Series: John
Title: The Word Was Made
Flesh
Text: John 1: 1-5, 14
Date: Sept 20, 2020
Place: SGBC, NJ
John
1: 1: In the beginning was the Word, and
the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2
The same was in the beginning with God.
3: All things were made by 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: And
the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not…14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among
us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,)
full of grace and truth.
Proposition: The Word, the Son of God, who is God himself, who is
the Creator, the Life and Light of men was made flesh and dwelt among us.
All
that glory he had before the world was, John and the other disciples saw when Christ
was transfigured on the mount. John is
declaring that the Word, the Son of God, God himself, the Creator, the Life,
the Light was made flesh. He says that he
and other apostles were eye witnesses of that glory he had before the world
was. They saw Christ transfigured on the
mount.
THE WORD
John
1: 1: In the beginning was the Word…
The unbelieving Jews, as
well as the heathen philosophers called the promised Messiah the WORD. Neither
believed Messiah had come. But using the
old testament scriptures they called him the WORD. For example when they read Psalm 110:1, “The
Lord said to my Lord” they would say, “The Lord said to the Word.” The old testament saints spoke of Christ as
the Word. David was most likely
referring to Christ the Word when he said,
2 Samuel 7: 21: For thy WORD’S
sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all these great things,
to make thy servant know them.
So
John begins on common ground with those who opposed the incarnation of the Son
of God. He says, “We agree that in the
beginning was the Word.” John says in
verse 14, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his
glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and
truth.” John is declaring the glory
Christ spoke of which he had with the Father before the world was as the
GodMan, Mediator, the Covenant and Council of God to save his people. It is that glory that Christ prayed the
Father give him once again,
John 17: 5: And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine
own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
Christ
is the Word before the beginning. The
word “in the beginning” means in eternity.
It means the Lord Jesus is eternal.
His name is “The Word.”
Revelation 19: 11: And
I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was
called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. 12: His
eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns;
and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. 13: And he was
clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
A
word is an expression. Christ is the revelation
of God. Everything God has to say about
himself God says by his Son.
Hebrews 1: 1: God, who
at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by
the prophets, 2: Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom
he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; 3: Who
being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person,
and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself
purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
In
eternity—in the beginning—before the world was created—Christ is the Wisdom of
God. He is the whole Council of God. Our Lord Jesus is the Covenant of God by whom
God would save his chosen people. The “Word”
and “Wisdom” are synonyms, at least in meaning as it concerns Christ. It is Christ the Word speaking as Wisdom in
Proverbs 8,
Proverbs 8: 14: Counsel
is mine, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength. 15:
By me kings reign, and princes decree justice. 16: By me princes rule, and
nobles, even all the judges of the earth. 17: I love them that love me;
and those that seek me early shall find me. 18: Riches and honour are
with me; yea, durable riches and righteousness. 19: My fruit is
better than gold, yea, than fine gold; and my revenue than choice silver. 20: I
lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment: 21: That
I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their
treasures. 22: The LORD possessed me in the beginning of his way, before his
works of old. 23: I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever
the earth was. 24: When there were no depths, I was brought forth; when there
were no fountains abounding with water. 25: Before the mountains were
settled, before the hills was I brought forth: 26: While as yet he had not made
the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of the world. 27: When
he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the
face of the depth: 28: When he established the clouds above: when he
strengthened the fountains of the deep: 29: When he gave to the sea his decree,
that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the
foundations of the earth: 30: Then I was by him, as one brought up with
him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him; 31: Rejoicing
in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were with the sons
of men. 32: Now therefore hearken unto me, O ye children: for blessed are
they that keep my ways. 33: Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it
not. 34: Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates,
waiting at the posts of my doors. 35: For whoso findeth me findeth life, and
shall obtain favour of the LORD.
