010420 – John 1. 10-18
The Gospel of John begins with “a lovely little poem” ABOUT Jesus that is loved and adored by a great many. It is called John’s “PROLOGUE.”
IN IT – the “major themes” of John’s gospel are LAID OUT for the reader IN ADVANCE.
You already know that John’s gospel is nothing like the first three that were written.
As a matter of fact, Mark, Matthew and Luke have VERY LITTLE in common with John…other than bearing the name “GOSPEL” which means, good news…and a handful of stories that are re-told in all four gospel accounts…
John is PHILOSOPHICAL.
John can be a little “sing-songy.”
John can be POETICAL.
John is lofty. Almost “other worldly!”
John is majestic and profound.
John is highly THEOLOGICAL.
John is CHRISTOLOGICAL.
John’s gospel is simply DIFFERENT.
That’s why the first three are called SYNOPTIC. They are “SIMILAR.” John IS NOT…nor does he desire TO BE.
John IS NOT writing a BIOGRAPHY or a DIARY about Jesus, his intentions are much loftier than that…
John is also NOT writing about “EVENTS,” he is writing about “SIGNS…” SIGNS that point beyond themselves, to something far greater…
When it comes to a GOSPEL and writing “good news”, John is “his own kind of BREED.” There was nothing quite like it.
Do NOT look for “a warm, fuzzy Christmas story” in John. You will NOT find it. No angels, no manger, no shepherds, no star, no wise men from the East, no “pondering Mary,” no “indecisive Joseph” … instead what we get is THIS PROLOGUE…and LOGIC.
It is written in the language of the STOICS, the PHILOSOPHERS, the GREEKS and the HELENISTS…they would have all related to it.
- SPOCK of STARTREK “fame” would have loved it!
“Before there was “TIME and MATTER,” there was the “LOGIC,” the “GRAND INTELLIGENCE,” the “LOGICAL INTELLIGENCE,” the “GRAND DESIGNER,” the “SUPER COMPUTER.”
And the LOGIC was with GOD. And the DIVINE LOGOS or the Divine Word WAS GOD!”
(Live long and prosper Spock fans!)
It IS a prologue loved and held dear by many.
It is sheer prose.
AND, here’s what we LEARN:
JESUS is God’s WORD in “human form.”
This is where the theology of the “INCARNATION” comes into play. GOD in the FLESH… The WORD in the flesh! GOD becomes HUMAN.
Jesus IS the EMBODIMENT. He is the PERSONIFICATION. He is the MANIFESTATION and there is NO OTHER.
JESUS has come to earth “to be a LIGHT to everyone who believes in him.”
JESUS is going to DESTROY “the evil of darkness.”
This is “all in a day’s work” for the SAVIOR of the world…and that IS who “this JESUS guy” really is…he is OUR SAVIOR. He comes to SAVE us.
And I guess, that is really the most important thing that John (or whomever the author is) IS SAYING.
This “Jesus-guy” was BORN to save our “skins,” save our “necks,” save our “butts,” save our “hides” – because “try as we might” – we are NOT CAPABLE of doing IT ourselves!
But according to JOHN he was ALWAYS PRESENT…he was with GOD in the beginning…as a matter of fact ALL THINGS were created THROUGH HIM.
The tie-in to the “Book of Genesis” is more than obvious! Perhaps that is what “caught the attention” of the early Jewish Christians. The “Genesis connection” and the mentioning of “Moses-by-name”…it is what pulled them IN and made them sit up and TAKE NOTICE.
It’s funny how WORDS can get our attention…and draw us unto themselves.
That is WHAT the WORD does.
It calls you by NAME.
It gets YOUR attention.
It DRAWS you into itself.
We are drawn into this WORD that came from GOD. This WORD that came to set us free… This FREEING WORD… This WORD full of GRACE and TRUTH…This Forgiving, Caring, Loving, Merciful WORD sent from God to SAVE US from our sins and from everything that holds us back from LOVING both GOD and NEIGHBOR as ourselves.
This is the MIRACLE of CHRISTMAS.
A SAVIOR has born for YOU and for ME and even for those who have as of yet, come to believe.
May HE soon touch their HEARTS and their LIVES with his GRACE. I pray it is so.
Amen.