Bible Study Notes ~ Gospel of John, Chapter 1 - Jan 2017 (Part 1)

BIBLE STUDY NOTES
GOSPEL OF JOHN, CHAPTER 1 - JAN 2017  (Part 1)

When we begin a new Bible Study, there are four books which, to me, stand out as the leading contenders to be the starting point:  Genesis, John, Acts, and Revelation.

The first two, Genesis and John, have the same introduction, "In the beginning.  .  ."  - and I believe that is why those two books are the ones most attacked by atheists and other non-believers. 

In Genesis, "In the beginning.  .  ."  declares that there was a beginning of our world and our universe.  Therefore, before that only God existed, eternally preexisting.  Genesis teaches that God created all things in six day (and I believe it teaches six lunar, 24 hour, days) - and if we even loosely follow the times spoken of in Genesis, we will have to conclude that creation happened thousands of years ago, and not billions of years ago.  Genesis is the solid, not mythical nor allegorical, foundation upon which our entire Bible sits.

In John, "In the beginning.  .  ."  declares the deity and preexistence of Jesus Christ, God the Son.  And upon that foundation our Christian faith rests.

Acts gives us the early history of our Christian church - and is a story which is still unfolding, still being written in Christian churches around the world.  The story being told in Acts will end on the day of the Rapture.

And, of course, when the Rapture occurs - the story of Acts ends - and the story told in Revelation begins.

So, in these four books we have the beginning of our universe ~ the beginning of our Christian faith ~ and we have the ongoing story of our Christian church or fellowship.  And, we have our Christian story which will be brought to a conclusion in Revelation.

That, in a nutshell, is our Christian Bible.  The rest of the books flesh out, i.e., adds meaning, clarification - to the framework built upon those four books.

The Bible is God's full revelation to man.  The Old Testament looks forward to the cross.  The New Testament looks back at the finished work on the cross.

Two books of the Bible open with, "In the beginning" :

Genesis tells us of God's creation and is the foundation upon which the 66 books of the Bible sit. 

John tells us of the deity of Jesus Christ and is the foundation upon which our Christian faith sits.

The Synoptic Gospels:

The first three Gospels - Matthew, Mark, and Luke - are called the Synoptic Gospels, because they are similarly structured, can be compared side by side, and mostly are narratives of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.  John takes a different, more spiritual and theological path - exploring the deity of Jesus Christ.

Mark is believed to be the first Gospel written.  Nearly 90 percent of Mark’s content is found in Matthew, and about 50 percent of Mark appears in Luke.  All of the parables of Christ are found in the Synoptic Gospels.  The Gospel of John contains no parables.

Major Differences:

1.   Events found in the Synoptic Gospels  ~  Not in John:

The Temptation of Jesus (Matthew 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-13) ~ Jesus’ Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-13, Mark 9:2-13, Luke 9:28-36) ~ Institution of the Lord’s Supper (Matthew 26:26-29, Mark 14:22-25, Luke 22:19-24) ~ Jesus casts out demons (Matthew 8:28-34, Mark 5:1-20, Luke 8:26-39) ~  Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5 - 7, Luke 6) ~ and the Lord’s prayer (Matthew 6:9-13, Luke 11:1-4) - are not found in the Gospel of John.

2.   Events found in John  ~  Not in the Synoptic Gospels:

The Wedding in Cana (John 2)  ~  His meeting with Nicodemus (John 3)  ~  His meeting with the Woman of Samaria (John 4) ~ The Resurrection of Lazarus (John 11)  ~  Washing of Disciple's Feet and Dismissal of Judas Iscariot (John 13)  ~   Much of Jesus' extended Farewell Discourse (John 13-17) - are not found in the Synoptic Gospels.

3.   Additional notes:

John begins by affirming the deity and preexistence of Jesus Christ from time eternal, i.e., “In the beginning was the Word”

Mark who begins his Gospel with the baptism and temptation of Jesus.

