The Word: Jesus Christ

The Word: Jesus Christ

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome.

Beginning —Word —God—- Life—- Light—Darkness 

The gospel of John unique in nature than the three synoptic Gospels of the New Testament. The other Gospels begin with Bethlehem; John begins with ‘the bosom of the Father.’ Luke dates his narrative by Roman emperors and Jewish high-priests; John dates his ‘in the beginning. The gospel begins with the hymn of incarnation rather than the genealogy contrast to the Gospel of Matthew and Luke. Only 7 miracles were mentioned in this gospel but this doesn’t mean Jesus did only 7 miracles in his life for John said in 20:30

Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Now let us read the verse. “In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and word was God.” When I first saw this verse and I was like what? who was with who?  In my viewpoint word is something we speak. The third part of the verse caught my eye and I thought “whoa this is new. Never heard about that. I know Jesus Father and Holy Spirit but who is word?”

But see that John is the only Gospel to speak of Jesus’ pre-existence as the Logos and the only Gospel to include a poetic prologue. The entire prologue resonates with the terms which have deep philosophical roots like

Logos–Word or idea                                               Zoe– Life

Phos- Light                                                                Alethia–Truth

The Prologue begins with the phrase in the beginning repeating the opening words of the Book of Genesis. It points the beginning of everything all the created thing. Now the word “Logos” used have some interesting background behind it. Let’s see the historical background of the Word in both Jewish literature and Greek.

Jewish Concepts

“The word of God” was a familiar and current theological term when John wrote, and therefore he uses it without explanation. In the creation act Bible declares

By the word of the Lord were the heavens made. [Psalm 33:6].

Old Testament text personify the word of God (dabar Yahweh) in various context. For the Jews dabar Yahweh was the one who brought into existence everything. It denotes God in action esp. in revelation and deliverance. The word of God is also the personified Wisdom who was with God when he created the world. [Proverbs 8].

Greek Concepts

Logos signifies in classical Greek both “reason” and “word.” The Stoics spoke of The Logos as the Seminal Reason, through which all things came to be, by which all things were ordered, and to which all things returned.

In short to the Hebrew the term was the self-assertion of divine personality and to the Greek it denotes the rational mind that rules everything.

But the “logos” used here doesn’t refer to some idea but a divine entity. Did anyone notice the word “was” in the text? Sherlock Holmes said “You see but you do not observe” Observing is the key principle for bible interpretation. In the beginning before anything was, the Word was there. It has always been there since eternity. Before the beginning of time the word was. We know from Quantum Mechanics that time itself is the dimension of reality including space which was created. Someone would say what was logos doing before the creation? There was no “time” before creation.

The Word was with God. The original text reads as Word was “pros con theon” The word pros means in relation with something. The fellowship of the Son with the Father is portrait in many verses of the text.

Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.[John 17:24] 

And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began. [John 17:5]

No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known. [John 1:14 NIV]

The three portion of the verse reads as “And the Word was God.” How can Word be with God and God at the same time? The text has simple language but paradoxical ideas. When I first read Genesis 1:26 which reads as “Let us make man in our image” If God is speaking then who is he speaking with? See the word and God in the second part are made distinct to each other but the third part says word is God. The divinity of Christ can be clearly seen throughout the scripture. We do know that God is one but three in nature. Some say well how can there be three God and one God? Do you not know the Maths? Even the Muslim Apologist made fun of Christian in his debate.

Christians says The Father is God the son is god and Holy Spirit is God. But there is only one God. I ask the Christian what language you are speaking.

C.S. Lewis explained the Trinity by referring to different dimensions. He noted that in one dimension, a person can only create lines. In two, they can create squares. In three, they can create cubes. For a two-dimensional being, it’s hard to see how six squares can be “one” of anything, but in three dimensions, a cube is a unification of six squares. This is analogous to the human level vs. the divine level, where three persons are one being, without contradiction. Geometry isn’t the same as theology, of course, but the analogy is helpful.

The Trinity does not imply that 1+1+1=1, but that 1x1x1=1. Thus the key to understanding the Trinity is to recognize that it is not just a math problem (how can three be one?), the Trinity is a relationship.

God bless us all in Christ.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Amen!

By Sabin Panta, Civil Engineering student, Patan Koinonia church.