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If you have your bibles (and I hope you do), please turn with me to the Gospel according to John, the first chapter.
If you are able and willing, please stand with me for the reading of God’s Holy Word.
John chapter 1, verse 1:
May the Lord add His blessing to the reading of His Word!
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Last week, we studied verses 1-5.
John opens his Gospel by writing about “the Word.”
John introduces Jesus as “the Word”/ “o logos”
“The Word,” Jesus, is the expression and the speech and the personal relation of God to man.
Jesus, “the Word”, is eternally existing, ever-with God as the second person of the Trinity.
“The Word,” Jesus, is the Creator of all things—“through Him all things were made…”
“The Word,” Jesus, is life and the light of all people—life eternal, and light revealing sin and the righteousness of God.
“The Word,” then, is a good, comprehensive title for Jesus who does all these things—who does all this as the second person of the Trinity, eternally existing in relationship with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit.
During Christmastime, at this Christmas season, we are reminded of what Jesus has done for us.
John’s Gospel, specifically the prologue (the opening verses), helps us to see who Jesus is and what He’s done for us.
I would argue the most important question—“Who is Jesus?”—is answered in the first few verses of John 1, as is the question, “Why Did He Come?”
Jesus “the Word” creates us.
Jesus “the Word” gives us light and life.
Jesus “the Word” has come to deliver us, to save His people from their sins.
That’s what we want to hear at Christmastime—that Jesus has done all these things for us.
He’s given us all these great things, because of His grace and mercy and love.
“Merry Christmas!
Happy New Year!
Let’s pray.”
That’s what we want to hear at Christmastime.
But that’s not all John has for us.
John, the apostle of Jesus, one of the sons of Zebedee wrote this book, the fourth Gospel, but never refers to himself as “John.”
When John does refer to himself, he’ll say, “The disciple Jesus loves,” or “the beloved disciple.”
John might think a little too highly of himself, but he was one of Jesus’ closest friends, and he’s writing this book so he gets to call himself whatever he wants.
So here, when John uses the name “John”, he’s referring to someone other than himself.
John’s writing about John—John the Baptist, that is.
John spends a few verses here in our text this morning to share about John the Baptist—a man sent from God…as a witness to testify concerning that light (the light mentioned in verses 4-5).
A Witness to the Light
Upon learning of the Lord’s purpose for her, Mary, the mother of Jesus, hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb.
Elizabeth told Mary, “As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.”
That’s John the Baptist—the baby Elizabeth carried.
Three months before he was born, John was excited—joyful, even—to know that Jesus had come into the world.
John the Baptist, a man sent by God to occupy a unique place in history as the one who would prepare the way for the coming of the Lord, was not the light of the people.
John was not the light.
John was not the One who came shining in the darkness.
John was not the Messiah, not the Promised One, not the light.
John was a witness to [that] light.
Who has to be told about the light?
I mean, good grief, just look.
You’ve never flipped on a light switch and then announced to the people in the room, “You probably didn’t notice it, but let me point out there’s now light in this room.”
Your friends and family don’t need to be told about the light that’s right there in front of them.
So why does John the Baptist need to come as a witness to the light?
I’ll let A.W. Pink answer:
“When the sun is shining in all its beauty, who are the ones unconscious of the fact?
Who need to be told it is shining?
The blind!
How tragic, then, when we read that God sent John to “bear witness of the light.”
How pathetic that there should be any need for this!
How solemn the statement that men have to be told “the light” is now in their midst.
What a revelation [this is] of man’s fallen condition.”
Jesus was the light shining in the darkness.
Jesus came as light, but the world was blinded to it; couldn’t see it.
The One who created the world was in the world, yet the world didn’t recognize Him…
Jesus made our eyes, yet we couldn’t see His glory.
Jesus fashioned our ears, yet we refused to listen to His words.
Jesus created our very bodies, yet people proudly refrain from bowing before Him.
John is not, himself, the light.
There were people confused about John, people who thought John the Baptist was the one promised by God—the Messiah.
John was quick to tell them, “No, no.
I’m not the Messiah; I’m not even worthy to untie His sandal.”
A witness to the light.
My friend, Jared Wilson, shares this interaction he had with someone who came to his church and asked:
“You’re the preacher?”
“Yes.”
“So you’re the guy with all the answers.”
“No,” Jared replied.
“I’m the guy to points to that guy.”
Brothers and sisters, we don’t have all the answers.
We’re not the light.
We aren’t the hope of the world.
We aren’t saviors or messiahs or anything of the sort.
We are witnesses to the light; those who point to the One with all the answers.
And there may be no better time to point to Him than this time of year.
Opportunities abound.
The songs on the radio, nativities in front yards and in our homes, lights on the Christmas tree and downtown, presents exchanged.
All these are really nice conversation starters— “What’s that song talking about?
Why do we put lights up?
What are these gifts representing?”;
built-in opportunities to share the gospel and be witnesses to the true light.
The True Light Coming Into the World
Verse 9 doesn’t get the notice it deserves.
It isn’t as famous as verse 14 or as quoted as the first couple verses of John 1.
And yet, verse 9 is really incredible.
It’s as Christmas-y as it gets.
I believe some versions use the phrase “coming into the world” in the wrong place.
Stick with me; this matters.
Some versions of the Bible attach this phrase “coming into the world” to “every man.”
The grammatical construction of the phrase “coming into the world” is singular, meaning it should be attached to the singular “Light” instead of the plural “every man.”
The better rendering is the one nearly every other translation of the Bible chooses:
THE TRUE LIGHT WAS COMING INTO THE WORLD!
This is the really good news of Christmas.
The Word, the True Light, is coming into the world.
Jesus is coming into the world.
It’s not that light is coming into the world as it did when God spoke light into being.
It’s that the TRUE LIGHT is coming into the world—this is a different event than creation.
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