Matthew and Luke begin their Gospels with Jesus’ birth and genealogy.

Themes Of The Four Gospels:

Matthew:   Theme:  “Behold your King, the Messiah”

Written for a Jewish audience - gives His genealogy in Jewish fashion - starting with Abraham and moving forward through the lineage of Joseph, the legal father.

Mark:  Theme:   “Behold the Servant Son”

Mark, a Galilean Jew, writes to a Roman or Gentile audience, so he gives more explanation of Jewish customs.  Servants had no genealogy.

Luke:  Theme:  “Behold the Perfect Man, Son of Man”

Luke was a Greek (the only Gentile writer in the Bible) and his Gospel speak to the Greeks.  He was a physician, so given to more exact details, and he is considered a master historian. 

In this Gospel, Luke the physician, speaks of the humanity of Jesus Christ – and gives His genealogy in the Gentile manner just as we do today - starting with Jesus Christ (through the lineage of Mary and her father) and looking backward through the generations, all the way back to Adam and God.

Luke is accredited with being a more accurate historian than the other Gospel writers:

An example of Luke's care is the way in which he dates the emergence of John the Baptist.  He does so by no fewer than six contemporary datings.  "In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar (1), Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea (2), Herod being tetrarch of Galilee (3), and his brother Philip being tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis (4), and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene (5) in the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas (6), the word of God came to John"  (Luke 3:1, 2).   Here is a man who is writing with care and who will be as accurate as it is possible for him to be.   (William Barclay, The Gospel Of Luke, p. 3).

"One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven" (Daniel 7:13):  The title Son of Man was a favorite self-designation of Jesus, used more than 80 times in the Gospels.   (David Guzik - Study Guide for Daniel 7)

"Son of God" speaks of His deity  ~  "Son of Man" speaks of His humanity.

John:   Theme:  "Behold the Son of God"

The Gospel of John is distinct from the other three Gospels and contains much theological content regarding the person of Christ and the meaning of faith.  John's main emphasis is the deity of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.  

John 20:30-31, “Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” 

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GOSPEL OF JOHN, CHAPTER 1
New American Standard Bible, 1995 Copyright

PREFACE:  Two key verses, Genesis 1:1 and John 1:1:

Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.“

Non-believers and many in Liberal Theologies will deny that the book of Genesis is Biblical history, allocating it to be only poetic, mythical, or metaphorical.  Why do they do this?  The book of Genesis is the solid, concrete foundation upon which the entire Bible sits.  If they can replace that concrete foundation with a foundation of sand - then the validity of the entire Bible is suspect.  The validity of the Bible as God's revelation to man is suspect.

Christian scholars, theologians, and teachers wanting to somehow make the secular world's Darwinian Evolution and our Christian faith more compatible have devised different theologies to allow a compromise between God's Word and the world's view.  One such compromise is a teaching called the “Gap Theory.”   This teaches that between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2 there was a gap of time, possibly even billions of years.  Why billions of years?  Because for Darwinian Evolution to be true - that process requires billions of years.

These are some of the Compromise Theologies which liberal theologians have devised in their effort to make Darwinian Evolution fit into God's plan for His creation:

Gap Theory:  Between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2 God created another world - then destroyed it because it was so corrupt.  More corrupt than our current world?  Really?  Sin and death entered our world only after Adam’s fall into the sin of disobedience.  If another world had existed before and was destroyed because it was so corrupt - then sin and death would already have existed and our earth would only be a sequel, possibly titled:  "Earth 2 - The Final Stand!"  That is not what the Bible teaches!

Progressive Creation (Old Earth):  God created the heavens and the earth – but, He did it over billions of years, not in six days as we are told in Genesis.  This is also called the Day-Age theory of Creation; where each day is an age, a long period of time - not a 24-hour solar day.