In eternity, in Christ the
Word, God purposed and decreed everything God would do in time. As the eternal Word, Christ is the Wisdom and
Power of God. He is the Council of God. Christ is the Covenant of God. The Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the
Gospel. He is the Salvation of his
people. God chose his people in Christ
and the whole council and covenant of grace was decreed and every part agreed
upon and settled in Christ in eternity. Christ
entered Covenant to lay down his life for his people and make us the
righteousness of God in him from before the foundation of the world.
Paul was called to preach
God’s eternal purpose in Christ.
Ephesians 3:9: And to
make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which
from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by
Jesus Christ: 10: To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in
heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
11: According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our
Lord: 12: In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of
him.
Through Isaiah the Word
declared himself to be eternal from before the beginning,
Isaiah 48: 16: Come ye
near unto me, hear ye this; I have not spoken in secret from the beginning;
from the time that it was, there am I: and now the Lord GOD, and his
Spirit, hath sent me. 17: Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of
Israel; I am the LORD thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth
thee by the way that thou shouldest go.
Isaiah 41: 4: Who hath
wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the
LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.
Isaiah 46: 9: Remember
the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I
am God, and there is none like me, 10: Declaring the end from the beginning,
and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My
counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure: 11: Calling a ravenous bird
from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country: yea, I
have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also
do it.
The election, redemption,
regeneration of his people was all settled in Christ the Eternal Word in the
beginning before the world was.
2 Thessalonians 2: 13:
But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the
Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through
sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
Ephesians 1:4: According
as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should
be holy and without blame before him in love:
1 Peter 1:20: Who
verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in
these last times for you,
In time, the Word came and,
as words do, Christ communicated, revealed, made manifest God’s will and eternal
purpose of salvation to his people.
2 Timothy 1: 9: Who hath saved us, and called us with
an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose
and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, 10: But
is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath
abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the
gospel:
A
word is the means of manifestation. Christ
manifests the invisible God. He
communicates the love and mercy of God. The Lord Jesus reveals the attributes
and perfections of God. He reveals God’s
will to save his people through Christ’s blood.
THE
WORD WAS WITH GOD AND THE WORD WAS GOD
John
1: 1: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God.
This
tells us that Christ is a distinct person in the Godhead. It also declares that he is God. The unbelieving Jews, as well as the heathen philosophers
and the Gnostics, like modern day “so-called Jehovah’s witnesses”, did not
believe Messiah to be second person in the Trinity. They did not, and do not, believe is the the
Son of God. They say he is only a god. John says this one who is the eternal Word is
the second person in the Trinity and he is God.
Christ
is the second person in the trinity. He
is the Son of God. That means he is a
distinct person in the Godhead—"The Word was with God.” John says
and he is God of very God—"and the Word was God.” This is the relation of Christ to the
Godhead. “With God” means he is the second person in the Holy Trinity: God
the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. “Was God” means these three are one
God. As John declares in his first epistle,
1 John 5: 7: For there
are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost:
and these three are one.
The
Gnostics believed that if Christ were manifest in the flesh then he would be a sinner
since all are sinners. So they said it
was only like he was in the flesh. They
say he was a vision, an apparition. The
same argument men make today that say that Christ could not be made sin or else
he would be a sinner. John says, “No!” “The
Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as
of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” So fully and
so perfectly did Christ reveal God, he could say, “He that hath seen me hath
seen the Father.” (Jn 14:9; 2 Cor 4:6; Jn 10:30).
1 John 4: 1: Beloved,
believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because
many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2: Hereby know ye the Spirit
of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is
of God: 3: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in
the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof
ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
1 Timothy 3: 16: And
without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the
flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles,
believed on in the world, received up into glory.
