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John 1:1-18

John 1:1-18
What do y’all notice in this passage?
What's the main point to this passage? 

How would y’all describe Jesus?

John 1:1-5
Here we have John telling us that Jesus pre-existed before the beginning and co-existed and co-equal with God. Here, John states that Jesus is God/is divine. And the Word is clearly Jesus 1:14. This eternal being became flesh.

Why do y’all think John describes Jesus as the “Word of God”? 

When we use words what are we doing? 
We expressing or communicating ourselves to another.

The Word=The expression of God. 
That is, God expressed/showed Himself and His purpose to us by giving us, Jesus. 

“Word was with God” meaning He was face to face with God or equal with God.
Perfect fellowship/sharing by the Father and the Word. 
“Word was God” meaning they share the same nature/essence of each other. 

Jesus being God is a hard concept to grasp. 

Perhaps you’ve heard the argument “I like the NT God over the OT God cause he’s more loving etc” or “they’re 2 different God in the 2 different testaments”.
Do y’all think that this holds water or not? 
Why?

This verse blows that argument out of the water! When we understand that Jesus existed eternally in such a state of oneness with the Father we then begin to understand the God was and is always like Jesus and Jesus likewise with God. Thus, God has always been loving/merciful. 

What does this mean for us when we study/read the OT?
It means that when God speaks Jesus speaks too! And vis versa.  

Jesus was there in the beginning and I think He always knew He would be the Christ/savior/light of all mankind. The salvation plan was planned before the beginning.
God planned all of this out before beginning.   

Do notice, John doesn’t make an argument for God’s existence but assumes it just like Moses did when he wrote Genesis. The lesson here being, the bible isn’t so much concerned to conceive you of God’s existence by way of an argument but to show us God and upon seeing God be convinced of His existence.

1:3 
The Word is the expression of the purposes/mind of God He was an agent of creation. Thus, creation is an expression of the mind of God. Meaning that the created things/matter is not evil but good. the universe was made for our God but we abused it. This is the God of whom we worship. Any church that doesn’t claim Jesus divinity is, thus, not worshiping the one true God and thus isn’t of the Church. 

Is Jesus' divinity an essential doctrine to Christianity? Why or why not?

1:4
Here is an essential claim of Christianity. That not only is there a God to be worshipped but that He is life and His life reveals the truth to us. Not only did Jesus create the universe but also gave it, and us, life. Nowhere else is this claim made about anyone. Jesus gave us life and eternal life. that same life that is in Jesus himself is now in you. 

1:5
Notice the present tense of the word shine. Jesus is still active in the world. The light shined in Jesus. Jesus is now in us. Now the light shines in us.

What do y’all think light means? 
 Light in John’s gospel = knowledge, love, truth, life and darkness=ignorance, hate, sin, death. So the light is Jesus' life and His light still shines then Jesus is alive yet still. Darkness indeed did not overcome him. 

Would you say God is active/working in your life right now? 

1:6
What John is meant in this verse? Who is John?
John the Baptist was sent out by God. It is important to note that whenever the name John is used in the writing of the text it refers to John the Baptist NOT John the author.
Are we sent out by God as well? What does it mean to be sent by God?

1:7-8
John had a pretty big following when Jesus came along. Why did the author need to inform us that John wasn’t the light?

John’s very purpose in life was to testify to the light. What is our purpose here? Is this our purpose too? 
How do we testify to the light?

The object of his belief was Jesus and John was just an instrument through which the object was relieved. 

What is the object of your faith? Jesus? feelings? Pride?

We are not the object of our own faith/worship but Jesus is.

1:9
To paraphrase CS Lewis the rescue op is about to be Oscar Mike.

 What does it mean that this light/Jesus is the true light? and How does He give light to everyone? 

True=perfect, genuine, complete. He gave life to all. He gave truth/revelation to all. 

1:10-11
what does it mean that the world didn’t recognize him? 
Who are “his own”? Why didn’t they recognize him?
The Jews wanted a king that would overthrow the Romans. Not one who would die for the sins of man. 

(Do we, now, recognize the Jesus? or do we expect a comfortable/safe Jesus?)

1:12-13
To receive Jesus is to believe in Him. What does it mean to believe? 
To believe him is to trust and obey
Notice it says born of God. Not ourselves. We are born again by God.

1:14 
This is widely considered to be the greatest NT verse.
 Why do you think that is?
Became flesh: So God demonstrated Himself through His crown creation-that is man on man’s behaves. 

What does seen his glory mean? 

It means to have seen/understood/known the presence of God. 

What does the incarnation mean for us? (What does it mean that the Word became flesh?)

1:16
Grace in grace already given? Means what? The grace of revealing himself once to Israel now reveals himself to all?

1:17 
The law of Moses. it was given through Moses and it was good and holy yet it was a law of condemnation. Its purpose was to bring men to trust in God and not themselves. it was given to show that they could not be or earn their righteousness. But Jesus brought the favor of God which man could not nor cannot earn. We have in Jesus grace without which we stand condemned by the law. We have in Jesus truth. which is the reality of all the shadows/types that were cast in the OT by the stories, ceremonies, sacrifices. Everything in the OT was meant to point us to Jesus.

1:18 
apart of Jesus, no one knows/sees God. God is spirit and thus apart from Jesus can’t be seen. and Jesus is continually in perfect intimacy with the father. 

What are some ways we can live out these verses? 
Live like John did. Pointing others to Jesus. 

Courage! Peace. Jesus is in us.  
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