In The Beginning

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Scripture: John 1:1-5 (ESV)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Devotion:

            With these words of introduction, the writer John the Apostle begins to tell the story of Jesus of Nazareth. John introduces Jesus as the Word that was with God at the very beginnings of the universe. It is an introduction to the concept of God as the Trinity. In the following verses, John unpacks how the Father and the Son were present at the creation of the universe. This is meant to give us just a glimpse into the concept of one God in three persons. While much remains mysterious about this God, He is described in this fashion, and we must learn to accept Him on His terms.

            Here, the eternal Son is not merely a tool in God’s creation of the universe. He is the driving force behind all life, including humanity. His involvement is not passive but active and intimate. In his mission, he illuminates the path to God with a light so powerful that even the forces of darkness cannot extinguish it.

            Why should sophisticated 21st-century people be interested in this philosophical talk from the Apostle? With all our science and technology, we think we have moved beyond such talk. We think of it as empty of all meaning and useless. However, we must pay attention to it if it does what it promises, and that is to describe reality. Competing narratives describe the creation of the universe and God’s special creation of human beings in that universe. Does John’s description here add to our understanding of how everything came to be?

            The answer is an enthusiastic yes! These 2,000-year-old words provide the basis for understanding the universe as “God-breathed.” That is one where God, standing outside the universe, created it for life. Notably, God made it for human life. No other account of the creation is so awe-inspiring. The Son, who would later come and die for sin, created the very life He would later die for—no wonder the powers of darkness cannot erase that light.

            Let us now pray that God will use the light of Christ to help us see God more clearly and think and act in light of this beautiful truth.

Prayer:

            Lord God Almighty, help us to walk with eyes wide open to the beauty of your creation. Teach us to see all humans as individuals who are the image of their creator—then, seeing them in that way, to love and cherish all people no matter how life has battered and twisted them. Lead us in the way of peace, working for the salvation of humanity, one soul at a time. Amen. 

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