The
Hebrew writer says, “Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be MADE like
unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in
things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.” (Heb
2:17) Therefore, the Son of God was made
flesh. He was made of a woman. Christ was made under the law to redeem us from
under the law. At the appointed hour,
Christ was willingly made sin for us who knew no sin and made his people the
righteousness of God in him. With the
sin of his people on him, God poured out justice on our Substitute and he was made
a curse for us, redeeming all God’s elect from the curse of the law. Now, having accomplished our Redemption, he
is made higher than the heavens, made an high priest after the order of Melchisedec,
where he ever lives to make intercession for his redeemed people. There is no “as if” to any of the things
Christ was made. It was necessary. “Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be
MADE like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high
priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the
people.” (Heb 2:17)
THE CREATOR, THE LIFE, THE
LIGHT OF MEN
John
17: 2: The same was in the beginning with God. 3: All things were made by 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: And the light shineth in darkness; and the
darkness comprehended it not….12: But as many as received him, to them gave he
power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13: Which
were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man,
but of God.
Christ
is the Word that spoke all things into existence—"All things
were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” He is God. He is the Word who spoke the word.
Genesis 1: 1: In the
beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2: And the earth was without
form…3: And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
Christ creating that first
creation and giving life and light is a picture of Christ creating the new
creation in his righteousness and giving each of his people life by
regeneration.
Colossians 1: 15: Who
is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 16: For by
him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible
and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities,
or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17: And he is before
all things, and by him all things consist. 18: And he is the head of the body, the
church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things
he might have the preeminence. 19: For it pleased the Father that in him
should all fulness dwell; 20: And, having made peace through the blood of his
cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say,
whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
Christ was made flesh and bore
the sins of his people and satisfied justice for God, justifying his people. He manifest God’s holiness. He revealed God’s righteousness. He revealed God’s mercy. He revealed God’s salvation. He created his people anew in righteousness
by laying down his life in our room and stead, making us the righteousness of
God in him. His church is the new
creation created in Christ’s righteousness.
Isaiah 65:17: For, behold, I create new heavens and a
new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
2 Peter 3:13: Nevertheless we, according to his
promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
Revelation 21: 1: And
I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth
were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2: And I John saw the holy city,
new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned
for her husband. 3: And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the
tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they
shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their
God. 4: And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be
no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more
pain: for the former things are passed away. 5: And he that sat upon the throne
said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these
words are true and faithful. 6: And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and
Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain
of the water of life freely.
Christ
is Life. He breathed into Adam and made
him a living soul and made him have understanding—"In him was life; and
the life was the light of men.” Adam
had life by Christ the Word, the Life.
Right now, even spiritually dead sinners have physical life and
understanding by Christ. Paul
said, “he be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and
have our being.” (Acts 17: 27-28)
The word ‘light’ speaks of a
relation which Christ sustains to all men—"That was the true Light, which
lighteth every man that cometh into the world.”
Every rational man is morally enlightened (Rom. 2:15; Rom. 1:18-21). Therefore, every man is accountable to
God. But though we are responsible to obey
God, it does not mean we have the ability to obey God. We must have Christ to give us more than moral
understanding, we need spiritual understanding which only Christ is and only
Christ can give.
Christ
is spiritual Life and the spiritual Light.
He is the quickening Spirit by whom his people are regenerated and given
faith in him. "And the light
shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not”—Christ is the
Light that shined in darkness. John the
Baptist came preaching Christ the Light but they believed not. The children of Israel were spiritually dead
in spiritual darkness. So when Christ the
Light shined in the darkness, natural man loved darkness more than Light. Christ must quicken and give spiritual
understanding. He must quicken us to
Life in regeneration when we are born again of God. It is then that Christ becomes our Light. The new birth is not of man in any way but of
God—"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the
sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood,
nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
Sinner,
will you receive John’s witness? John saw Christ transfigured in his glory. He saw Christ the Word, the Son of God, God
himself in the Man, Christ Jesus!
1 John 1: 1: That which was
from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes,
which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; 2:
(For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and
shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested
unto us;) 3: That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye
also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the
Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4: And these things write we unto you, that
your joy may be full.
1 John 5: 11: And this is the record, that God hath
given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12: He that hath the Son
hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
May Christ give you the Word. May Christ give you Life. May Christ give you Light. May Christ make you believe on him now!
Amen!