom God communicated with us - so we can see on that level why John called Jesus "The Word.
" But friends, it goes so much deeper than that.
Logos can also be translated "Wisdom of God".
This is what Paul was getting at when he wrote to the Corinthians, "to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
" (1 Cor.
1:24).
By "Wisdom" Paul meant the omniscient, righteous, holy, plan and will of God regarding all that is eternally right, just, merciful and gracious.
Jesus is embodies that and he reveals it to us-most clearly in the cross.
Dr.
Richard N.
Longenecker, Professor of New Testament at Wheaten College, says, "Just as our own words and thoughts come from us and cannot be separated from us, so it is that Jesus cannot be completely separate from the Father.
We speak of Christ as the "Word" of God, God's "speech" in living form.
In Hebrew and Ancient Near Eastern thought, words were not merely sounds, or letters on a page; words were things that "had an independent existence and which actually did things.
Judaism understood God's Word to have almost autonomous powers and substance once spoken; to be, in fact, 'a concrete reality, a veritable cause.
'" (The Christology of Early Jewish Christianity , 145.
) When John called Jesus the Word, he was saying that Jesus, as the second person of the Trinity, is the embodiment and expression of God's Wisdom, Power, Grace, Mercy, Holiness, and Creativity walking around with human skin on! This is why the Bible is packed with all of these various titles for Jesus.
He is so many things! He is our Savior, our Lord, our Sabbath Rest, our Advocate before the Father, our High Priest, The Alpha and the Omega, Our Wonderful Counselor, Our hope of glory, the Lamb of God, The image of the invisible God...
and on and on! Jesus is all of these things and more! -When you are weary-Jesus is your rest.
-When you are frightened-Jesus is your peace.
-When you are in need-Jesus is the Good Shepherd who cares for you.
-When you are lost-Jesus is the Way.
-When you are confused-Jesus is The Truth and The Wisdom of God.
Are you encouraged yet? Truth Two: Jesus is the agent of Creation.
You know what an "agent" is right? An agent is a person or a thing through which something is accomplished.
You know, like when Wheaties wants to secure a contract with a sports star to feature them on their cereal box - how do they do it? They work through that star's "agent" and he or she takes care of the deal.
Or, here's another, totally different example.
When you want to clean your bathtub, you use an agent called "Soft-Scrub" or "Comet" or whatever you use.
That cleaner is an "agent".
You work with/through it to get the job done.
Got it? So, when John writes, "Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made" (John 1:3, NIV) - do you see how Jesus was the agent that God created all thing through? Any time God expresses Himself-He does so through the Second Person of the Trinity (Jesus - the Logos of God).
So back in Genesis 1:1, when God began the work of creation, He did it through the Logos (Jesus), the spoken word.
God said...
and it was.
As a side note - If you really want something to chew on-consider this.
Every time God communicates with us-be it through prophets, priests, kings, experiences or whatever - Jesus was/is at the center of it.
That means that every prophecy Jesus fulfilled during his earthly ministry, He communicated as the Logos through the OT Prophets...
amazing isn't it? I know someone may be thinking, "No-those prophecies we're inspired by the Holy Spirit.
" Yes they were, but remember, The Holy Spirit is "The Spirit of Christ.
" 1 Peter 1:10-12 (NIV) Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, 11trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
" -Jesus is the Logos of God...
-He's the agent of creation...
Truth Three: Jesus is both the source of life, and life itself.
John 1:4 (NIV) "In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
" The word translated "life" here is the Greek word, " zoe.
" Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, offers a lengthy definition of zoe-that can be summed up like this, "zoe" is life-on every level.
It's the biological force that animates the flesh of men and animals.
It's the force that allows plants to grow and have life.
And in it's truest sense, it's the eternal spiritual life that God has possessed for all eternity.
So here's the deal, God, through Jesus -- the Logos of God and the Agent of Creation-created us with spiritual and physical life (zoe).
But we died spiritually when we sinned (Genesis 2:17).
Our heart didn't quit beating, but our spirit-that part of us that communes with God died.
That's why the Author of life had to put on flesh and come reveal the fullness of God's love to us and lay down His physical ZOE for us-so that we could receive Him (the One who is life) as Savior be forgiven and be born again with new spiritual zoe-so that we could again connect and commune with God! And then in verse 5 John writes, "The light (the Logos, agent, zoe force of God) shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
" I appreciate the Amplified Version of this verse.
