It is poetic prose—prose with the soul of poetry—prose that, like poetry, packs layers of meaning in a word or phrase. In other words he is writing to protect us, in order that we might be free from deception. When you have something in common with another you can have fellowship with him. But it is the way that was manifest in the Lord Jesus himself. That Word was a Person, and he was with God, and he was God. When you have the Son you are related to the him, and when you are related to him, you can have fellowship with him. Jesus, the Word, existed in intimate relationship with God, distinct in himself, yet in such a unity that, as we learn later in this Gospel, what the Father says the Son says, what the Father does the Son does. The Word was, and is, nothing less than God. To determine the time frame I began by seeking to understand the meaning of the Greek word translated as … Our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. God will tell you secrets about yourself, about life, about others around you, about everything, imparting these to you because that is part of fellowship. When you get lonely where do you want to go? This is what that wonderful word, fellowship, means. The very fact that John identifies the Logos as ‘in the beginning’ indicates that John is affirming the true and complete deity of the Logos, for it is God, and only God, who exists in and from the beginning. The purpose of the letter: to bring you into relationship with God. Jesus began by washing the disciples' He made things. When you are confident in yourself all that you accomplish is what you can see. He was there ‘in the beginning’; his existence did not commence at some point after the beginning. Though a text may have different individual applications, it can only have one universal meaning. 2The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. It really takes two English words to bring out what this really means. "That your excitement may be complete." But it must all begin with this matter of relationship, for John is concerned first about the family of God. John is a mender. Science suggest it was millions of years ago, and Scripture is quite ready to accommodate that. 4We write this to make our joy complete. What does he mean by it? This ‘life’ that is in the Word, is the ‘light of men’. Over and above all, this site affirms that God, in a manner totally contrary to how we would think and act, has provided in and through Jesus Christ his eternal Son, a way of forgiveness in which we can live in his presence guilt free, acquitted and at peace. And God wants to tell us secrets. John also makes a claim to eyewitness testimony: he has personally seen these things he is teaching others about. John 1:1 means that, unlike all other mortals, whose life begins when semen fertilizes an egg, Jesus lived … It relates to him who is from the beginning. While we deny this utter dependence, and even while we deny his existence, the Word, in his overwhelming and compassionate grace, remains the source of our existence, indeed of all existence. In Jewish Targums there is such a sense of awe of God that they avoided using his name, and often substituted ‘the Word’ for his name. While the spiritual, eternal dimension of life is not absent from this verse, John is here writing primarily of physical life. When John was called he was found mending his nets. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 1:4 ‘… and that life was the light of men’. He said this in a context in which he was attempting to impart to them the secrets of life. The Jew will remember that ‘by the Word of the Lord were the heavens made’; the Greek will think of the rational principle of which all natural laws are particular expressions. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. Again he says, "I write this to you about those who would deceive you." This ‘with’ infers a relationship, an interface, an interaction, between two distinct persons. John says, "I write this in order that you might have assurance," be secure, free from failure. Any such erroneous redefinition here, right at the beginning of John’s Gospel, has the potential to affect our understanding of the claims of Christ made consistently throughout this Gospel. Teach us this in practice, we pray. I have known women who have discovered how exciting it is to have God at work in their neighborhood, using their kitchen, and their coffee pot, that they have not been able to sleep at night. John 10:10: “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:28: “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.” So I think it is clear that when John says in John 1:4, “In him was life,” he means spiritual life, eternal life, life that saves from judgment. That is what we are called to. The fellowship is based upon the relationship. Having first prevented us from merging the Word and God by the phrase ‘the Word was with God’ he here prevents us from seeing the Word as a lesser being. The first reason he puts very bluntly and unmistakably: Jesus is God! Context Summary. Then he says that this life will result in two wonderful things: First, fellowship. It is, however, important, for John warns all through this letter that we must cling only to that which is "from the beginning." It has been available for all time, but you only began it when you came to know Jesus Christ. There is a dear girl in this congregation that cannot relate what the Lord does without literally bouncing as she tells it. That is what Paul says: "I can do all things, through Christ who strengthens me," Philippians 4:13). I want that which is from the beginning." Who of us is not concerned with that? We all have things in common. How do we know we are not going to fail? 767f. John reminds us frequently, go back to that which is from the beginning. I had to be confident to be able to do things. The Word Became Flesh. Everything that he is, is put at my disposal. His written ministry comes in after the church has been in existence for several decades, and at a time when apostasy had begun to creep in. “Word” here is translated from the Greek logos. This half of 1:4 leads us to realise that John has more than physical existence in mind. [List all the names and titles used.]. Now let us go back to these opening verses and see what he has to say. We will find that to be his ministry particularly in these letters. