John 1:1-5 Living Bible
1 1-2 Before anything else existed,[a] there was Christ, with God. He has always been alive and is himself God. 3 He created everything there is—nothing exists that he didn’t make. 4 Eternal life is in him, and this life gives light to all mankind. 5 His life is the light that shines through the darkness—and the darkness can never extinguish it.
Word of God for the Children of God
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
In Him Was Life
The first of these theme-words appears at the beginning of John 1:4, “In him was life.”
The word life appears 36 times in the gospel of John, far more than any other New Testament book. It is one of his most important themes.
The preceding verses say that “the Word was with God” and “was God,” and that “all things were made through him” (John 1:1–3).
The second person of the Godhead, the “Word,” who is the subject of this gospel, is the source of all life in this universe.
Not merely does he possess life, but life itself is found in him and also comes through him. Jesus said, “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself” (John 5:26).
This is what John wants us to see in Christ: “In him was life.”
Are you and I really truly living?
Do you and I feel that our lives matter for something important?
Are you and I excited about things, or just keeping occupied?
Jesus has life to give to those who trust in him. “I came that they may have life,” he said, “and have it abundantly” (John 10:10).
So, just how much or how little do you and I actually, authentically, trust Him?
The Light Shining
This is the very connection John makes, that the life in Christ comes as a light shining in the darkness.
“In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness” (John 1:4–5).
Light is another of John’s great themes.
The first recorded words of God are, “Let there be light” (Gen. 1:3). Light is an image that everyone understands, and it brings a rich array of meaning.
The first thing light does is reveal.
When you walk into a dark room, you turn on the light to see.
This is what Isaiah prophesied about the coming of Jesus: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined” (Isa. 9:2).
Man was living in a spiritual darkness, ignorant about God and living in superstition.
So Jesus came to reveal God. “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father,” he said (John 14:9).
James Boice comments,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Montgomery_Boice
“Jesus is revealed as the One who knows God the Father and who makes him known.… Before Christ came into the world, the world was in darkness. The world did not know God. Christ came. His light shone before men. Then men had light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
Do you and I know God?
Do you and I know what God is like?
Do you or I know Jesus came to reveal God to us.
Do you and I know God by personal acquaintance, by his presence within your spirit?
Do you and I know Jesus came also to bring us into fellowship with God as worshipers in spirit and in truth?
Light not only reveals but it also warms.
To “walk in the darkness” is to walk in sin and moral depravity, but the light of Christ warms the heart so that it is changed.
This spiritual transformation is what Jesus meant in John 12:46, “I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.”
Thirdly, light not only reveals and warms, but it also guides.
We think of the glory cloud of light that guided Israel through the desert during the exodus from Egypt.
Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
Likewise, Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).
If you come to Jesus Christ in faith and follow as his disciple, he will be a light to guide you “in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (Ps. 23:3).
Fourthly, light conveys and stimulates life.
If you want a plant to grow, you place it in the sunshine.
Likewise, you will grow upward as the light of Christ’s Word shines in you.
His light shines with the power of his life through his Word.
“In him was life, and the life was the light of men” (John 1:4).
This great verse summarizes what it means for us to be Christ-like.
Jesus wants you to be a lamp that reflects his light in the world.
He wants you to reveal God to those around you; he wants you to warm others so they will seek after truth and love; he wants you to be a guide to others; and he wants his light shining in and through you to bring others to life.
He said: “Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16).
Darkness against the Light
The third image John uses is darkness.
This is the absence of light.
If light stands for the knowledge of God, darkness represents the fullness of all our spiritual ignorance in which the world is perishing.
If light stands for warmth and goodness, then the darkened world is that which is enslaved in sin and evil.
If the light breaks through, leads us in good paths, darkness is the realm of the lost and blind. If light brings true life, then darkness is the true realm of death.
Darkness is opposed to light.
John 1:5 says, “The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not overcome it.”
This indicates that the coming of Christ as the light meets the opposition of the darkened world.
Jesus said, “This is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19).
Nothing has ever condemned this world more than its response to the coming of Jesus Christ.