It reads, "And the Light shines on in the darkness, for the darkness has never overpowered it [put it out or absorbed it or appropriated it, and is unreceptive to it].
" Jesus-the source of Life-came to His own creation to offer it new spiritual life, but the darkness, (the broken part of this world, the sin, and all of that which is "dead" in man and cannot connect or commune with God) -- 1) couldn't overpower Jesus or absorb Him (i.
e.
they couldn't relegate him to being just another prophet or great teacher who came and went.
2) couldn't receive Him (because of the deadness and hardness of their hearts) John 1:11 (NIV) He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.
Sad words.
The One who made us, loves us and gave us life - put on flesh and came to us in order to bless us and restore us - and was rejected by his own creation.
But then, praise God, John continues, "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God" (John 1:12, NIV) THE BUMBLEBEE: "Did you know that a bumblebee, if dropped into an open tumbler, will be there until it dies, unless it is taken out.
It never sees the means of escape at the top, but persists in trying to find some way out through the sides near the bottom.
It will seek a way where none exists, until it completely destroys itself.
" Jesus - the Logos of God, the Author of Life, put on skin and dwelt among us-to show us the way back to real, spiritual life.
And then he willing laid his physical life down for us on the cross, to pay the price for us so that we could receive new eternal, spiritual life through faith in Him.
I.
e.
JESUS IS THE WAY OUT! All we have to do is LOOK UP to Him! Don't keep banging your head trying to find your own way out of this mess like the bumblebee -- look up and see the way out through Jesus! As my Grandma Rachel used to say, "If that doesn't fire you up, your wood's wet!" Now, aren't you glad you're a Christ follower? And if you're not, aren't you inspired to trust Him and receive as your Savior?
And every single one of them reveals something about His character, His nature and/or His great love for us! John opens his Gospel with this wonderful, mystical passage-calling Jesus "The Word" who was with God and who was, is and indeed forevermore will be - God.
He also declares that Jesus is "the light (the life source) of men" - an amazing statement - we'll get into that later.
You're gonna be fire up as we learn together what John is communicating to us in this passage.
It's awesome! It's life-changing.
It will make you thankful that you're a Christ-follower, if you are one, and it will cause you want to become one, if you're not already! John 1:1-5 (NIV) "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2He was with God in the beginning.
3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
4In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
5The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
" John wants us to understand three awesome truths about Jesus.
Truth One: Jesus is the LOGOS of God Logos is the Greek word that is translated "Word" here in John's opening passage.
We read this passage and it sounds intriguing and kind of mystical.
We think, "Hmmm, 'WORD', that's cool.
What's John getting at here?" If we think about it a little bit we can see how Jesus is the one through whom God communicated with us - so we can see on that level why John called Jesus "The Word.
" But friends, it goes so much deeper than that.
Logos can also be translated "Wisdom of God".
This is what Paul was getting at when he wrote to the Corinthians, "to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
" (1 Cor.
1:24).
By "Wisdom" Paul meant the omniscient, righteous, holy, plan and will of God regarding all that is eternally right, just, merciful and gracious.
Jesus is embodies that and he reveals it to us-most clearly in the cross.
Dr.
Richard N.
Longenecker, Professor of New Testament at Wheaten College, says, "Just as our own words and thoughts come from us and cannot be separated from us, so it is that Jesus cannot be completely separate from the Father.
We speak of Christ as the "Word" of God, God's "speech" in living form.
In Hebrew and Ancient Near Eastern thought, words were not merely sounds, or letters on a page; words were things that "had an independent existence and which actually did things.
Judaism understood God's Word to have almost autonomous powers and substance once spoken; to be, in fact, 'a concrete reality, a veritable cause.
'" (The Christology of Early Jewish Christianity , 145.
) When John called Jesus the Word, he was saying that Jesus, as the second person of the Trinity, is the embodiment and expression of God's Wisdom, Power, Grace, Mercy, Holiness, and Creativity walking around with human skin on! This is why the Bible is packed with all of these various titles for Jesus.
He is so many things! He is our Savior, our Lord, our Sabbath Rest, our Advocate before the Father, our High Priest, The Alpha and the Omega, Our Wonderful Counselor, Our hope of glory, the Lamb of God, The image of the invisible God...
and on and on! Jesus is all of these things and more! -When you are weary-Jesus is your rest.
-When you are frightened-Jesus is your peace.