Theistic Creation (Evolutionary Creation):  God created the heavens and the earth – but, He did it over billions of years, allowing the evolutionary process as described by Darwin time to create and form life.  Wouldn't this require life to evolve from non-life, without God's help?  Or did God spend billions of years creating earth and the universe - and then wait until the last six days to create man?  Why would He wait billions of years when He can  

Scientific/Atheist View of Creation ~ Two flavors:

1.  The universe has always existed - and evolution, starting billions of years ago, created life.

2.  The Big Bang created the entire universe - and evolution, billions of years ago, created life.

Yet, the Bible, in Genesis, teaches a Young Earth Creation:  The earth and creation are only thousands of years old.  Not necessarily 4000 years - but, thousands of years, not millions or billions of years as required to make Darwinian Evolution valid.

John 1:1-51 Bible Study:

The Eternal Word (verses 1-5)

1.  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Question:   Who is this Man we call Jesus Christ?

Answer:    The Bible teaches that He is God Incarnate, God the Son, second Person in the Trinity - fully God and fully Man.  Yet there are church groups, Christian and cult, which teach a different Jesus Christ or a Jesus Christ who was not sufficient to give salvation without the help of man.

Jehovah’s Witnesses say that Jesus is a created being, that He was created as the Archangel Michael.  They deny His deity; they deny the Trinity.    (The Kingdom Of The Cults, pages 78-79, Dr. Walter Martin).

Mormons say that Jesus is a created being, the spirit brother of Lucifer (Satan).  They teach that there is not one God, but a council of gods.  Their gods have wives.  As a matter of fact, all their gods have wives.  And if a Mormon man dies faithful to the Mormon church, he will also be a god, have wives, and have his own planet where he and his wife can create spirit children.  (The Kingdom Of The Cults, page 192, Dr. Walter Martin).

Some Liberal and Legalistic Christian churches teach that Christ's death on the cross was not sufficient to give us salvation - that we have to earn our salvation through works.   Salvation through works negates Christ's incarnation and His atoning death on the cross.  It negates His free gift of salvation to all who believe.  When you work, you earn wages, it is not a free gift.  The Bible tells us that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).  It also tells us that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).  So, according to the Bible all we have earned is death - when we attempt to “work our way into heaven.”

Some Liberal and Legalistic Christian churches also teach that we can lose our salvation.  Once again, they are making Jesus a liar.    Jesus tells us in John 3:16 that, “Whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” and in John 3:36, “He who believes in the Son has eternal life.”   Then in John 5:24 Jesus tells us, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life;”

If we, as true believers, can lose our salvation - then we have no security in Jesus Christ and those Scripture verses above are not true.  If those Scripture verses are not true, then the Bible is not true - and if the Word of God is not true, where do we have any security?

Who is telling the truth, Jesus Christ - OR - the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, and Liberal and Legalistic Christian churches?

Question:   Who does the Bible say this Man Jesus is?

Answer:   Jesus Christ is deity, He is the Son of God, He is God!  He is my personal Lord and Savior!

Both Genesis 1:1 and John 1:1 take us to the beginning of creation.  Both tell us that God, through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, created all that was created.

Let's examine John 1:1 more closely.  In this verse, the apostle John is declaring the deity of Jesus Christ beyond any doubt.  The New Testament was written in the Greek language and John, seeking the most powerful way to describe Jesus chose the Greek word “logos.”  The Greek word logos doesn’t mean just a written word - it means a dynamic, active, living word. 

●  “In the beginning was the Word . . .”  (en archē ēn ho logos).    In the “beginning” of what? 

“In the beginning” refers to the creation.  Notice that this passage does not say "IS the Word" for that would be implying that He began at the beginning.  When we know that He already existed, i.e., WAS the Word before the beginning.

This is saying that, at the creation of our universe and our world - the Word (Logos), Jesus Christ, already existed.  It is saying that He already was existing when the world and the universe were created; it is saying that He is eternal.  Therefore He IS God!

●  “. . . and the Word was with God . . .” (kai ho logos ēn pros theon).   Jesus has been with God the Father throughout eternity.  