If people tell you the world or the human race is basically good, remind them what it did to Jesus.
He came without any sin, healing and teaching the way to God.
He was a light shining in the darkness.
But for that very reason the world hated him.
The hypocritical Pharisees resented him for exposing their legalism.
The priests and scribes envied his popularity.
The power-hungry Romans thought him a threat to their military domination.
And it wasn’t just the elite, for the ordinary people also called out for Jesus’ blood: “Away with him, away with him, crucify him!” they demanded of Pontius Pilate (John 19:15).
When God’s Son came into the world, the world nailed him to a cross—the cruelest form of execution they could possibly devise—to suffer and die.
For our 21st century People today similarly despise Jesus; for all their supposed “admiration” they refuse, refute, mock and scorn his exclusive claim to be our Savior and Lord and resent his holy example that exposes their sin.
The Light of Christ
“In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.”
These are great themes that John unfolds all through his gospel: life, light, and darkness.
But remember that John is really pointing to Jesus.
What matters in life, then, is not what we are and have been, not what others have done, not what challenges or trials the future might hold.
What matters is that Christ has come with life through his light that shines in the world, and the darkness cannot overcome it.
That is the way to life and light: to cease trusting in yourself or in anything else of this world that might commend you to God, and surrender your case into the hands of Jesus.
“I have come into the world as light,” he said, “so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness” (John 12:46).
That light is still shining, and through him you can have life everlasting, life abundant, life in Christ.
Jesus Christ, the Word of God, created the world with God in the beginning.
He also came into the world to save it, because it was broken by the curse of sin and death.
When Adam and Eve disobeyed God in Eden, they brought this curse on all of God’s creation (Genesis 3).
The world that God once called “good” has been afflicted with chaos, conflict, isolation, sickness, and grief ever since. And sin has estranged us from the God who created us. Even worse, no matter how hard we try, we cannot make things right. Our sin continually forms a barrier between us and our Creator.
Maybe you are reading this devotion because you are feeling sin’s effects in your life.
Perhaps something has happened which has left you feeling lost or confused.
Maybe you feel you are groping in the dark, looking for light to guide your way.
The Bible promises that the darkness you face—whatever it might be—will never overcome the light of Christ.
Like a lighthouse on a rocky shore, Jesus offers us hope and a clear path to God.
There is no sin or enemy of God big enough, powerful enough to snuff out the light of Christ.
He will always shine brightest, always be victorious, and if we place our fullest measure of authentic faith in him, he invites all of us to share in his victory.
In the name of God, the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Praying, …
Psalm 19 Complete Jewish Bible
19 (0) For the leader. A psalm of David:
2 (1) The heavens declare the glory of God,
the dome of the sky speaks the work of his hands.
3 (2) Every day it utters speech,
every night it reveals knowledge.
4 (3) Without speech, without a word,
without their voices being heard,
5 (4) their line goes out through all the earth
and their words to the end of the world.
In them he places a tent for the sun,
6 (5) which comes out like a bridegroom from the bridal chamber,
with delight like an athlete to run his race.
7 (6) It rises at one side of the sky,
circles around to the other side,
and nothing escapes its heat.
8 (7) The Torah of Adonai is perfect,
restoring the inner person.
The instruction of Adonai is sure,
making wise the thoughtless.
9 (8) The precepts of Adonai are right,
rejoicing the heart.
The mitzvah of Adonai is pure,
enlightening the eyes.
10 (9) The fear of Adonai is clean,
enduring forever.
The rulings of Adonai are true,
they are righteous altogether,
11 (10) more desirable than gold,
than much fine gold,
also sweeter than honey
or drippings from the honeycomb.
12 (11) Through them your servant is warned;
in obeying them there is great reward.
13 (12) Who can discern unintentional sins?
Cleanse me from hidden faults.
14 (13) Also keep your servant from presumptuous sins,
so that they won’t control me.
Then I will be blameless
and free of great offense.
15 (14) May the words of my mouth
and the thoughts of my heart
be acceptable in your presence,
Adonai, my Rock and Redeemer.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 