The Gospel of John. 1:1-5 (God comes to earth.)

The Gospel of John. 1:1-5 (God comes to earth.)

Introduction:

Who? John the beloved disciple of Jesus. Brother of James, both fishermen.

When? 85-90 BC. most scolders today would say after 100 buy I and Chatgpt would say earlier. (fragments form 125 AD). Ephesus?

Why? PPT John 20:30-31 That people would believe in Jesus as Savior and Lord and God.

What: It is a historical theological biography of Jesus life.

John is different from the other 3 gospels, has fewer story’s, but his account has other gospels does not have. John is clear about his purpose; He wants to persuade people to believe in Jesus. John has a big fucus on the last week of Jesus life. A big focus that Jesus is God.

Chapter 1 Verses 1-5

John takes a different approach, that the other gospel writers, and engages the in philosophy of the day,

John writes about the word, logos, Logos was a concept people would be familiar with at the time when John wrote. From the 600-500 BC Logos was a Philosophy concept and is was developed by different philosophy schools, also Jewish Philosophy, Philo 100 BC- 100 AD. Therefore when John choses to write about the Logos – the word. Both Jew and Greek would know what John was writing about.

PowerPoint: Summary of Greek Philosophical Logos:

Across these different schools of thought, Logos in Greek philosophy generally referred to:

A universal principle of order and reason that governs the cosmos. A rational force that brings unity, coherence, and purpose to the universe. A concept that often served as a bridge between the divine and the material world.

It is both immanent(present in the world, especially in Stoicism) and transcendent(connected to divine wisdom or mind, particularly in Platonism).

Therefore, it is a big word and concept that John takes up, and explains, what people for 600-700 years had been talking about. But even before we get there we have to start as John dose with the beginning.

John writes in the beginning, and as the quick student would say, that sounds like the beginning off the bible, and it is… This is a refence to the first words in scripture, so John is placing the Word at creation, at the beginning of all created.

John explains the Word was with God in the beginning, that makes good sense, the next part will make some sense and wow some people at that time and today. John is saying that the Word, it not only order, mediator, relational, a force, the word was with God and not only with God but was God. (John has a high Christology – and John is not in doubt Jesus is God and was with God from the beginning). As he restates in verse 2. He was in the beginning with God.

What did the Word do? As we see in the creation account God speaks and things come in to being, in Verse 3 John explains what the word (Jesus) did at creation, all things was made through him, nothing that was made was not made without him (Jesus) all things was made with Jesus.

This is passages that gives us a view into how our trinitarian God works together, God the father speaks, and things are made through, the Word (Jesus), and the Spirt of God is hovering over the waters. (We see in in Jesus baptizem also).

And in verse 4 in him was life, and the life was the light of men, - (Jesus) the word, is God, life, and the light for people. All the things the philipopers and the theologians have tried to make sense, it all comes together in (Jesus Christ) the word, order, the Devine with us, relational, intermedia, and life, what life is about is found in the word (Jesus), and the word came to shine a light, that people might see.

The darkness, did not win, but the light shined in to darkness, that the people that would see could, and could be saved by the word (Jesus). Jesus also made it in to the world and even if the powers of evil would try to avoid it the could not, they could not stop the light form shining, that people might see the light and come to it to have life, understand the creation, know the God that created and the one the word that was sent to show them, who God is. God was invading the word, pushing back darkness.

You might say, what does that have to do with me? Good question.

A lot of John is not about you but Explains who God is.

It does have much with you - Because theology knowledge of God, it was drives all we do, our core understating of God will be the bases of all of our choices, (I mean sometimes affected by sin and selfishness).

I would ask what does it mean that the word is God, that Jesus is God? What does that mean for you? Practically in you every day. (That means that God knows all your experiences, knows what it is like to be a person, )

What does it mean that everything was made trough Jesus and for Jesus Col 1:16,? That all belongs to Jesus not to you. God is very generous.

What does it mean that life was in Jesus, - that there is a difference between living and existing, we can exist without living, Jesus comes that we might truly live, the life Jesus has for us, in Christ, abundant walking in the good works laid out for us to walk in.

The darkness could not prevent Jesus from coming and could not hinder the light. Jesus has power over the darkness and evil.

I am praying we will all get to understand God, better love Jesus more and worship Him by the Holy Spirt to the glory of God.