The Word and Light

God is a God of Revelation

Have you ever participated in a secret gift-giving party, maybe a Secret Santa event at school or work? In this event, you receive a name and secretly give gifts to someone who doesn't know who it is until the big reveal. It can be a lot of fun to disguise yourself and then see the surprise on the person when you reveal yourself. The revealing, along with the gifts, is the main part of this activity

The gospel reveals that God is in the revelation business. But He is not like a Secret Santa. He wants to communicate who He is and who we are with and without Him. If we read the Bible from cover to cover, we can see how God has consistently made an effort to inform us. All creation broadcasts His glory. Psalm 19:1

Psalm 19:1 ESV

1 The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

And the prophets were messengers of God's Word. God continued His revelation through John the disciple and John the Baptist, who introduced to us the full and final revelation of God. We know this revelation as Jesus Christ. God has something for us that is far better than any gift we could receive. At the essence of every human being, there is the desire to know our Creator and His purpose for us. God gives the gift of a relationship with Him.

As we study this section of scripture, consider the ways John describes Jesus as revelation. Jesus is the Word, the True Light, the One who reveals God and His purpose for us.

John 1:1–18 ESV

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. 9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 14 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. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’ ”) 16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.

The Word

John does not use the name of Jesus until verse 17, but rather chose to use the term "Word" (logos). We might find this confusing, but to John's original audience, they would have understood his meaning. The concept of "the Word" had roots in the Old Testament as the action of God in this world. Psalm 33:6-7

Psalm 33:6–7 ESV

6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host. 7 He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; he puts the deeps in storehouses.

It also was used to describe God's communication to people (the word of the LORD). And in the culture of the time,

The Forgotten Trinity The Word

The Greeks had used the term logos in their philosophical explanations regarding the functioning of the world. The logos was for them an impersonal ordering force, that which gave harmony to the universe. The logos was not personal in their philosophy, but it was very important.

John takes the term and redirects our thinking to see that God's communication is not only personal but a person, Jesus Christ. And the big surprise is, the Word is God! How can the Word be God? John gives us a couple of reasons. The Word was:

in the beginning

in fellowship with God

was God (eternally) the Creator

But how do we know that John was careful to make this distinction of the Word as God? James White explains the careful use of the verb "to be".

The Forgotten Trinity The Little Word “Was”

Throughout the prologue of the Gospel of John, the author balances between two verbs. When speaking of the Logos as He existed in eternity past, John uses the Greek word ἦν, en (a form of eimi). The tense1 of the word expresses continuous action in the past. Compare this with the verb he chooses to use when speaking of everything else—found, for example, in verse 3: “All things came into being through Him,” ἐγένετο, egeneto. This verb2 contains the very element missing from the other: a point of origin. The term, when used in contexts of creation and origin, speaks of a time when something came into existence. The first verb, en, does not.

As we see from these opening verses, God has consistently revealed himself with His past revelation and continued to reveal himself through Jesus Christ. John’s next illustration of revelation is described as light.

The Word is Light

If you listen closely to the opening verses, you will hear the echoes of the opening of Genesis. Genesis 1:1-4

Genesis 1:1–4 ESV

1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness.

Just like the formless darkness is interrupted by the Words of the Godhead, "Let there be light". The only way to counteract the effect of darkness is with light. Even the smallest amount of light can be seen in the darkness. But John has a tremendous light in mind that not only appears but emits a powerful brightness that darkness cannot fight against it. The darkness does not dim the light, but rather the light changes the darkness because the light is always more powerful. The Bible identifies human darkness in a couple of ways:

without knowledge or understanding of God Psalm 82:5

Psalm 82:5 ESV

5 They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

living in rejection and rebellion of God - Psalm 107:10-15

Psalm 107:10–15 ESV

10 Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in affliction and in irons, 11 for they had rebelled against the words of God, and spurned the counsel of the Most High. 12 So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor; they fell down, with none to help. 13 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. 14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart. 15 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man!

The only solution for darkness is light. Now let’s consider the ability of sight. The human eyes are amazing parts of the body. Eyes were created to receive light so we could see shapes, color, and depth. We depend upon our eyes to "see". But even if our eyes are fully functioning, we cannot see without light. But here is the big question, if a light shines brightly and eyes are functioning, why do people still not see? Jesus has come to the world He created. He comes like a bright light for all people to see. But some eyes still don't see, or rather, some eyes refuse to see. Eyes do not see because they do not receive it.

