John 1:1-8 (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. ⁷He 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.

“In the beginning” echoes Genesis 1:1, which reads, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” John began by tracing the gospel all the way back to before the earth or even the universe was formed. What did John mean by the “Word”? The “Word” in English is translated from the Greek logos. In the simplest sense, logos or “Word” is defined as “the independent personified expression of God” (Bauer). We see this in Genesis 1:3, which records, “And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” God, or the Word, said, and everything came into existence. Logos was also a common term used in Greek philosophical thought, so John addressed the minds of both Jewish and Greek readers. The Word was the agent through whom everything was created. The Word was also “life” and “light.” Both created life and the light dispensed to humanity were from the Word. Out of nothing, darkness, the light shone. In verse 5, John alludes to the presence of evil by using the word “darkness.” Darkness has not overcome the light. Ultimately, the light will overpower the darkness. God sent a man, John, as a prophet to point people to the Light who had come into the world.

John clearly set the stage by beginning with the “beginning” and taking the reader all the way back to the time when nothing existed but God. The Word, Jesus, created everything. God is the only being who was never created but always existed. According to this passage, God includes the Word, who came into the world in the person of Jesus. If the Word existed with God before creation and everything was created through the Word, then it would be illogical to say that the Word was a created being. The Word, Jesus, is and always has been God. To declare anything less is to deny the testimony of the New Testament. May we be awed by God and humbled by our fragility as we read these eight verses. The God of the universe existed before anything was created, and by his Word he brought all into being. At the same time, may we be overwhelmed with gratitude as we consider the power of our sovereign God and our relationship to him. Choose to clear your heart of any idols today. God alone is worthy of our worship.