…In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning…. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
— John 1:1-2, 14
Oftentimes we understand the beginning of a story when we approach its end. Like the book of Genesis, the opening words of the gospel of John are “In the beginning.” Except this beginning stretches beyond the creation, back to a time when there was God—and only God. There must have been such a time, of course, because if God is the Creator, then there was a time when it was only God.
The great truth of Christianity here described by John in his gospel, and repeated throughout the New Testament, is that Jesus Christ was there before the beginning. He is the Word of God, he was with God, and he was God. He took part in the act of creation; he is the source of life and light.
Then one day he took human form (“the Word became flesh”). He came to earth and lived a life that looked just like ours, with hunger, tiredness, and temptation—but without sin. He is the great enigma of the history of the world. People have worshipped him and they have hated him. They have also tried to ignore him, but that is the least sensible thing to do.
He is the Lord of glory. “We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (v. 14).
Ponder This: In what ways do you need the truth and grace of God through Christ at this point in your life?