The Greek phrase for “with God” is “pros theos” and this wording in the Greek language implies an equality, a close association.  In other words, God the Son, Jesus, and God the Father are equal in deity, equal in divinity, equal in Godly attributes.  They, with the Holy Spirit, are the Godhead.  Jesus has been with God the Father throughout eternity; He was and is eternally God the Son.

The second statement is this, “and the Word was with God.”   This makes it abundantly clear that He is separate and distinct from God the Father.  You cannot identify Him as God the Father because He is with God.  Someone (might) say, “But, if He is with God, He is not God.”  

The third statement sets us straight, “and the Word was God.”   This is a clear, emphatic declaration that the Lord Jesus Christ is God.  In fact, the Greek is more specific than this, because in the Greek language the important word is placed at the beginning of the sentence and it reads, “God was the Word.”    ("The Gospel According to John Introduction" by Dr. J. Vernon McGee)

This also tells us that Jesus Christ, the Word, the Son of God, is a separate and distinct person from God the Father, yet one with Him in the Godhead.   Elohim, the triune God, created the heavens and the earth.  The Hebrew word "Elohim" is plural for El, the Hebrew name for God. 

Elohim is plural in nature, signifying the Trinity - yet, it is used in the Bible in the singular nature.  In other words, it is used with a singular verb or adjective (“Bill has” is singular; “they have” is plural).  This is telling us that there is ONE God (singular), comprised of THREE distinct, different persons (plural).  

~  God the Father laid the plans, He was the architect 
~  God the Son was the mediator, He was the contractor 
~  God the Holy Spirit executed the divine plans, He was the builder. 

Each one separate and distinct, yet each one an integral part of the Godhead.

●  “. . . and the Word was God.”  (kai theos ēn ho logos).   This phrase leaves no doubt that Jesus Christ is deity, He is God! 

In the Greek language this phrase is literally saying, “and God was the Word.”  -  theos (God) ēn (was) ho (the) logos (Word)  -  God was the Word!. 

In the Jehovah’s Witness bible, “The New World Translation of the Holy Scripture,”  they have changed John 1:1 to read, “In the beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.”   They deny the deity of Jesus Christ and believe He was a created being, just like the angels. 

As a matter of fact, the Jehovah’s Witnesses believe the Jesus was created as the Archangel Michael (Watchtower book "Reasoning From The Scriptures," page 218).  They deny the deity of Jesus Christ ("Reasoning From The Scriptures," pages 416-417) and they deny the Trinity ("Reasoning From The Scriptures," pages 405-426).  Therefore, they are not a Christian church.

Also, Jehovah's Witnesses take offense at John 8:58 (nkjv), "Jesus said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.'"  for here Jesus is clearly saying to Jews in the temple at Jerusalem that He is deity, He is God.

In the Jehovah's Witnesses New World Translation bible, they have changed John 8:58 to read, "Jesus said to them: "Most truly I say to you, Before Abraham came into existence, I have been."  They cannot accept Jesus' "I AM" statement for that declares Him to be God.

John 1:1 says, “kai theos ‘ēn ho logos”  -  “. . . and the Word was God.”   The Jehovah's Witness bible changes that to say, “kai theos ‘ēn ho a logos” - “and the Word was a god.”

The deity of Jesus Christ is the foundation of the Christian faith and one of the biggest differences between the Christian church and cult churches.  We know that Jesus is God; they deny that He is God.  They are not Christian!

The Mormon church believes that Jesus and Satan were created as spirit brothers (Mormon Doctrine, p. 163; Gospel Through the Ages, p. 15).   Their Apostles (successors to Joseph Smith) teach this in their writings.  Yet, they use the KJV Bible which reads in John 1:1, “. . . and the Word was God.”  

They believe that the universe is ruled by a head god and a council of gods.  The Mormon book “Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith” (pages 348-349) reads, “The head God called together the Gods and sat in grand council to bring forth the world. . . In the beginning, the head of the Gods called a council of the gods; and they came together and concocted a plan to create the world and people it.”  