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The Incarnation of Jesus: 1 John 1:1-4 Part one In Blogs by David M. Levy December 22, 2017 Leave a Comment I t’s Christmas time and many of us are busy with last minute gifts, family get-togethers, and for Christians, remembering the reason we celebrate this holiday: God coming down and dwelling among us. John 1:4. Well, what do I have? In him was life, and the life was the light of men. Joy is an excellent word here, but perhaps it will be more helpful for us to understand what John means if we use the word, excitement. That is the farthest point backward that we can go. It was Peter's task to talk about the kingdom of God, Paul about the church of God, but John is concerned with the family of God. He was in the beginning with God. For permission to use this content, please review That work of fishing for men is characteristic of the Apostle Peter. He is referring to a definite matter here for he uses this phrase many times. What do all of these facts about Jesus mean? 2 He was with God in the beginning. Jesus said to his disciples, "I have not called you servants, but I have called you friends," (John 15:15). Why? That which was from the beginning, he says, is a real Person. We are finite creatures and we must always have a starting point. Again John refers to the eternal existence of the Word, and his close and eternal association and relationship with God, indicating at the one time an essential distinction and a perfect unity. I have my mind, my body. All God's Word For You Bible Studies are written from a reformed, conservative, evangelical perspective that upholds the historic fundamentals of the Christian faith. They are together in will, in purpose, in choice of action. But we are still to love one another. [⇑ See verse text ⇑] Verse 4 proclaims Christ's role as the giver of eternal life. Thirdly, though more subtly, this ‘with God’ [this ‘towards’ God’] also prevents us from setting up any thought of antagonism or difference of purpose between the Father and the Son. John 1:4. ἐν αυτῷ ζωὴ ἦν. Note a few places where he uses it and you will see how he uses it: In Chapter 2, Verse 7, he says "Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment which you had from the beginning." I have seen men, familiar with the world of high finance who work continually in the great marts of trade, get so excited over the fact that God was using them in some simple way that they literally trembled as they told it. In Chapter 3, Verse 8, "He who commits sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning." 3 e All things were made through him , and without him was not any thing made that was made . The Son, the Logos, is distinct from the Father. That simply means at the starting point. If someone comes to you with something new, he says, don't believe it. John is preparing us here for truths he plans to emphasise. Throughout his Gospel John presents Jesus Christ as the one in whom spiritual, eternal life is to be found. The revelation of Jesus Christ is spiritually manifested. Say to them, "Keep it. Verse 11, "For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.". If you read through the letter, as I hope you will many times while we are studying together, you will find there are four different reasons John gives for writing this letter: One is in the passage just read, Verse 4. That has nothing to do with becoming a Christian. “In Him was life”; that power which creates life and maintains all else in existence was in the Logos. We live in families. Both agree that this Logos is the starting-point of all things.’ [Quoted by Morris (p.123) from Temple. The expression indicates ‘accompaniment and relationship’ – ‘the whole existence of the Word was oriented towards the Father’ [Morris, p76]. The key words are grace and truth. Now, in the Gospel of John there is another "beginning." This is one of the favorite phrases of the Apostle John "from the beginning." The Word ‘was’ – the Word was in a state of continual existence, the Word existed continually, in the beginning. If the vertical is not right, the horizontal one will be wrong, and, if it is wrong, it is because something is wrong between us and the Father. For the article with the predicate see Robertson, Grammar, pp. He means that this eternal life was visible in the relationship of the Father and the Son. The term ‘the Word’ – ho logos – was a term rich with meaning: John takes hold of the Logos concept and fills it with ultimate meaning. Click to enlarge. Now that is about as far as we can go in understanding that, for this is a timeless beginning that is right now, an eternal now. John and Peter and Paul all have different ministries, as I have suggested. Before there was anything at all, there was the Word. Biblical Commentary (Bible study) John 14:1-14 EXEGESIS: JOHN 13-17. That Gospel begins with these words, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God," (John 1:1 RSV). Jesus did not come to show us God, he came to show us man related to God. 4 fIn him was life,1 and gthe life was the light of men. Then I discover that I can do what I want to do. You find that characteristic of this man all through his written ministry. John is not alone in this perception of Jesus Christ. How do you do this?" In particular John here introduces a concept that dominates his entire Gospel: that God is a self-revealing God, a God who speaks, a God who makes himself known to us. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. John references Jesus’ eternal existence, and His identical nature to God the Father. Message transcript and recording © 1966 by Ray Stedman Ministries, owner of sole copyright by assignment from the author. We do not get ‘light’ – real spiritual truth – from any other source; we cannot get ‘light’ – real spiritual truth – from any other source, because it has one source only: the Word, Jesus Christ. That is why becoming a Christian is not simply a matter of joining a church, or believing a certain creed, or signing a doctrinal statement. John points out that becoming a Christian is to be related to a Person. How do you find your way through life successfully? RayStedman.org/permissions. I learned early that in order to be a success I had to have self-confidence. John 1:1-5 . "This life was manifest," John says, "and we are going to tell you about it, we are going to proclaim it to you." We cannot believe merely in ideas, doctrinal statements. B. When I do I discover something most remarkable. And that is what makes a Christian, to share the life of God by relationship to a Person, the only Person who has that life, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. There is, first of all, a partnership, i.e., the sharing of mutual interests, mutual resources, mutual labor together. He goes on, "and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ." The Gospel of John weds theology to poetry. In focusing on the Logos concept we must also be careful not to overlook the word ‘was’ which speaks of continuity of existence. He makes the bold statement ‘the Word was God’. We have many things in common. This makes them one and that is the basis for the appeal of Scripture to live together in tenderness and love toward one another. (1-2) John begins with the center of relationship: Jesus Christ. 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