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.
6There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. 7He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.
10He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.12Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.
14The 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.
15John testifies concerning him. He cries out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' " 16From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. 17For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.
This is not the typical passage read at Christmas, but gives part of the backstory that makes Christmas, the birth of the Messiah into our world, so amazing. I've just started to read John, and haven't made it past this passage quite yet! I thought it would be cool to post a few thoughts here, to help you meditate on and celebrate Christmas.
In this passage, John builds a framework for the rest of his book, laying out a clear picture of who Jesus is that he'll continue to expand on throughout the Gospel. I labeled 12 things (though there may be more, or less, depending on your interpretation and reading of things) that John says about Jesus - all building the argument that Jesus is indeed the Messiah, and God Himself.
1. Jesus is the Word of God (v.1)
Not meaning the Bible, but the "divine self-expression" (phrase used by D.A. Carson in his commentary on John). God discloses Himself (He speaks) in the person of Jesus Christ. According to Carson's commentary, in the Old Testament, the Word of God brought creation, revelation, and salvation. All these things are true of Jesus - He created (v.3) and re-created (the idea of us being "born again"), He reveals God (v. 18), and He saves (v.12).
2. Jesus is God (v. 1, 18)
John clearly states that Jesus is God, that He and the Father are one.
3. Jesus exists eternally (v.1-2)
It says that "in the beginning was the Word" - in other words, Jesus was present when time began, when our world began. He has no beginning and no end, He's eternal. There has been no time, and will be no time, when Jesus didn't exist. He always was, and is.
4. Jesus is the Creator (v. 3, 10)
"Without Him was not any thing made that was made" - He created the substance of the universe - every particle of matter, anti-matter, every atom and molecule, everything. While man can build and create things, we have to have something to work with. Jesus created everything out of nothing.
5. Jesus holds life in Himself (v. 4, 12, 16)
He is the giver of life. John says that "this life was the light of men" - the life that He held in Himself was given to us. First in creation, He made us and put life into us; and also at salvation, He is the giver of new life in Him.
6. Jesus is the true light (v. 5, 9)
He isn't just any light, but the true light. He shines in the darkness and is victorious over it. There are not equally powerful forces of good and evil in the world, Jesus is infinitely more powerful than any force of evil, and has been and will be victorious over it all. We need not fear evil or darkness when Jesus is with us. Light always overcomes darkness, darkness cannot envelop light.
7. Jesus is the way of salvation (v. 12-13)
He gave the right for us to become children of God, we did not earn it. He provides salvation through Himself.
8. Jesus came to the world and dwelt among us (v. 10, 14)
This is called the "Incarnation" - God becoming a man. It's amazing, and almost impossible to conceive, considering the fact that He created the world. It's like an author writing himself into a story. Only an author's story only exists in imagination and on paper. God's creation is real and physical, and He physically entered into it in the person of Jesus. He slipped in quietly, under cover of night, and the world, though created by Him, did not recognize Him. Amazing that people would not recognize their Creator when He was present with them! Yet many didn't, and still don't. How often I fail to recognize Him too, even though I'm graciously saved by Him and He lives in me.
9. Jesus reveals the Father (v. 14, 18)
He makes God known, and enables us to know Him.
10. Jesus is full of grace and truth (v. 14, 16-17)
Grace: unmerited favor, a gift (yet not without cost - He Himself was the cost!)
Truth: no falsehood, trustworthy, authoritative, an unmovable anchor, reliable
Contrast that with the law (v. 17). We don't need a list of laws to follow to grow and be changed, we need grace and truth. Jesus is FULL of grace and truth.
11. Jesus is the Son of God (v. 14)
i.e., He is God.
12. He is the Messiah (v. 17)
The Greek word "Christ" means Messiah. John waits until the end of this passage to reveal who he's been talking about: Jesus Christ, the Messiah. The Messiah had been long-awaited and much-anticipated throughout the Old Testament and Jewish history, and now He has been revealed, at long last. He is the hope of all nations, the Anointed One sent from God to save. And He is God Himself. And this is what we celebrate at Christmas - the long-awaited Messiah has come to earth to save people of every nation. Only He came in an unexpected way - as a helpless baby, born in a stable in a small, obscure town, to humble and ordinary parents. Just as when God revealed Himself to Elijah in a whisper rather than an earthquake or a storm, God revealed Himself through Jesus in a baby rather than a powerful political or military leader.
One of the amazing things about Christmas is that all these things, these dozen things found in this passage in John, are all true of this little baby, laying sweetly in a manger. This child held life in Himself, He was full of grace and truth, existing eternally, God Himself. And he came to save us, for His glory. Astounding.
Merry Christmas!
--Jason
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