In the Beginning! Before Christmas.

John 1:1-14
Here in John's Gospel we learn of Jesus before He came to earth as a baby in a manger – here we learn of what God was doing before the first Christmas day. In the Bible text we are about to examine today Jesus is described as "The Word."

The term translated "Word" is the Greek word Logos. Logos means "word" in the sense that we mean it, but it also means "reason." The basic idea is that Jesus is both the Word of God and the Wisdom of God. Jesus was the Logos before He came to earth, He is still the Logos today, and He will always be the Logos. I thought it important, as we enter into this Christmas, to better understand some of the meaning behind Christ's first coming.

Let's look at four facts concerning this Word, Jesus, today.

1) THE INCREDIBLE WORD
John 1:1-3 In the beginning the Word already existed. He was with God, and he was God. He was in the beginning with God. He created everything there is. Nothing exists that he didn't make. –

Jesus is Eternal
John's words purposely echo the words used in the creation account.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. – Gen. 1:1
In the beginning the Word already existed. – John 1:1a

"Beginning" is used in the sense of before all time – while we cannot fully comprehend it or explain it, Jesus has always existed.

One of the best ways to put this is the following Definition: There was never a time when Jesus was not. Jesus did not have His start in the womb of Mary – He has always been and He always will be.

Jesus described Himself this way: "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End." – Rev. 22:13

He is simply but significantly proclaiming that He is an eternal being.

Jesus is God
Sometimes people ask me what differentiates True Christianity from the Cults.

Here is your answer – every church that believes the Bible, whether Baptist, Catholic, Lutheran, Church of Christ, Nazarene, or any of a thousand others, all agree on this fact –Jesus is God.

The first sign of a cult is that they downgrade Jesus to something less than God.

They'll say He was a prophet, or a great man, or a wonderful teacher, but every cultic group denies this central fact of Scripture.

...He was with God, and he was God… – John 1:1b
When we sing about that little baby on Christmas Day, we are singing about no one less than God Himself.

Jesus was God before coming to earth, He was God in the 33 years He spent here, and He will always be God. If a person believes anything less than this concerning Jesus, they do not believe in the Jesus of Scripture.

Jesus is Creator
He created everything there is. Nothing exists that he didn't make. – John 1:2-3

Even many Christians seem to be confused on this fact – Jesus Christ is the Creator of the Universe.

From a full reading of Scripture it would appear that the Father, Son, and Spirit were all involved in the Creation Account, but Jesus took center stage.

Christ is the one through whom God created everything in heaven and earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see…Everything has been created through him and for him. He existed before everything else began, and he holds all creation together. – Col. 1:16-17

I think it is very important and completely significant to understand these fundamental facts about Who Jesus is--- without them, Christmas means nothing.

2) THE ILLUMINATING WORD
Life itself was in him, and this life gives light to everyone. The light shines through the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. God sent John the Baptist to tell everyone about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony. John himself was not the light; he was only a witness to the light. The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was going to come into the world. – John 1:4-9

We are moving from Who Jesus is, to how Jesus wants to make Himself known to us – This great God, this eternal being, this creator of the universe, wants to introduce Himself to each and everyone of us.

Jesus is the Word that brings light to the lives of men/women.

The Purpose
The whole purpose of Christmas is wrapped up in the fact that God wants to know you, to be in relationship with you, to save you from your condition, and to be your companion for all of eternity.

He sent John the Baptist to testify to the people about Him specifically so they might believe in Him.
We can legitimately say that Jesus' purpose in coming to earth is wearing your shoes today – you are the reason that Jesus came to earth

The Power
The light shines through the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. – John 1:5

Darkness is used here to represent evil and Satan – the power of the light of Jesus Christ can never be thrown down.

Let's not forget that this Word, Jesus, is God, is Creator, is a force that cannot be defeated by anyone at anytime at anyplace and or any reason.
This Word of God that lived among us has the power to withstand each and every attack that is ever made against Him. This is not some helpless infant we're talking about – but the most powerful being that has ever and can ever exist.

The Passion
It is really hard for me to imagine what it must have been like to come down to this world from the glory Jesus had experienced for all of eternity. To have never been in the presence of sin, and then to willingly come into a world infested with it is quite illuminating to me.
The only possible reason He would do this was because of His love.

Long ago, even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. – Eph. 1:4

God loved you before you even existed – that, to me, is one of the best things that I can know this Christmas season – it tells me that without a doubt, I matter to God

3) THE INCLUSIVE WORD
But although the world was made through him, the world didn't recognize him when he came. Even in his own land and among his own people, he was not accepted. – John 1:10-11

These verses really bother me because they tell me that even though Jesus, God in the flesh, willingly came to earth for our benefit, many refused to acknowledge Him and in fact, rejected Him. And what was true when He came is still true today – some people, for whatever reason, will not accept God's great gift of Himself.

