John 1

The Word Became Flesh

1-5 The Word was in the beginning with God, was God, was instrumental in the creation of life and a light more powerful than darkness.

6-9 A man named John came to testify that the light was coming into the world.

10-13 Through he created the world, it did not know him; his own people rejected him. To those who believed in him he gave power to be children of God, born of God.

14-18 We have seen the glory of the Father in the Word who became flesh, of whom John testified that though he was born after John, he was here first. Moses gave the law; Jesus Christ gave grace and truth. He has made God known to us. This is hard to summarize, because each word is so important. But doing so emphasizes at least one point for me: That the grace and truth that Jesus brought are the true characteristics of his Father.

The Testimony of John the Baptist

19-23 The Jews send priests and Levites to Bethany to ask John who he is. He is not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the prophet. He is “the voice of one crying in the wilderness.”

24-28 “Then why are you baptizing?” “I baptize with water.” Someone comes after me who is greater than I. Does John answer their question? If so, it’s to say that he’s baptizing with water only to prepare for the coming of one greater than he is. I doubt that they understood the answer. It’s amazing how soon the Pharisees begin their attack – even before they meet Jesus. Seems like they were always watchful for someone else with potential power.

The Lamb of God

29-34 The next day John declares that Jesus is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world,” revealed to John at Jesus’ baptism, when the Spirit in the form of a dove descended “and remained on him.” I had never noticed this last phrase before. Apparently, the dove didn’t just appear for a moment above Jesus’ head, but stayed on his head, or maybe shoulders. From Burton Coffman’s commentary:

Of course, this was not a mere case of a bird lighting on Jesus for a moment, a phenomenon which, while rare, is occasionally experienced by men. Much more was involved. The heavens were opened, and the dove visibly descended from on high, an action totally dissociated from the invariable flight pattern of a dove, which is always horizontal.

The First Disciples of Jesus

35-42 The next day John declares to two of his disciples that Jesus is the Lamb of God, They follow Jesus to his quarters and spend the day with him. One of them is Andrew, who tells his brother Peter that he has found the Messiah. He brings Peter to him, and Jesus changes Peter’s name to Cephas. According to Gill, Cephas is the Syriac version of the Greek name, Peter. Could the other disciple that was with Andrew be the apostle John? In the other gospels, he was among the three (with Peter and James) who seem to be the closest to Jesus, yet his name is never mentioned in the book. This is one reason the book is attributed to him.

Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael

43-51 The next day Jesus goes to Galilee and calls Philip to follow him, and Philip brings Nathanael, who at first is doubtful. When Jesus sees him, he identifies him as one without deceit, who was under a fig tree when Philip found him. Nathanael calls him Rabbi, Son of God, and King of Israel. He tells Nathanael he will see great things: angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of God.