Downloads
How do you get to know someone you've never met? You could scroll their socials or listen to what other people say about them. Better still, you could get a message from them. But nothing beats meeting them face to face.
Now try that with God. Nobody can see him, so how could anyone know what he's really like? John's Gospel answers that question in its very first sentence. This term you'll hear Jesus describe himself in his own words, one big claim at a time, and it all starts here.
What you'll learn
- Why John wrote his Gospel
- Why John calls Jesus "the Word"
- What it means that "the Word became flesh"
Starting at the end
John tells you his purpose straight out, near the end of his book:
"But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name." (John 20:31)
John isn't pretending to be neutral. He wants you to believe and have life, and he says so. That's honest. Your job is to hear his evidence and weigh it. He builds his case with signs (miracles that point to who Jesus is) and "I am" sayings, where Jesus uses a picture to describe himself. Here's where this term is heading:
| Lesson | Jesus' claim | Where in John |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Word became flesh | John 1 |
| 2 | I am the bread of life | John 6 |
| 3 | I am the light of the world | John 8–9 |
| 4 | I am the good shepherd | John 10 |
| 5 | I am the resurrection and the life | John 11 |
| 6 | I am the way, the truth and the life | John 14 |
| 7 | Before Abraham was born, I am | John 8 |
| 8 | My Lord and my God | John 20 |
In the beginning
Genesis starts with "In the beginning", and there God creates by speaking. John deliberately starts the same way:
"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, and without Him nothing was made that has been made." (John 1:1–3)
Why call Jesus "the Word"? Your words come out of you and show what's in your mind. In a way, your words are you, expressed. God's Word is God expressing himself. Jewish readers knew God's word made the world, and Greek readers used the word logos for the logic behind the universe. John tells them both: that Word is a person, and you can meet him.
| What John says | What it tells us about the Word |
|---|---|
| He was there in the beginning | He has no starting point. He is eternal. |
| He was with God | He is in a close relationship with the Father. |
| He was God | He is fully God, not an angel or a lesser god. |
| Everything was made through him | He is the Creator, not something created. |
The Word is both with God and is God. This is the beginning of what Christians call the Trinity: one God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It's a mystery, and John treats it as something to worship rather than a puzzle to solve.
The Word became flesh
Then comes the most surprising sentence of all:
"The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)
- Became flesh. The Creator became a real human being: a baby, then a man who got tired and who cried. Christians call this the incarnation, which means "in flesh" (like chilli con carne, chilli with meat).
- Made his dwelling among us. This literally means "pitched his tent". In Exodus, God's glory filled a special tent called the tabernacle. Now God lives among his people as a person.
- We have seen his glory. John was one of Jesus' twelve closest followers. He was there.
"No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is at the Father’s side, has made Him known." (John 1:18)
The best way to know someone is face to face. John says that in Jesus, God has come face to face.
Key words
- Gospel: "good news"; also the name of the four books about Jesus' life.
- Incarnation: God the Son becoming a human being.
- Glory: God's shining greatness and goodness.
- Trinity: one God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
How this points to Jesus
All through the Old Testament, God wants to live among his people: in the garden, in the tabernacle, in the temple. But there was always a barrier. In Jesus the barrier comes down. God doesn't just send a message about himself; he comes in person.
Think about it
Matthew and Luke begin with Jesus' birth. Why do you think John begins "in the beginning"?Show answer
John wants you to know Jesus' story didn't start in Bethlehem. Jesus was with God and was God before anything was made, so his birth was God himself stepping into the world.
Why is "the Word" a good name for Jesus?Show answer
Words show what's in someone's mind. Jesus shows us exactly what God is like, so he is God's message in person.
Which is harder to believe: that God exists, or that God would become a human being?Show answer
There's no single right answer. Many people find the second harder, because it means God came close enough to get tired, be hurt and be rejected.
Take it further
Read John 1:1–18 in one sitting this week. Then write down one question you'd ask Jesus about who he is, and keep it handy this term. Your worksheet helps you explain John 1 in your own words.
If you'd like to, you could pray:
God, thank you that you didn't stay hidden. Thank you that in Jesus you came close enough to see and touch. Help me to see who Jesus really is. Amen.