Day 22: John 1:1-18
The first words of today’s reading, “In the beginning,” take the reader back to Genesis 1 (see reading for Day 1) and to the account of creation. Way back then, this “Word” was with God, and was God. He was both distinct from him and of the same essence as him. What we read in English as “Word” comes from the Greek word logos. This is God’s logic, his reason, the spoken word which brought forth creation and revelation. A word reveals, discloses, uncovers what previously could not fully be understood. A person can have many thoughts in his head and others might know some of them through actions or expressions, but until he forms words, the thoughts cannot be truly known by anyone else. Same with God. He had revealed himself in many ways in the Old Testament, but this Word finally made him completely known and knowable.So who or what is this Word? It is more than just God’s speaking into creation. Instead, verse 14 explains that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” This Word is Jesus. Jesus became man in order to narrate the invisible God and to make him known. The One through whom all things were made (v. 3) put on human flesh and walked among us. In Old Testament, before Solomon built the temple, the place where God would dwell with his people was called the tabernacle. The priests would make sacrifices in the tabernacle, and the people saw it as a holy place. Here, the original text says that Jesus “tabernacled” among us. This person of Jesus became for us the means through which God would dwell with his people.
Again, in verse 18, John makes this clear: “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.” Jesus revealed to us in relatable, human form what previously could not truly be understood. In the words of theologian D.A. Carson, John 1:18 “summarizes how the ‘Word’ which was with God in the very beginning came into the sphere of time, history, tangibility – in other words, how the Son of God was sent into the world to become the Jesus of history, so that the glory and grace of God might be uniquely and perfectly disclosed.”
Consider for a moment how far the Almighty God has gone in pursuit of us. Though he was completely holy, immortal, untouchable, completely set apart, God became man. He became one of us. He walked among us in this broken, messed-up world. In the person of Jesus, we could touch God, listen to God, see God face to face. If he has gone so far, can he not be trusted with what we are going through today? He is not distant. He is near. As we read about the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus over the next few days, let us keep in mind that this person of Jesus was not just a nice person or a good teacher – he was God Himself, come to dwell with man.
Finally, look at verses 11-12. Even after all this, his people did not receive him, and he was “despised and rejected” (Isaiah 53:3; see reading for Day 19). But for all who did receive him, both then and now, he gave the right to become children of God!
Questions for reflection and discussion: Whereas yesterday’s reading communicated the birth of Jesus in a historical narrative way, today’s reading communicates it in a more theological way. How do the two passages complement and enhance one another? Why is it significant that Jesus is called the “Word” of God? Have you received him and believed in his name?
