I. God, v.1. John begins, placing Jesus where we would expect to find God. In the beginning. Before he moves on to anything else, John declares to his reader the most important point in this entire book. Jesus is God! “Without apology or qualification, John goes back in time beyond Bethlehem where Jesus was born, and Nazareth where he was conceived, indeed back beyond the beginning of time itself, and allows us a glimpse of a glorious person who has an eternal existence.” (Mark Johnson) Jesus is God, we call this His deity. He is in the beginning. He is with God. He is God. Ills: The best-selling novel The DaVinci Code asserts that Christians never considered Jesus to be God until the Council of Nicaea in the fourth century. But here, in clear language, John writes, “and the Word was God” (John 1:1). He repeats this claim in v.18, saying that the one “who is in the bosom of the Father” (kjv)…is himself “the only God.” At the book’s end, when the resurrected Jesus appears to Doubting Thomas, the disciple falls before him and cries, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28). John wants the reader to know from the beginning of his gospel that Jesus Christ, the Word, is God. The Word was with God. The greek term which we put into english here as “Word” is Logos. (Word, Message, God’s ultimate communication of truth about Himself) To the jew, “Word of God” was a common term, used throughout the Old Testament. The "Word of God" was their covenant. It held prophecy of their future redemption through a coming Messiah. To the greek, an understanding of the “Word”, especially in the form of a being, would not be as evident. The greek "Logos" is literally, God become man. A foreign concept to them. Why would a deity become a man? Jesus is God. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit exist in what we call the Trinity. 3 in 1. All God, but each an essential part of the God-head. Not many claim that Jesus, never existed, but many claim that Jesus was not God. They claim He was divine but not a deity. John doesn’t use the word theios (a god) here, he uses Theos (God). We believe, because John wrote, as we believe the Holy Spirit inspired him to, that Jesus is God. “Jesus is God the Executor to God the Ordainer, doing the Father’s will within the perfect harmony of the Trinity.” (Phillips) “The One who was heralded by the angels to the Bethlehem shepherds, who walked this earth for thirty-three years, who was crucified at Calvary and who rose in triumph from the grave, and who forty days later departed from these scenes, was none other than the Lord of Glory.” (Pink) The Divine Word is God (Deity)… II. Eternal, v.2. The same was in the beginning with God. It follows that Jesus, Who is God, is eternal. God is eternal, He has no beginning and no ending. Without pre-existence, Jesus’ deity comes into question. Were He not eternal with God, how could He be God? If Jesus already was in the beginning, then He must either have been with or He must have been God. John teaches both. “The Word existed before creation, which makes it clear that the Word was not created.… The Word is not to be included among created beings.” (Leon Morris) Jesus was not a created being. He later becomes flesh (14), but eternally existed. Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Hebrews 1:10, “And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:” Col 1:17, “And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” Hebrews 7:3, “Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.” The Divine Word: Is God, Is Eternal… III. Creator, v.3. Multiple times in the creation account of Genesis 1 we read, “And God said.” It was by God’s Word that He brought creation into being. John now tells us that this Word is a person who was “with God.” This sheds light on Genesis 1:26, which reads, “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image.’ ” God was speaking to the Word. The Word is God’s agent in creation who accomplishes His will. God said, “Let there be light” (Gen. 1:3), and the Word made light. All through the Bible, it is God’s Word that does God’s will. Psalm 33:6 says, “By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.” Psalm 107:20 says, “He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” So the Word who made creation also brings God’s salvation. The Divine Word: Is God, Is Eternal, Is Creator… Conclusion: We can connect this to the Christmas Story, but do you truly connect “WHY” this part is important? Our greatest problem is that we are alienated from God by our sins. Our guilt has placed us under His wrath, with no way of saving ourselves. Jesus came to die for our sins that we might be reconciled to God. John 3:14-15, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” Ills: The great industrialist Henry Ford once had a breakdown on his assembly line that no one could fix. In desperation he called Charlie Steinmetz, the mechanical genius who had designed and built Ford’s plant. Steinmetz showed up, tinkered for just a few minutes, threw the switch, and everything started running again. Days later Ford received a bill for $10,000, an exorbitant sum in those days. He wrote back, “Charlie, don’t you think your bill is a little high for just a little tinkering!” So Steinmetz sent back a revised bill: “Tinkering—$10. Knowing where to tinker—$9,990.” Jesus knew how to fix this broken world, because He made it! The Divine Word (Logos) is God, Eternal, Creator. Jesus fixed the world by shedding His own blood for our sins. But instead of presenting us a bill, He offers us the free gift of eternal life through faith in Him!