The Word?

I feel that John 1:1 alone is one of the most misunderstood scriptures in the New Testament, besides maybe John 3:16, but that is for another time. We will focus mainly on John chapter 1 verse 1 thru 5. To save the best for last I will start backwards with verses 5 and 4. Verse 5 is interesting because this is making reference back to Genesis 1:3-4 where we first see the comparison of Light and darkness (Jesus and Satan). I make mention of this in my last sermon of the Days of Restoration.

As we move onto verse 4 of John chapter 1, we know that this light that John is making reference to is also Jesus, just through his continued comparison of light in verses 7-9, making it clear that he is speaking of Jesus. So far for the most part, you may agree with me on these things since they are the basic understanding of those verses for Christians, but as for the next few things, that may change.

Johns mentioning in verses 2 thru 3 that Jesus was with God in the beginning and that all things were made by him is not a mentioning of the eternal past, but of our own beginning which John points out in verse 10. John is not speaking of ALL created things, seen or unseen, but our world which we live in. People misunderstand this to mean ALL of creation and not just our world’s creation. Jesus was with his Father in the beginning of the restoration of the Earth in Genesis 1:3-4, for he is the light that God calls forth.

As we go on we get to verse 1, the elephant in the room. Though Christians may try to use this to show Jesus is God or equal to Him, they fall short in grasping what is truly being said here and by doing so they insult both the Father and the Son. First of all we know God had no beginning, so if this Word that is spoken of is Jesus then it shows that he had a beginning, thus already making him neither God nor equal to Him. Second is understanding what the Word is and that is the key to this whole scripture. What else do we call the Word and why do we call it that? The Bible which we read is called the Word or the Living Word or even the Word of God. We know the Bible itself is not God or a God, but is His Word, His stated commandments, His standard for us to know the difference between right and wrong. That is what is spoken of in verse 1. God spoke these things into existence and as we say down here, that a man is only as good as his word or that the words of a man makes him who he is, then this scripture can be understood for what it is.

In the beginning God spoke into existence His Word (Laws and Commandments) and His Word was with Him for it was His Word that guided who He is and what He does. God does not go against what He has spoken, just as a True ruler down here is not supposed to go against what he has established as law. Thus the Law and His Commandments which God spoke is who He is as it says at the end of verse 1 that the Word was God. That’s why down in verse 14 where the Word (Law and Commandments) became flesh is showing us that Jesus became to us the embodiment of God’s Word to show us how to follow the Word of God and that it is possible to holey do and keep the Word of God in our very life.

I always wondered why people had to think that Jesus is God or at least equal to Him and that ALL things had to be created by him. It’s as; if Jesus wasn’t and did not do these things then somehow it reflects on us and makes us not something special, but an afterthought, as if we are not the pinnacle of God’s creation then life isn’t worth living. It is sad to think that the sacrifice that Jesus went through and the pain his Father had to endure to allow His son to go through down here wasn’t enough if Jesus is not God.