Tuesday, March 11, 2014

March 12, 2014

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:1

"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 1:14

I believe the Bible is the Word of God because I am convinced that it answers the three big universal questions better than anything else I have found. Those three questions are:

What is real?

What is right?

What is rewarding?

Here in his Gospel, the Apostle John makes some bold assertions about Jesus. He declares that Jesus existed "in the beginning". And when John refers to the beginning he is not talking about His beginning he is talking about the beginning of time as we know it. It wasn't the beginning for Jesus! He had no beginning and He has no end!

Wow!

In this verse, John shares some thrilling truths about Jesus, the "Word Who became flesh"!

John reveals the ETERNITY of Jesus!

If what John has written is true, and I believe it is, there has never been a time when Jesus did not exist! And furthermore, there will never be a time when Jesus will not exist! So, those who believe in Him can be sure they will live forever, too!

John reveals the DIVINITY of Jesus!

When John writes that the "Word was with God and the Word was God" that's exactly what he meant! He is affirming the doctrine of the Trinity. God is one God in three manifestations - Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is a mystery that we struggle to understand but we believe by faith.


Some accuse Christians of being polytheistic, but our God is One God and Jesus is God!


John reveals the HUMANITY of Jesus!

You can almost sense John's excitement as he exclaims, "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us"! The Greek word he used literally means "He 'tabernacled' among us". God's Son, by the miracle of the virgin birth, encamped in human flesh so He could identify with out struggles and then bear our sins on the cross.


That is a lot of truth for just a couple of verses! 


Know this truth!


Believe the truth!


Receive the truth!


By faith, let Him "tabernacle" in you!

March 11, 2014

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light." John 1: 1-8

It was very important to Jesus to make it clear to His disciples (and to anyone else who would listen) that He was the Son of God. That message is central to John's Gospel as you can see in the verses below:

John 6: 35, 48 -  "I am the bread of life"
John 8: 12, 9:5 -  "I am the light of the world"
John 8: 58  - "Before Abraham was, I am"
John 10:9 -  "I am the door"
John 10:11 -  "I am the good shepherd"
John 11:25 -  "I am the resurrection and the life" 
John 14:6 -  "I am the way, the truth, and the life"
John 15:1 -  "I am the true vine"

With the eight-fold use of the phrase "I AM" Jesus is identifying Himself with God, the "I AM" of the Old Testament.

That is a very bold statement!

As Josh McDowell has stated in his lectures and writings, "When Jesus claimed to be God there are three possibilities: (1) He is a lunatic; (2) He is a liar; or (3) He is who He claims to be."

You ultimately must choose which of those you believe and whichever one you choose will shape your life and your eternity.

I have no problem declaring Him as the Son of God!

If you want to call Jesus a lunatic, go ahead.

If you want to call Him a liar, it's up to you.

One day you will get a chance to stand before Him and explain your choice. You may want to consider that before you make your final decision.