John 1:1-5 - The Word Became Flesh
John 1:1-5 - The Word Became Flesh
Today is a exciting day. As a family we are off to Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Yep, flying into the eye of the COVID storm. I am writing this on the flight from Houston to Orlando.
As I dive into John, I am going to just really process out loud, in a journal type style what is interesting and standing out to me. I am not sure what will come out of this, but it will be a little different than previous writings. I am just going to approach the Gospels, or at least John this way for now. Who knows, I may change my mind and approach, but for now, I am diving in and seeing what just begs of me to process out loud. So, here we go.
John 1:1-5, The Word Became Flesh.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” - John 1:1-5 NIV
In the beginning was the Word. Let’s stop there. John is throwing it way back to the Creation story, The Beginning. Genesis 1:1-2, where it all started.
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” - Genesis 1:1-2 NIV
Yesterday, in the Introduction I shared that the Gospel of John has a key, and central purpose. I wrote, this entire book was written, so we will come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus is fully God and fully man. So, with that in mind it makes sense to me that John would open up connecting back to the Creation story, the story and narrative that these readers would understand and connect with. But, when we read John’s words, and overlay them with Genesis 1 and beyond, it is interesting to me that John is not really talking about the Creation story in Genesis. Or, at least at face value when you read Genesis 1 you do not actually read anything that John is now saying. When I look at these writings, it is almost like John 1:1-5 is the prologue to Genesis 1. Interesting that this prologue of sorts that we are reading is written a lot of years later.
So, back to the words of John. (v1a) In the beginning was the Word. I come across so many people who take this as the Bible. I have done this, we take what we know, and inject it into the text as we read it. But, I think we need to remember that the Bible that we are reading from came a lot of years later, there was very limited actual texts at the time, much of what we know as the Bible in these times was oral. The oral stories passed from generation to generation, just like the stories we tell our kids today, and stories we hear from our grandparents. The Word was spoken...and the Word was thought, right? For something to be spoken it must first be a thought, correct? A idea, a concept a meaning. (V1b) And the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Ok, so here we are, the Word was with God. When we disconnect the word being the actual Bible we are reading, and think more about the Word as being the thoughts, the concepts and the meaning this makes a little more sense. These ideas and thoughts and meanings were (v1b)with God, and the Word was God.
Thinking about the Word was God also makes so much more sense to me as I am processing this understanding that these were ideals and meanings..of course they were God. We ourselves are a collection of our thoughts, right? Or at least part of us is our mind, and our thinking. Yes, we are much more than just our thoughts, we have mind, body and soul. This is where another interesting thought comes. (v2) He was with God in the beginning. Who? Well, remember this is all about Jesus, Jesus was with God in the beginning. Body, flesh, the tangible God to everyone. Now we have mind and body.
(v3) Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. So, here John is telling us that Jesus made all things, nothing was made without him. So, God and Jesus are connected, somehow one or together. Again, John is hammering home that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus is fully God and fully man. By connecting God and Jesus this way leave us only to connect these dots, that yes Jesus was God, and man.
(v4) In him (Jesus) was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. This to me sounds like soul. As I think about this in Jesus was life...I think about in us, and Jesus now in us as soul. Inner life, heart, being. Mind, Body, Soul, our wholeness was just laid out in a few verses of John. Something that I had never thought about until just now. For years I read this opening and visually has the Bible as we know it today in my mind, and who know - I maybe radically wrong in how I am approaching this and reading this, but this is my journey.
This is such beauty, these words are full of life, meaning and love. This narrative is of its essence the Gospel
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” - John 1:1-5 NIV
(v4b-5) In him (Jesus) was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. In Jesus was life. Jesus was also with God in the beginning. So, Jesus was with the Word, connected to the Word, and essentially was the Word, or had the Word in Him. All was in, and a part of Jesus. And Jesus was life! And that life (Jesus) was the light of all mankind. This is really interesting. No some of mankind, all of mankind. All? What is all? The ESV says In him was life, and the life was the light of men. NASB says, In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. So, these translations do not say all, but of men is stated. I suppose the NIV translators, and for that matter nearly all other translators inserted all making that the assumption. But this is intriguing at the earliest words of the Gospel we are using inclusive language. This makes me wonder and draw a connection to Paul’s writing in Romans 11. Paul uses this inclusive language wrapping up, and basically putting a cherry on top of his writings with this;
“I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written: “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.” - Romans 11:25-26 NIV
All Israel will be saved. The ESV says all Israel will be saved. The NASB says so all Israel will be saved. I suppose all Israel will be saved.
Back to John, Jesus is the light of all mankind. Verse 5 concludes this opening with The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Jesus is the light of all mankind, and Jesus shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome Jesus, the light.
This is such good news, that Jesus has overcome the darkness because He is light. We know that God is love, this whole story is love and this love of God overcomes the darkness all around us. I think I am going to stop here, there have been a lot of rabbit trails I have avoided, but could go down and spend a long time trying to figure out or at least explore. Maybe you have some exploring to do, or processing with these thoughts. Again, they are just my thoughts. The living Word of God, yes this Book is Alive, living breathing, the Word of God.
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling 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 NIV
I know that this Word has changed and transformed my life. For that God, I thank you. Writing it, and reading my writing I don’t like seeing and reading transformed because that sounds complete. Let’s say transforming, this is a process. Reading and processing John is going to be interesting. I look forward to the process, and the journey. I am sure there is so much stuff I am brining to this reading, I desire to drop all my stuff and am going to work hard to not inject my stuff in the reading. I desire to read the text free of my stuff, and junk. That is a bit idealistic, but I am going to try. Ok, back to sitting on a plane. I end with (v17b) grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Amen.