In the beginning the Word

Jesus the Living Word; Followed by Revolutionaries

The Gospel written by Jesus' closest friend John presents a revolutionary concept.

Something which would have immediately grabbed the attention of those who read it.

But we will come back to that; I want us to understand a few things about the man who wrote this Gospel.

The Apostle John and his brother James were fishermen who with their father Zebedee ran a successful fishing business on the lake of Galilee.

John appears to have been a man with an intense and zealous character as Jesus calls John & James sons of thunder. John was firstly a disciple of John the Baptist before being called by Jesus to follow him.

Here we see a man who sought a revolution, he followed John the Baptist the first prophet in hundred’s of years.

Someone whom many expected to bring a revolution. Then he followed Jesus the one the revolutionary John declared to be the Messiah

John was Jesus closest friend, the one he trusted to care for Mary after his death and a key leader in the early church.

John later moved to Ephesus, was especially interested in the 7 churches of Asia and was later exiled to the Island of Patmos and then died around AD 98 in Ephesus probably as the oldest surviving member of Jesus inner circle.

This fisherman and radical disciple, whose education almost certainly consisted of nothing more than learning the Hebrew Scriptures, reciting a list of his ancestors back over generations and the trade of his Father over his lifetime wrote this Gospel, the 3 short letters known as 1st, 2nd & 3rd John and the book of Revelation.

These are incredible works of narrative history, theology, pastoral care and apocalyptic vision.

Incredible works and it starts with John 1:1 (ESV)

John 1:1 ESV

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

Jesus the Living Word; A revolutionary concept

In the Greek language of the New Testament, John used the word Logos which is translated into English as “The Word”

This doesn’t mean a great deal to us today but it is a word which resonated with ancient readers.

For the Jews it would have reminded readers of the creative word of God, the words of the prophets, even of the personification of wisdom as an agent of God in creation.

Some Jewish scholars of the time thought of the Torah or books of the Old Testament as pre-existant, that is existing before the creation of time and therefore its laws were to be obeyed eternally.

Amongst the Gentiles there was in Stoicism the idea that the logos is divine reason; a reason which not only pervades and gives order to the cosmos but also relieves the ignorance of humanity.

The philosopher Philo used the word “logos” to denote the mind of God, the agent of creation, the mediator between God and the creation

Later Gnostic writers, people who claimed a special secret knowledge from God would see the logos as the heavenly messenger who bridges the gap between the spiritual and material worlds.

John had grabbed his readers attention; in these few words He has everyone hooked, they know the logos, they have all sorts of things in mind.

John: An Introduction and Commentary 1. Prologue (1:1–18)

Barrett, speaking of 1:1 says, ‘John intends that the whole of his Gospel shall be read in the light of this verse. The deeds and words of Jesus are the deeds and words of God; if this be not true the book is blasphemous.’1

This truth is the starting point of the Gospel of John, everything John wrote is built upon this truth.

Jesus is the Logos.

It is a foundation truth.

A foundation truth is essential in so many areas. The foundation for the flight of a plane is that the wings must produce lift.

If there is no lift, it isn’t flight, if you continue to go up then you are sitting on top of a rocket.

The end result is either the rocket runs out of fuel or you end up in space. Eventually somewhere you will run out of lift and encounter gravity, the result is falling.

Just like with a plane, a foundational requirement is lift produced by air flowing over the wings.

No lift, no flight, no flight equals falling.

If Jesus is not the Logos, the pre-existant word of God who is in fact God, the author and agent of creation, who has no beginning and no end then everything else that follows has no foundation, it falls.

John 1:1–5 NLT

In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.

Jesus the Living Word; A revolutionary purpose

We have the foundation of all that John wrote, but why did he write it?

Yes it is an exciting incredible truth, but to what end.

As I said before John had a standard education, he wasn’t a schooled professor of ancient literature trained to produce incredibly complex structured material.

But within the words of Chapter 1 of John’s Gospel scholars have identified an incredible structure.

Something which we the common reader don’t see because we are not professors of ancient literature.

But something which stands out to those with training in such things.

Verse 1 to 18 are structured in what is known as a chiastic structure.

Just as we recognize poetry because of the way it is set out, because of the structure of how the words flow.

So there is a chiastic structure which starts at a point, builds up to a key point then flows back down to a point which compliments the beginning point.

It cascades up then down again.

Look at verse 1 then look at verse 18, here we see complementary points.

Right at the middle, between a flowing up from verse one and flowing down to verse 18 is verse 12 to 13.

John 1:12–13 NLT

But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.

Here we see the purpose of John’s Gospel. Here we see the result of the foundational truth that Jesus is the Logos.

It is from the truth of the Logos and the purpose of John’s Gospel ,being born again as children of God that everything else in this book flows.

Everything points to these truths.

Everything is designed to communicate that people need to be reborn as children of God.

Here is the basis behind verses such as John 3:16

John 3:16 NLT

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

Jesus the Living Word; A revolutionary challenge

As I have just pointed out this truth and this purpose have implications.

They force people to make a decision about where they stand.

Why do we witness, because Jesus is the Logos and people need salvation.

Why do we preach, because Jesus is the Logos and people need salvation.

This is the message the disciples were willing to die for.

This is the message brothers and sisters throughout the world suffer and die for.

This is the message that formed the foundation which gave us the freedoms we enjoy in Western society.

This is the message that the forces of darkness seek to destroy, to hide, to lock up.

This is the message which asks each and every one of us, where do you stand.

Do you accept and rejoice in this truth, or do you reject it and fight against it?

And even if you reject it and fight against it it is still true.

The outcome remains the same, acceptance of this truth bring light and life.

Rejection of it brings darkness and death.

It is a revolutionary challenge, where do you stand?