God is married to his goddess wife and has spirit children, (Mormon Doctrine, p. 516).   If a man is a faithful temple Mormon, he can also become a god and have his own planet when he leaves this world  (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses 17:143,  Orson Pratt, Journal of Discourses 14:242, Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation 2:48).

The Mormons teach that God is only an exalted man (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 345) ~ and that God had physical sexual relations with Mary to conceive Jesus (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, vol. 4, 1857, p. 218; vol. 8, p. 115 - Mormon Doctrine, by Bruce McConkie, p. 547 - Journal of Discourses, vol. 8, p. 115).
 
On salvation Mormonism teaches:  One of the most fallacious doctrines originated by Satan and propounded by man is that man is saved alone by the grace of God; that belief in Jesus Christ alone is all that is needed for salvation.  (Miracle of Forgiveness, Spencer W. Kimball, p. 206).

The Mormons teach that the Book of Mormon is more correct than the Bible, (History of the Church, 4:461).

You can see why it is so important for Christian believers to understand what John 1:1 teaches us.  It is the foundation for our Christian faith and beliefs.

2.  He was in the beginning with God.

This verse is John’s definitive statement declaring the preexistence, distinctiveness, and deity of the Word, Jesus Christ.  He was with God in the beginning, before all time began.  Before anything was created, He was there with God the Father, He was, is, and forever will be, God the Son.

Have you ever, in your own mind, tried to think back as far as you can, to really stretch your imagination?  How far did you go; a million years, ten million years, a billion years, a trillion years?  Now mark that spot.  God had been around long before that.  No matter how far you go back, God had been there long before! 

"In the beginning. . ." is man's way of putting a finite meaning on something which is infinite.  It is man's way of trying to express in words something which he really cannot truly perceive, the mystery of God's eternal preexistence.  God had no beginning and He will have no end.  We, as man, had a definite beginning, but will have no end.  We will eternally exist, either in heaven with Jesus Christ for eternity - or in hell without Jesus Christ for eternity.
 

3.  All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

In Genesis 1:1 we see that "God created the heavens and the earth."  Yet, in John 1:3 we are told that all things were created by the Word, Jesus Christ.  Is this a contradiction?  No, it is God's affirmation of the deity of Jesus Christ.   For we have "God ('elohiym, plural) created. . ."  Jesus Christ, the Son, is God.  Just as the Father is God, and so is the Holy Spirit. 

4.    In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.

5.   The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

Question:   What are the two key words in these verses?

Answer:  Life and Light.   Those two words are what Jesus Christ is to all who are saved.

In Him was LIFE:

The Greek word zōē is used throughout the John’s Gospel to mean life - a life of vitality, both physical and spiritual.  The Greek word for life has a lot more “life” in it than our English translation.  The Greek language is much richer than the English, with many more variations and shading of words.  We say “Life” -  the Greek language says “LIFE!”  When we are born we have physical life.  When we are born-again, we have real LIFE, spiritual life, we have zōē.

Man was created as a triune being:  body, spirit, soul.  And, the the Greek language in the Bible differentiates between the three:  bios - zōē - psychē

The Greek word zōē means eternal spiritual life in Christ.   That differs from another Greek word for life which is bios meaning biological life.  The Greek word bios refers to the life of the physical body and is where we get the word biology.

Then, there is another Greek word for life, psychē, which basically is the soul, your personality, which defines who you are and how you react.  According to Strong's Concordance means:   The seat of the feelings, desires, affections, aversions, etc. - the soul as an essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death, as distinguished from the physical body.

All life comes through God, physical and spiritual.  Jesus is the source, the fountainhead of our life.  In the New Testament, Jesus spoke often of “life.”  He spoke of both physical life and spiritual life.    Eternal life is both physical and spiritual life.  You claim eternal life in this world by claiming the free gift of salvation He purchased on the cross. 

