Among Us

John 1:1-5

welcome

recap

Christmas season is here

what comes up when i ask this question…God is among us, God is with you? how about God is here in this place??

different seasons of our life might mean different things = might bring up different emotions

lets do something together = Advent Chant

Give Me an

A

D

V

E

N

T

whats that spell?? what does that mean??

“Advent comes from the Latin word adventus and means arrival or appearance.

During these next four weeks of Advent, we are going to be celebrating and anticipating the arrival or appearance of God in the flesh!

And it is such a big deal that we spend weeks focusing upon it”

Preach on God is with you…

yet, we read this passage here today stand with me church

John 1:1–5 ESV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

First of all lets notice something, how John opens his Gospel, the “fourth” gospel…

Each of the Gospel writers chose a different starting point for their accounts of the life of Jesus. Matthew began with Abraham, showing how Jesus came from Abraham’s family and was the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham.

Mark skipped most of the preliminaries and moved right to the action, beginning with the ministry of John the Baptist.

Luke began with a review of his research method and rooted Jesus’ life in the wider historical events of his time.

But John presented the largest perspective of all, describing Jesus as the very source of everything we understand as beginning.

John open up talking about the WORD

the word WORD here in the Greek translates to logos (λόγος) = “speaking, a message, or words.”

In the Hebrew language of the Old Testament, “the Word” is described as an agent of creation (Psalm 33:6),

the source of God’s message to his people through the prophets (Hosea 1:2),

and God’s law, his standard of holiness

The Greeks used “the Word” in two ways.

It could mean a person’s thoughts or reason,

or it might refer to a person’s speech, the expression of thoughts.

As a philosophical term, logos conveyed the rational principle that governed the universe, even the creative energy that generated the universe.

In both the Jewish and Greek conceptions, logos conveyed the idea of beginnings—the world began through the Word.

John may have had these ideas in mind, but his description shows clearly that he spoke of Jesus as a human being he knew and loved (see especially 1:14),

who was at the same time the Creator of the universe, the ultimate revelation of God, and also the living picture of God’s holiness, the one in whom “all things hold together” (Colossians 1:17 NIV).

Jesus as the logos reveals God’s mind to us.

talk trinity

egg = partialism

ice, water, gas = modalisim

present these questions and answers presented to youth as a youth pastor…

5. How many gods are there? Answer: One 6. How many persons are there in God? Answer: Three 7. Who is the first person in God? Answer: The Father 8. Who is the second person in God? Answer: The Son 9. Who is the third person in God? Answer: The Holy Spirit

10. Who made all things? Answer: God the Father 11. Through whom did God make all things? Answer: The Son and Spirit

20. Who did God send to save us from sin and death? Answer: His only Son 21. Who is the Son of God? Answer: Jesus Christ 22. Who gave baby Jesus to Mary? Answer: The Holy Spirit 28. Where did Jesus go? Answer: To his Father in heaven

37. Who else did God send to save us? Answer: The Holy Spirit

Finally, emphasize that we are already immersed in the Trinity. We pray to the Father in the name of the Son with the help of the Spirit.

We are baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We sing “holy, holy, holy, God in three persons, blessed Trinity.”

We can know, love, worship, and adore God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. That’s who God is.

and that is important because as we look at this passage John is straight to the point here

John 1:1–2 ESV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.

talk about John not beating around the bush here

a few verses later lets us know who that word is

John 1:14 ESV

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

and so it is so clear and to the point that we must point out that others with differing beliefs such as jehova wintesses adds one small word to this passage to meet there wants and beliefs

their translation if you will goes like this

John 1:1 (ESV)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was A god.

John begins his Gospel by presenting us with such a strong assertion that we are forced to make a choice: Do we believe that the Word that became flesh was God or not?

and this really brings us to the point of this series here

talk about what this series is for and about

not knocking holiday traditions, but i want us to ask the question is there something deeper??

could it be about God who entered our world and took on flesh for the sake of our salvation?

understand God is among us and with you, in the holiday hustle and bustle, through the stress, through the hurt, God is with us…

pray

HOLY SPIRIT TAKE OVER…LORD PREACH IT