-When you are in need-Jesus is the Good Shepherd who cares for you.
-When you are lost-Jesus is the Way.
-When you are confused-Jesus is The Truth and The Wisdom of God.
Are you encouraged yet? Truth Two: Jesus is the agent of Creation.
You know what an "agent" is right? An agent is a person or a thing through which something is accomplished.
You know, like when Wheaties wants to secure a contract with a sports star to feature them on their cereal box - how do they do it? They work through that star's "agent" and he or she takes care of the deal.
Or, here's another, totally different example.
When you want to clean your bathtub, you use an agent called "Soft-Scrub" or "Comet" or whatever you use.
That cleaner is an "agent".
You work with/through it to get the job done.
Got it? So, when John writes, "Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made" (John 1:3, NIV) - do you see how Jesus was the agent that God created all thing through? Any time God expresses Himself-He does so through the Second Person of the Trinity (Jesus - the Logos of God).
So back in Genesis 1:1, when God began the work of creation, He did it through the Logos (Jesus), the spoken word.
God said...
and it was.
As a side note - If you really want something to chew on-consider this.
Every time God communicates with us-be it through prophets, priests, kings, experiences or whatever - Jesus was/is at the center of it.
That means that every prophecy Jesus fulfilled during his earthly ministry, He communicated as the Logos through the OT Prophets...
amazing isn't it? I know someone may be thinking, "No-those prophecies we're inspired by the Holy Spirit.
" Yes they were, but remember, The Holy Spirit is "The Spirit of Christ.
" 1 Peter 1:10-12 (NIV) Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, 11trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
" -Jesus is the Logos of God...
-He's the agent of creation...
Truth Three: Jesus is both the source of life, and life itself.
John 1:4 (NIV) "In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
" The word translated "life" here is the Greek word, " zoe.
" Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, offers a lengthy definition of zoe-that can be summed up like this, "zoe" is life-on every level.
It's the biological force that animates the flesh of men and animals.
It's the force that allows plants to grow and have life.
And in it's truest sense, it's the eternal spiritual life that God has possessed for all eternity.
So here's the deal, God, through Jesus -- the Logos of God and the Agent of Creation-created us with spiritual and physical life (zoe).
But we died spiritually when we sinned (Genesis 2:17).
Our heart didn't quit beating, but our spirit-that part of us that communes with God died.
That's why the Author of life had to put on flesh and come reveal the fullness of God's love to us and lay down His physical ZOE for us-so that we could receive Him (the One who is life) as Savior be forgiven and be born again with new spiritual zoe-so that we could again connect and commune with God! And then in verse 5 John writes, "The light (the Logos, agent, zoe force of God) shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
" I appreciate the Amplified Version of this verse.
It reads, "And the Light shines on in the darkness, for the darkness has never overpowered it [put it out or absorbed it or appropriated it, and is unreceptive to it].
" Jesus-the source of Life-came to His own creation to offer it new spiritual life, but the darkness, (the broken part of this world, the sin, and all of that which is "dead" in man and cannot connect or commune with God) -- 1) couldn't overpower Jesus or absorb Him (i.
e.
they couldn't relegate him to being just another prophet or great teacher who came and went.
2) couldn't receive Him (because of the deadness and hardness of their hearts) John 1:11 (NIV) He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.
Sad words.
The One who made us, loves us and gave us life - put on flesh and came to us in order to bless us and restore us - and was rejected by his own creation.
But then, praise God, John continues, "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God" (John 1:12, NIV) THE BUMBLEBEE: "Did you know that a bumblebee, if dropped into an open tumbler, will be there until it dies, unless it is taken out.
It never sees the means of escape at the top, but persists in trying to find some way out through the sides near the bottom.
It will seek a way where none exists, until it completely destroys itself.
" Jesus - the Logos of God, the Author of Life, put on skin and dwelt among us-to show us the way back to real, spiritual life.
And then he willing laid his physical life down for us on the cross, to pay the price for us so that we could receive new eternal, spiritual life through faith in Him.
I.
e.
JESUS IS THE WAY OUT! All we have to do is LOOK UP to Him! Don't keep banging your head trying to find your own way out of this mess like the bumblebee -- look up and see the way out through Jesus! As my Grandma Rachel used to say, "If that doesn't fire you up, your wood's wet!" Now, aren't you glad you're a Christ follower? And if you're not, aren't you inspired to trust Him and receive as your Savior?
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