From the moment you profess Him as your personal Lord and Savior, He gives you eternal life - the rest of your physical life on this earth in your mortal body, you are eternal - not immortal yet, but eternal.  And, at that moment, He also gives you eternal spiritual life - to one day be eternally with Him in your immortal body.

The Gospel of John begins by telling us, “In Him was life. . .” (John 1:4)  ~  and it closes by telling us, “that believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:31).
 
● John 1:4:       ”In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.”
 
● John 3:15:     “. . .so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.” 
 
● John 3:16:     "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.“

● John 3:36:     "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." 

● John 5:24:    "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”

● John 20:30-31: "And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name."

Please notice that in these Scripture verses, and others, we are told that when you believe in Him, that moment, you HAVE eternal life.  It does not say, "You could have eternal life."  It does not say, "You might have eternal life."   It does not say, "You will have eternal life if.  .  .  ."   It does not say, "You will have eternal life when.  .  .  ."

No, those Scripture verses tell us that, "He who believes in the Son has eternal life."   And, the word "eternal" means "never ending!"   In other words, your eternal life will never end - and that promise he confirms in John 10.

John 10:27-29, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and NO ONE will snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and NO ONE is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand."

What is this teaching us?  It is that when we have LIFE (zōē) in Christ - we have His promised eternal life and we will never lose it.  That is "Eternal Security."

In Him was LIGHT:

Question:   What did Jesus mean when He said, "I am the Light of the World" (John 8:12)?

Answer:   Have you ever been in a room which is totally dark - no windows, not even little cracks of light seeping in - just total darkness?  What happens if you strike a match?  You have light.   No matter how small the match - it overcomes the darkness.

That is what Jesus Christ is to us - a Light which the darkness of Satan cannot quench - if only We will seek the Light.
 
Jesus, in the creation gave us physical life and spiritual life.  Adam, sinning against God by “eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil”  gave us physical death and spiritual death.  Man is now in darkness  ~  we have a decaying physical life, and no spiritual life.
 
Jesus, through His death and resurrection gives us the right to chose spiritual Life and Light.  He is the Life and the Light of men!
 
John 8:12:   "Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.’" 

A.  I am the Light of the world:  Light was an important symbol in the Feast of Tabernacles (when the Jewish people were to gather together in Jerusalem to remember God's provision in the Wilderness).  During the feast, many emblems and ceremonies remembered the pillar of fire which gave light to Israel during the Exodus.  Now, Jesus takes this important symbol and simply applies it to Himself:  I am the Light of the world.

B.  He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness: Jesus, being the Light of the world, brings light to those who follow Him.  If We are not abiding in Jesus, We are not in the Light.
 

Genesis 1:1-3 tells us, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.  Then God said, 'Let there be light' - and there was light.

Question:    How can we relate that to our own lives today?

Answer:   Before we came to Jesus, our lives were like that:  formless, void, full of darkness.  Jesus is our Light which defeats the darkness.  Jesus brings “Light” into our lives, that we may see the Truth, and in seeing, that we might believe.   Sin loves darkness and hates light, for in the illumination of the light sin can be seen for the filth that it is. 

John 8:12,  “Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, "I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life."  

John 11:9, “Jesus answered, ‘Are there not twelve hours in the day?  If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light (the sun) of this world.  But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him’"

Here Jesus is making a familiar comparison - walking in the light of the sun or walking at night without the light of the sun.   He is contrasting that to the man who walks in the Light of His Truth through believing in Him - versus the man who is walking in sin and darkness through his non-belief.

This is a good definition of a Genuine Christian:

One evening during the latter part of his life, John Ruskin sat at a window in his home watching a lamplighter, with torch in hand, ignite the street lamps on a distant hill.  Since it was dark the lamplighter himself could not be seen, but his progress up the hill could be observed as successive lamps were lighted.

