John 1:1-5 - "He was with God in the beginning"

Before we start, let's pray to the Holy Spirit to guide us and teach us.

Read John 1:1-14 in your Bible. As you read, take note of anything that moves you, resonates within you or even surprises you - that's the Holy Spirit guiding you.

Today's focus is the first 5 verses of the Gospel of John.

"1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."

--John 1:1-5

 

John is speaking of Jesus here and he is saying that:

  • Jesus was there at the beginning. This purposefully sounds like Gen 1:1 "in the beginning"; that is, Jesus participated in creation.

  • Jesus is called "The Word of God" (see Rev 19:13, also penned by John, the author of this Gospel)

  • Jesus was God then and is God now

  • Jesus was also "with" God - that is, separate and distinct even though He also "is God"

  • Jesus made all things

  • Jesus provides life, which is the light of men (see John 8:12 where Jesus says "I am the light of the world")

  • Jesus' light shines in the darkness

John wants to make sure that his reader has a firm grasp on Who Jesus is at the start of this Gospel. "Jesus reveals God the Father and tells us that when he came to earth, God's Son showed the human race what the Father was like - eternal, personal, and the source of all life." ("Holman New Testament Commentary: John", p.8).

It truly is hard to put your brain around the idea that Jesus was there "in the beginning." His Spirit was? Not in regular human bodily form? Maybe He was in a glorified body like the resurrected one. In fact, in John 17:4-5, Jesus prays:

"I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began."

In His glorified body, Jesus:

  • lives

  • talks

  • is a physical presence/body

  • breathes

  • just appears in a room or a place

  • eats

Is His resurrected body the same as His glorified body before the world began? It's a mystery that will be understood someday. 

John's main point in these first five verses of his Gospel is to establish the deity of Jesus and His eternality and power. He wants us to know, without a doubt, that Jesus is God. "John claimed that the God of creation, the ultimate mind of the universe, had taken on human form; he had become incarnate." ("Holman New Testament Commentary: John", p. 9). And further, a quote in Holman by Gary Vanderet: "John intends that the entire book be read in light of this verse. The deeds and the words of Jesus are the deeds and the words of God." ("Holman New Testament Commentary: John", p. 10).

In his book "Seven Wonders of the Wonderful Word" (which I highly recommend), Dr. Harry Rimmer say "The theme of the Wonderful Word is that One Man!" (p.47). Jesus is "that One Man".

  • In the Old Testament, He is "the Coming One" (Rimmer, p. 47)

  • In the Gospels, He is "the One Who Came" (Rimmer, p. 51)

  • In the New Testament (after the Gospels), He is "the One Who is to Return" (Rimmer, p. 54)

In fact, on p. 47, Rimmer says we should divide the Bible into 3 sections, not 2:

  • The Old Testament

  • The Four Gospels

  • The New Testament

The whole point is that Jesus is the theme of the Bible – the whole Bible. And John, in these first verses of his gospel, is clearly stating why that is:

  • Jesus is God

  • Jesus was with God in the beginning

  • Jesus is the Word of God

“Jesus Christ the Creator provides physical life; Jesus Christ the Redeemer provides spiritual life; Jesus Christ the Savior provides eternal life.” ("Holman New Testament Commentary: John", p. 10).

Prayer

Father God, praise you for these first verses in the gospel of John that set the stage for us really knowing who Jesus is – and we have just started studying this book! There is so much to learn and so much we really don't know or understand. I really do believe

“The heavens declare the glory of God,

the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Day after day they pour forth speech;

night after night they display knowledge.

There is no speech or language

where their voice is not heard.

Their voice goes out into all the earth,

their words to the end of the world.”

--Psalm 19:1-4a

Praise You, Father, for sending Jesus to save us. Praise You for creation, including the creation of our world! It's so sad that it has fallen so far from the original.

Father, through this study, let us learn about You and believe! Change our hearts and minds so that we can rejoice in the evidence you put for that You are the Creator of all things and “He was with God in the beginning.” Amen and Amen!

 

Pin It