Jesus as the Logos

Universe are created from, for and through the Word

“In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone… So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was fully of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son”

(John 1:1-4, 14, NLT)

In John 1:14, “the Word” is identified as Jesus. Theologians and philosophers, both Jews and Greeks, used the term “Word” (in Greek, logos) in a variety of ways. In the Hebrew language of the Old Testament, “the Word” is described as an agent of creation (Psalm 33:6), the source of God’s message to his people through the prophets (Hosea 1:1-2), and God’s Law, his standard of holiness (Psalm 119:11).

For Greeks, “the Word” could mean a person’s thoughts or reason, or might refer to a person’s speech (the expression of thoughts). As a philosophical term, logos was the rational principle that governed the universe, even the creative energy that generated the universe.

In both the Jewish and Greek conceptions, logos conveyed the idea of beginnings, as in Genesis where the expression “God said” occurs repeatedly (Genesis 1:3 onward). John the apostle, the writer of this Gospel, may have had (all of) these ideas in mind, but his description shows he was speaking of Jesus as a human being he knew and loved, who was at the same time the Creator of the universe, the ultimate revelation of God, and the living picture of God’s holiness, the one who “holds all creation together” (Colossians 1:17). Jesus as the logos reveals God’s mind to us. Clearly, John wanted everyone to know Jesus was not merely a man. Jesus was the eternal, all-powerful God who existed before time, created everything, and gave life.

Think about this: If Jesus had been just a very good man, his life and death would have provided a great example of how a person should live. We could honour him and learn from his lifestyle. If Jesus had been only a great human teacher or orator, we could be motivated and inspired to work and achieve. But a great moral leader and powerful speaker can’t save us from our sins, can’t change us on the inside. Jesus can. As the divine Creator, Jesus the Son of God has the power to make us new. Only Jesus, because of his divinity, can really change us from the inside out. Amen!

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Reference:

Life Application Study Bible Devotional: Daily Wisdom from the Life of Jesus (Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2011)