Text: John 1:6-18 (NKJV)
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. 8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
9 That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.
12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word became 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.
15 John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’”
16 And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.
Devotional Thoughts and Commentary:
There are four main divisions within this passage. The first is verses 6-8, and it concerns John the Baptist. John was a harbinger (one who goes before) of Jesus Christ (Matthew 3). These section of verses contributes to our understanding of who/what "the Word" was from our previous passage. The Matthew 3 passage and John 8:12 where Jesus claimed to be the light of the world (note that this is in the same book we are studying) pretty much confirms our understanding that the Word is Jesus. John the Baptist's life fulfilled Old Testament prophecies.
Next, verses 9-11 describe the rejection of Jesus during His physical life on Earth. He came to the Jews, but they rejected Him and were responsible for His execution. They rejected their own Messiah (anointed one) who was supposed to deliver them. Christ did offer deliverance in the form of freedom from sin and the Law, but they wanted political deliverance. It was ironic that the majority of the world, and especially His chosen people, did not recognize Him and ultimately rejected Him although He was responsible for their creation.
Verses 12-13 are important to our understanding of the transition from Israel to the church. To be one of God's people before Jesus, you basically had to be born Jewish. Christianity now has a much more international base not based on blood but on belief. While a joy to Christians, this is part of what the Jews of the 1st Century AD hated so much about Christianity- while Israel had been God's special, chose people for thousands of years, Christianity now claimed that they were no longer in that place and God's blessings were available to all.
Finally, in verses 14-18, we have the culmination of this amazing prologue. Here we see that Jesus has to be "the Word." Per verses 14-15 and Matthew 3, there can no longer be any doubt that Jesus = the Word. Thus, all the claims here about "the Word" are of Jesus. This passage testifies to Jesus's existence before His birth, His divinity, the Trinity, and His establishment of a new religion (Christianity) and not a transformation of Judaism. While the Old Testament Law came through Moses, Jesus brought grace (freely given, unmerited favor) and truth.
Applications:
These first eighteen verses of the Book of John are so profound. They teach us about Jesus Christ, the keystone of our religion. From this passage, we should accept Jesus as God and our Savior from sin. We should thank Him for bringing grace and truth for us to enjoy still today.
Other Studies from John
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