Hope you're feeling a sense of anticipation like I am! It's exciting to think that we're moving on to the second verse to add to our hearts. We've started...it's official...we're adding the second verse! And here it is....
John 1:1 - "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
Pretty simple verse in the words we're to remember---but we don't just want to remember words. We have to grab hold of the meaning of the words for it to be worthwhile in adding them to our hearts. Just words don't have any power---the power is in understanding. And this one is d-e-e-p! It touches on so many of the mysteries of God, of the Trinity and of Jesus Christ, all in these 17 simple words.
The first thing that has to be understood that in this verse, the Greek word that is translated to "the Word" in our modern translations is lovgoß, logos, from which we get our word, logic. According to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, "A Greek philosopher named Heraclitus first used the term Logos around 600 B.C. to designate the divine reason or plan which coordinates a changing universe. This word was well suited to John's purpose in John 1."
Strong's also says, "In John, [logos] denotes the essential Word of God, Jesus Christ, the personal wisdom and power in union with God, his minister in creation and government of the universe, the cause of all the world's life both physical and ethical, which for the procurement of man's salvation put on human nature in the person of Jesus the Messiah, the second person in the Godhead, and shone forth conspicuously from His words and deeds."
Wow - this is weighty stuff! Don't you find it poetic that our introduction to God in Genesis, and John's introduction to us of Jesus Christ begins the same..."In the beginning." John's goal in writing his gospel was to convince everyone who read it that Jesus is truly God. He didn't waste any time in starting to make his point, did he?
In Robert J. Morgan's book, "100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know by Heart", he says, that this verse, "...speaks of our Christ's preexistence: In the beginning was the Word. It also speaks of His coexistence: And the Word was with God. And John 1:1 speaks of His divine existence: And the word was God."
Enough for tonight...we'll have a week to let the Holy Spirit open our eyes to more of His truth that comes with this nugget---your insights are just as important as mine! Share!
3 comments:
Day 1 - Week 2 -.........complicated..........ha! Where are you getting this stuff. I don't know. Is the verse just simply stating all that is God is God? I can't explain it so can I not understand it. I must just believe and have faith in the complexities of God. This is d-e-e-p. I don't have the background, or the knowledge to expand on this verse today. I want to hold God's words in my heart and I want to understand but my resources are so limited and my knowledge is so limited. I have to simply accept what the Bible says. Thanks for your insight today. I was also excited out today and a new verse. I hope my inability to expound as you have will not keep you from continuing on. I look forward to you comments tomorrow. I pray that the Holy Spirit will bring to me more insight into this verse.
I like this paraphrase: "In the beginning of all creation, the Word was already in existence. The Word was intimately with God. And the Word was as to His essence, fully God."
Cool the way John echoes the first three words of Genesis 1:1. . .
Yes, I anticipated the posting of another verse this week. I had never thought about the first words of both verses being, "In the beginning." Each is the beginning, all right, of the most wonderful love story EVER...God's love story to us through creation and through the gift of the Lord Jesus Christ! I love the choices of scripture thus far, and I'm able to keep up!!
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