190
THE WORD
BECAME FLESH
AND MADE
HIS DWELLING
AMONG US
JOHN 1:14, THE DIVINITY OF JESUS
F
or Christians, Jesus of
Nazareth is the central
figure in the Bible. Although
prophets, priests, and kings have
come before Him, none taught as
He did, nor provoked such loyalty
and hostility. Jesus’s life, teaching,
death, and resurrection are the
substance of Christian teaching.Word of God
The Gospel of John is the last of
the four Gospels to be written.
One of the main concerns in the
Apostle John’s New Testament
writings, which include the epistles
of 1–3 John, is to encourage those
who believe in Jesus that He is the
Son of God. It begins like Genesis 1
with the creation of the world.
Just as Genesis 1 assumes the
existence of God, “In the beginning
God ...” and goes on to assert that
this God is the creator, “and God
said, ‘Let there be light,’” John
opens with, “In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God ...IN BRIEF
PA S SAGE
John 1:1–18THEME
The IncarnationSETTING
c. 24–27 ce Roman PalestineKEY FIGURES
John Author of the fourth
Gospel in the New Testament.The Word John’s title
for Jesus, emphasizing
His divine nature.US_190-193_Divinity_of_Jesus.indd 190 25/09/17 11:19 am
191
See also: The Exodus 74–77 ■ The Suffering Servant 154–55 ■ The Crucifixion
258–65 ■ The Empty Tomb 268–71 ■ The Coming of Salvation 301THE GOSPELS
All things came into being through
Him.” The foundation of all things,
according to John, was the Word,
who was in some sense God, and
yet somehow distinct from God.
In John 1:14–18, the Apostle
returns to the connection he made
between the divine Word and
creation. John declares that “theWord became flesh, and dwelt
among us ...” and God exhibited
His glory as His “one and only” Son.
John the Apostle’s claim that
Jesus was also the creator did not
arise with his Gospel nor was the
realization that Jesus was, and
claimed to be, something more
than a Galilean carpenter or a
preacher a late invention. Jesus’s
behavior itself implies divinity.
The first three Gospels portray Him
acting in ways that parallel God’s
interventions in the Old Testament,
such as feeding the 5,000 with
loaves and fish (God feeds the
Israelites in the wilderness) and ❯❯Awaiting the Messiah
The prophet Isaiah had
predicted that the Messiah
would be born to a virgin and
be called “Immanuel” (Isaiah
7:14), meaning “God with us.”
In the New Testament, the
author of the Gospel of John
reports how John the Baptist,
proclaiming Jesus’s higher
rank, says, “He was before
me” (John 1:15). The
implication is that Jesus, who
was younger than John the
Baptist, existed eternally.
The other Gospels report
that even during Jesus’s
lifetime, people see and hear
things about Him that are
extraordinary. When Herod
hears that magi from the east
are visiting the infant Jesus,
he sees the child as a threat
and asks his chief priests
“where the Messiah was to
be born” (Matthew 2:4).Jesus fulfills
these prophecies
and thus proves
He is the Messiah.The Messiah would
be resurrected.
Matthew 28:2–7The Messiah would be an
heir to King David’s throne.
2 Samuel 7:12–13A messenger
would prepare the
way for the Messiah.
Isaiah 40:3–5The Messiah would
be betrayed.
Psalm 41:9The Messiah would
speak in parables.
Psalm 78:2–4The Messiah would die
for our sins by crucifixion.
Isaiah 53:5–12Fra Angelico’s fresco Christ the
Judge Amongst the Angels, from the
Chapel of San Brizio, Orvieto, Italy,
shows Christ presiding in judgment
on a heavenly throne.US_190-193_Divinity_of_Jesus.indd 191 25/09/17 11:19 am