The Eternal Word of God

John 1:1-5

“In the beginning…”

A phrase stirs something deep in us.

Genesis 1:1. It’s how the Bible begins. It’s the first breath of the story. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”

But when John uses those same words at the opening of his Gospel, he’s not merely reminding us of creation, he’s taking us beyond it.

Before a star was hung in the sky, before the word “beginning” had meaning, the Word already was.

Unlike the other Gospel writers, John doesn’t start with Bethlehem or Nazareth or the Jordan River. He doesn’t trace lineage to Abraham or Adam. John starts with eternity.

He takes us backstage before the curtain of history was drawn.

He wants us to know who Jesus really is, not just a miracle-worker, not just a teacher, not just a man, but the eternal, life-giving, light-shining Word of God. He wants us to believe, and in believing, to have life in his name (John 20:31).

So in these first five verses, we are invited to stand on holy ground. We are not given a baby in a manger, we are given the eternal Logos, the Word who was with God and who was God. This morning, I want you to see what John wants us to see, that Jesus Christ is:

1) The Eternal Word of God,

2) The Life of the World, and

3) The Light of All Men.

And if this is true, if Christ is the eternal Word, then everything must change. Our belief, our worship, and our lives must be shaped by this truth.

What Does John Say about the Word?

A brief background of “Logos.”

In Greek, Logos is the philosophical principle that holds all things together and explains reality.

Heraclitus - There is an underlying rationality or design for the universe; a systematic logic, that gives all things their purpose and form.

Plato - “It may be that some day there will come forth from God a Word, a logos, who will reveal all mysteries and make everything plain.”

In Hebrew, the word is “dabar,” God’s powerful activity in:

Creation (Gen 1:3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light;” Ps 33:6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host); Revelation (“The word of the Lord came to me…” (Jer, Isa, Ezk)); and Deliverance (Ps 107:20 He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction.)

What John is saying:

The logos of God is not just a spoken word, not just a principle, but a personal being, who is at the root of all existence.mJesus is the spoken, living Word of God, who reveals the truth of God and our purpose and design in life.

He is the Eternal Word of God

In the Beginning Was the Word…

God has no beginning, no end, God always is.

Likewise, the word of God is eternal, it is not made. The Word doesn’t come into being. Before time and creation began, the Word of God already was, the Word existed before creation.

Gen 1:26 - “God said, let us make man in our image…”

The Word was with God

“With” teaches us that there is a relationship between the Word and God. Notice that “Word” in vs 1 becomes “He” in verse 2.

Unlike our own words, which have no personal existence outside of us, the Word of God is a divine person who eternally exists in perfect relationship with the Father.

John is telling us that the Word of God is a person who has a relationship with God.

Prov. 8:30 then I was beside him, like a master workman, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always

When John speaks of the Word, he means God the Son, Jesus Christ, who eternally lives in relationship with and does the will of God the Father.

The Word was God.

John says in the very first verse what He wants you to know: Jesus the Christ, the Word of God incarnate, is God.

As A.W. Pink once wrote, reflecting on the wonder of the incarnation, “The One who was heralded by the angels to the Bethlehem shepherds, who walked this earth for thirty-three years, who was crucified at Calvary and who rose in triumph from the grave, and who forty days later departed from these scenes, was none other than the Lord of Glory.”

He is the Life of the World

The Work of the Word is to bring life into being.

He is the Creator, the Sustainer, and the Ultimate Goal of Creation. Only God can create, bringing things into existence. John says, “all things were made by him.”

Col. 1:16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.

He is the ζωη: he brings beings to into life.

Apart from Him we have no life, and sin separates us from God. We are dead in our trespasses and sins. (Eph 2:1)

Outside of Christ there may be biological life, but there is no ultimate life, there is only spiritual death.

The good news is: Christ has come to bring the dead to life.

Eph 4:5 - we have been made alive together with Christ

Jn 10:10 “I came that you might have life and have it abundantly.”

He gives the fullness of life - People think that turning to Jesus will take all the fun out of life. But when you come to Jesus, your capacity for joy is vastly increased. Sin only deadens us and saps our life, whereas Christ fills us with wonder and purpose.

He is the Light of All Men

Light brings Illumination -

Seeing God clearly - the Word reveals God, whom no one has ever seen, showing us His holiness, His purity, His righteousness and truth.

Seeing Ourselves in reality - in the light of God’s glory, our sinfulness becomes all the more clear.

The Word shines in the darkness

We are in darkness, but he is the light - John 3:19-20

The unregenerate man, then, is like one that is blind, he is in the dark.

The darkness has not overcome it: the darkness apprehends it not.

What a fearful and solemn indictment of fallen human nature! And how evident it is that nothing short of a miracle of saving grace can ever bring one “out of darkness into God’s marvelous light.”

This is Good News! The light triumphs over darkness.

The work of Christ is to undo the work of darkness

He brings light to those who have dwelt in deep darkness - Isa 42:7

The promise of the Gospel: He will bring many sons to glory (Heb 2:10), to the light (Eph 5:8)

Life in the Light of the Word

We began this morning where John begins: in the beginning—before all things, before creation, before light itself. And what did we find there?

Not a principle. Not a force. Not an idea. We found a Person—the eternal Word. Jesus Christ, who was with God and who is God.

This Word spoke the universe into existence; is the life-giver, the sustainer of all that exists, and is the light that shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

It’s not abstract theology, it’s your hope. There’s no darkness in your life, no shadow in your past, no brokenness in your soul that the light of Christ cannot reach. On those clouded by confusion and death, the Word speaks, and the light shines.

So how must we respond?

A Call to Faith. Believe in the Word - because He is the only way to truly know God.

Jesus is the full, complete, perfect revelation of God. There is no other way to know God but through him.

Knowing the Word is having a relationship with Him.

A Call to Worship the Word - because He is worthy of all glory and praise.

Jesus is one with the Father, the Eternally Begotten Son of God, therefore he is worthy of our worship, praise, and adoration.

Jesus is the one through whom God has saved us, our great high priest, who is seated at the throne of God

Like in Revelation, God the Father and the Son are both the recipients of worship.

A call to Serve. Live for the Word - because in Him is life, and His light is meant to shine through you into the world.

As he is the light, we are to walk in the light, and to let his light shine through us.

As God said, ‘Let there be light’ in the beginning, He now says in Christ, ‘Let light shine in your heart’ (2 Cor 4:6).

As John will say later: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory…” May we not just see His glory—but treasure it, trust it, and walk in its light.