After a few minutes Ruskin turned to a friend and said, “That illustrates what I mean by a genuine Christian.  You may not know him or ever see him, but his way has been marked by the lights he leaves burning.”   (Written by Ralph L. Woods in The Guideposts Treasury of Faith)

John Ruskin (1819-1900), was an artist, scientist, poet, environmentalist, philosopher, and the pre-eminent art critic of his time.

Are YOU leaving lights of eternal life burning along your daily Christian walk?

The Ministry of John the Baptist (verses 6-13)

6.      There came a man sent from God, whose name was John.

7.      He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him.

8.      He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.

John the Baptist was chosen by God to be the announcer or proclaimer of Jesus Christ.  John was a very special man himself.  He is the only person which the Bible says was filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb (Luke 1:15 nasb).  He was the very first human to personally greet Jesus Christ.  Luke 1:41 tells us, “When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.” 

Verse 8 tells us John was not the Light, not the Messiah.  But, he came to testify to us about the Messiah, to proclaim Him.

John was the last of the Old Testament prophets.  The law and the prophets were until John (Luke 16:16).  John was the first to preach and announce the new dispensation - the dispensation of Grace brought to us through Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 9:15:  “For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.”

9.     There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.

10.    He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.

11.    He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.  

Question:    What do you think John meant in verse 9 when he said, “There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man” ?

Answer:   Henry Ironside, (1876–1951 - a Canadian-American Bible teacher, preacher, theologian, pastor, and author) in his commentary “John” (which is one of my prized commentaries) gives us a good answer. 

Ironside says: "That was the true Light, which lights every man that comes into the world."   What does that mean?  Does Christ give spiritual light to every man that comes into the world?  Well, partly.  He does give light through our consciences, and yet, I think there is more than that involved in this (Scripture) text.  I believe it is really this: "That was the true Light, which coming into the world, casts light on every man."  

That is, it is not light in man, but light shining on man.   I mean this, that Lord Jesus Christ came into a world made up of wickedness - made up of sinful men who rolled sin as a sweet morsel under their tongues.  He came as the only holy Man that ever walked this earth, and as He walked in and out among men, all other men were shown up in contrast.  He cast light on every man.

It is the true Light, Jesus Christ, which came into the world and convicted men of their sin and evil ways - just as the Holy Spirit convicts us today.   When we look at ourselves in the Light, i.e., based upon the Word of God, we will see ourselves as we truly are - mortals walking in an innate sin nature which keeps us from God.  Yet, His Light will show us the Way.

Jesus, the true Light, came into the world, in a body of human flesh, to bring true spiritual life back to man.  He came into the world to bring us light.  He created man; He was in the world for man; and man did not know Him.  He came to His own, the Israelites, and they denied Him, they crucified Him.

12.    But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,

13.    who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 

Question:    What does it mean to receive Him?

Answer:      Receiving Him means to believe He is the Son of God (Luke 1:35, John 3:16, John 20:31) ~ to believe that His crucifixion and resurrection defeated Satan and death (1 Corinthians 15:1-8, Hebrews 2:14-15) ~ and to accept the free gift (Ephesians 2:8-9) of salvation which He offers to every person.

Question:    What does it mean “to become children of God”?

Answer:     Jesus is always waiting for us to invite Him into our hearts and into our lives (Revelation 3:20).  He will not force His way into our lives; we have to invite Him.  This is the purpose of the gift of “free will” which God has given us.  God offers His love to every person; but He wants us to freely come to Him, through our love for Him - not through coercion or forced will.

Question:    What does John mean in verse 13 when he said, “who were born of God”?  What does it mean to be born of God?
Answer:  Our first birth was of the flesh, from our mother’s womb.  Our second birth, when we are born-again, is not of flesh and blood, it is not of the will of the flesh (lust) of man - it is a spiritual birth from God (2 Corinthians 5:17, Titus 3:5-7).   When Adam sinned our spiritual connection with God was broken.  When we are born-again, we are regenerated as a new man, a spiritual man. 

Titus 3:5-7:  ”He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which We have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace We would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”