Receive - to take, accept, to receive willingly something given that is physical or abstract.

Think about this, you may have received a present that you didn't like, or maybe you found it offensive (exercise equipment, cleaning supplies, deodorant). You may smile and receive it, but you might re-gift it, return it, or throw it away. The gift is there, but you really don't receive it. Is that what the gospel is like to some of us? Is that why those around us don't believe it as we do? The problem is not with the Gift giver, nor the gift. It is the receiver. So it is with the Light. Neither the Giver of Light nor the Light is the problem but the one who sees the light and refuses to receive it.

The Word is Revealed

John declared that the Word became flesh. We know this as the doctrine of the Incarnation.

Incarnation: The act of grace whereby Jesus came to earth and took on a human nature into union with his divine nature becoming “God incarnate” for the purpose of our salvation.

Jesus existed as God before the World began. He created all things. He is God. We can't have the Incarnation without the Trinity. These two doctrines form an inseparable truth that is part of God's salvation.

The Word "dwelt among us". At first glance, we may miss the theological background to this phrase. The term “dwelt” is the same term used to describe "to take up residence, dwell as in a tent". Looking back to the Old Testament, we see the Tent of Meeting, the Tabernacle. There is no coincidence that John used this word to describe the coming down and dwelling of Christ as God did in the Old Testament. But this time it was not a physical tent nor a visual effect of fire or smoke. It was through the heartbeat of a human body. The Light of the world presented himself in a tangible way. It may have appeared ordinary at a glance, but those who encountered Jesus describe it as "glory".

But not all received, but those who do receive the right to become children of God. So should we change the nature of this glorious light for others to receive it better? Should we give it a different hue or dim it a bit? Never, light is by nature bright and shining. It exposes the darkness and causes it to flee. And that is the reason many may not ever want to receive the light; it reveals darkness they either deny or do not want to examine.

How would you describe some of the situations you see in this world or your life? Are they dark because of a lack of understanding or rejection of God? And if you are in a dark place, is the reason for that the same lack of knowledge or rebellion?

We need the Light and Word

As we near the end of the year 2021, we may be disappointed. Like me, you may have thought it would be better than 2020. In some ways, it is, and in many ways, our world is unsettled. The problem may not be that the world is unsettled, but we in America were insulated from most of it. We only had to watch it on the news or hear of it second-hand. But when things changed for us personally, it may have caused unsettling in your heart and mind. The poll numbers may reflect the frustration in our country and culture, but there is a far deeper issue that we should not neglect. The deeper problem is to which light we keep our eyes tuned. Our “good life” in America may have been a false light to which we may have turned. If things are OK in our personal world, then all is fine. But the light of American culture and prosperity will flicker and grow dim because it is not eternal. The words of our leaders and government institutions have been proven to be unreliable. Campaign promises and economic predictions will always prove to be false hopes. The power struggle in philosophy and approach to providing solutions to our common problems will always prove to be only helpful to a limited point. And because of this I have found myself tempted to fixate on two options:

consume more information on political solutions and opinions

find a means of entertaining distraction

But that human temptation is not the only option. During our darkness, God gives us Christ the True Light. In our confusion and lack of direction, God provides us with the revelation of Christ the Living Word. If not more than ever before, we need to fix our eyes and ears on Jesus Christ.

The Revelation is for You

In Christianity, we speak of God in a personal way. We do so because the gospel is a personal reality for those who receive it. Through faith, we welcome the presence of the Creator in our lives. He shines His light to illuminate our path and decisions, expose the real person we are, and show us who we are made to be in Christ. He shows us grace upon grace, reminding us that this is an ongoing relationship in which we are saved by grace and live this Christian life in grace. As mentioned before, God is in the business of revelation. From the Old Testament, God revealed his salvation power in the Exodus and gave the Law through Moses. This same God continues to show himself, but now only and fully through Jesus Christ. By faith, we can declare, we have seen the Light, and can know God and be known by Him. Have you received the Word of God and the True Light? If not, why not? What about those around you? Continue to intercede for those who have yet to see God’s glorious light.