But there is encouragement here – because John adds, But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn! This is not a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan—this rebirth comes from God. – John 1:12-13

Jesus doesn't force Himself on anybody – we are free to reject Him if that is what we choose to do – but for those who accept His invitation to relationship, great benefits await – let's look at them real quickly.

All who Accept Him are Accepted By Him
Nobody is ever refused entrance into a relationship with Jesus Christ. There are no membership requirements, no dues to pay, no quotas to fill. All you have to do is believe in Him and He'll believe in you.

All who Accept Him are Children of God
Again, there are no hoops to jump through and no steps to climb – placing your faith in Jesus Christ automatically entitles you to become a child of God.

All who Accept Him are Born Again
God is going to change you from the inside out – you will experience a rebirth where you are transformed into the person God has created you to be.

All of your past is behind you, your future is certain, your purpose is now clear.

When you accept Jesus, you might have the same name, wear the same clothes, have the same job and family, but you are not the same person you were before.

God works the miraculous in your life and you are now one of the redeemed.

4) THE INCARNATE WORD
So the Word became human and lived here on earth among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father. – John 1:14

Jesus Became Human Like Us
There is a story of a prince who was running an errand for his father one day in the local village – As he did so; he passed through a very poor section of the town.

Looking through the window of his carriage, he saw a beautiful young peasant girl walking along the street – He couldn't get her off his heart.

He continued to come to the town, day after day, just to see her and to feel as though he were near her.

His heart ached for her, but there was a problem – How could he develop a relationship with her?

He could order her to marry him – It was in his power to do so. But he wanted this girl to love him from the heart, willingly.

He could put on his royal garments and impress her with his regal entourage, and drive up to her front door with soldiers and a carriage drawn by six horses.

But if he did that he would never be certain that the girl loved him or was simply overwhelmed with his power, position and wealth.

The prince came up with another solution. As you may have guessed, he gave up his kingly robe and symbols of power and privilege.

He moved into the village dressed only as a peasant.

He lived among the people, shared their interests and concerns, and talked their language.

In time, the young peasant girl grew to know him, and then to love him.]
This is what Jesus has done for us – The Word became flesh.
The King of heaven put aside his heavenly robes and divine prerogatives.

He came to us as one of us – He lived among us; ate with us; drank with us; felt with us — all to win our love.

He could have forced us – He could have overwhelmed us, but he chose to romance us.

He stands here today with the smile of love and arms extended.

He is the God who became real so that we could experience his transforming love.
Jesus is not just a truth to believe in, He is a person to be experienced.

Jesus Revealed God To Us
If People want to know what God is like – all they have to do is look at Jesus.
Jesus came to show us the love and faithfulness of God – He came to reveal to us the glory of God.

Everything about the nature of Jesus is also true about the nature of the Father and the Holy Spirit.
In Jesus' coming to earth that first Christmas day, He was coming to show us the true nature of God.

Jesus Gave Himself For Us
On March 5, 1994, Deputy Sheriff Lloyd Prescott was teaching a class for police officers in the Salt Lake City Library.

During a break he stepped into the hallway, and as he did he saw a gunman forcing 18 hostages into a nearby room.

Prescott, who was dressed in street clothes, fell in line with the group and became the 19th hostage.

The gunman hadn't noticed him, and Prescott followed them into the room, and shut the door.

The gunman announced the order in which hostages would be executed, and then it was that Prescott identified himself as a police officer.

A fight ensued, and Prescott, in self-defense, shot the gunman.
All of the hostages were released unharmed.

The officer placed himself at great risk, but he wasn't thinking of himself, he was thinking about the danger the hostages were in.] Like Lloyd Prescott, God dressed himself as one of us and entered our world.

He joined us because we were held hostage to sin and in danger of spiritual death.

He rescued us from eternal danger.
Imagine it! God, who could have crushed the world because of its sin, came into the world to be crushed for our sin.

The very One who said that everyone who sinned would die, came to the world to die in our place.

He both pronounced the judgment and took the judgment upon himself. We didn't even understand the danger we were in.

We were too ignorant and stubborn to ask for his help, but he came to save us from that danger anyway.

When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, no one is likely to die for a good person, though someone might be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. – Romans 5:6-8

Conclusion:
Can you see what God has done for us? He could have just given up on us and wiped us from the face of this planet – He could have not cared – but He cared enough to come to earth, and not only that, but to come for the purpose of dying in our place and then rising again from the dead.

I say that God could have chosen otherwise, but in reality He couldn't have chosen any other way.

Because if He had done anything else it would have gone against His own nature.

You see, God at His very core, loves you no matter who you are and no matter what you have done.

He has done everything He can to bring you back to Him.
And now, it's up to you – what will you do with Jesus, God in the flesh?