In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.  In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.  This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe.  He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.  That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.  He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.  But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name; who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.  John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.'"  And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.  For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.  No one has seen God at any time.  The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

- John 1:1-18

  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.   Today the lectionary begins the Gospel of John.  John's is often called the most "spiritual" of the Gospels, as it is suffused with the theological underpinnings of our understanding of Christ, and also of the Trinity.  Its prologue, which comprises today's entire reading, begins with the beginning, so to speak, teaching us about the Word that became Incarnate.  It begins with the answer to all the questions about Christ.  In the beginning takes us back to Genesis, but this creation story speaks of the Creator Himself.  But Genesis spoke of the first creation, my study bible says, while this Prologue of John reveals the new creation in Christ.  It's also the beginning before the beginning, for the Word already was; the Word is the eternal Son of God.  The "was" placed here indicates that which already existed before the beginning, without beginning.  There is no reference here to a starting point.  Logos/Word may mean "wisdom," "reason," and "action" as well as "word."  All of these are attributes of the Son of God.  That the word was with God tells us that the Word, the Son of God, is co-equal and co-eternal with the Father.  He Himself is God with the same divinity as the Father.

All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.   The Word is the co-Creator with the Father and the Holy Spirit (Genesis 1;  Psalm 33:6, 9; Hebrews 1:2) and is not merely an instrument or servant used by the Father.  Will, operation, and power are one in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, my study bible explains.  Therefore, the heavens and the earth are the works of the One who made them; while the Son was not made but is eternally begotten of the Father.

In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  My study bible tells us that only God has life in Himself.  Therefore, the Word, being God, is the source of life, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit.  John writes that the life was the light of men (of human beings, as the word in Greek, anthropos, literally means), introducing humankind as receiver of the divine light.  As we participate in the life of the Son, believers themselves become children of the light (12:36, Ephesians 5:8, 1 Thessalonians 5:5).  My study bible tells us that Moses saw the divine light in the burning bush (Exodus 3:2), the whole nation saw it at the Red Sea (Exodus 13:21), Isaiah saw it in his heavenly vision (Isaiah 6:1-5), and three apostles saw it at the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-5).

And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.   Darkness is an indication of both spiritual ignorance and also satanic opposition to the light.  My study bible explains that those who hate truth prefer ignorance for themselves and strive to keep others ignorant as well (3:19).  It's important that we understand that the word which is well-translated as comprehend similarly means in the original Greek to both "understand" and to "overcome" or "take in."  Therefore, darkness can never overpower the light of Christ, nor is it capable of understanding the way of love.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.  This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe.  He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.  That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.   This John is John the Baptist, also called Forerunner, who bore witness to the Light, who is Christ.

He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.  He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.  But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name; who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.   My study bible says that Christ offers light to every person, but the world and even many of His own refuse to receive Him.  Therefore, they can neither know nor recognize Him.  Those who accept Him have His light.  In many Eastern Churches, the hymn after the Gospel reading and communion is sung:   "We have seen the true light, we have received the heavenly Spirit."  The right to become children of God:  the word for right means also "authority."  But it indicates a gift from God, and not an inalienable right such as may be thought of in a legal document such as those of a Constitution of a state.  Those who receive Christ become children of God by adoption (Galatians 4:4-7) and by grace inherit what Christ is by nature (see 2 Peter 1:1-11).  To believe in His name is to believe and trust in Him who in His humanity took the name Jesus as Word, Son, Messiah, and Savior.  Adoption as a child of God, my study bible tells us, is not a matter of ethnic descent (of blood) as it was in the Old Testament, nor are we children of God only by natural birth (the will of the flesh), nor by our own decision (the will of man).  To become a child of God is a spiritual birth by grace, through faith, and in the Holy Spirit.  It is accomplished and manifested in the sacrament of Holy Baptism (3:5-8; see Titus 3:4-7). 

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.  John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.'"  That the Word became flesh clarifies the manner in which the Son and Word of God came to His people (as told in verses 9-11, above), and points specifically to the Incarnation.  The Word became fully human without ceasing to be fully God, my study bible says.  He assumed complete human nature:  body, soul, will, emotion, and even mortality.  That is, all that pertains to humanity without sin.  As God and Man in one Person, Christ "pours His divinity into all of human nature, for anything not assumed by Christ would not have been healed," my study bible tells us, paraphrasing St. Gregory of Nazianzus.  In the Old Testament, God's presence dwelt (or "tabernacled" or "tented") in the ark of the covenant and later in the temple.  But now, the eternal Word comes to dwell in and among humanity itself.  Christ's glory refers to both His divine power shown by signs and wonders (2:11; 11:4, 40) and also to His humble service to human beings, which was shown most fully and perfectly on the Cross (12:23-32; 13:31).  In each way, Christ reveals that He is the One who is sent from the Father.  That He is the only begotten of the Father tells us that although He has no beginning in time as we experience it, He has the Father as His source from eternity.  He is called "only begotten" because there is no other who is born from the Father.  (The Holy Spirit exists eternally from the Father through another mystery which is called "procession" -- see 15:26.)   Full of grace and truth qualifies both the Word and His glory.  Grace, my study bible explains, is Christ's uncreated energy which is given to us through His love and mercy.  Truth includes His faithfulness to His promises and covenants and to the reality of His words and gifts.

And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.  For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.  No one has seen God at any time.  The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.  My study bible notes that in saying we have all received of His fullness, the Scriptures confirm that God's grace can fill human nature to the extent of actually deifying it.  The Greek theological term for this is "Theosis."   In Christ, God's children become gods by grace (10:34-35), without ceasing to be human.  A traditional metaphor to this process is metal that is thrust into fire:  it takes on the properties of fire, such as heat and light, without ceasing to be metal.  Just the same, human nature permeated by God may take on properties of the divine nature.  Grace for grace is a Semitic expression which signifies an overabundance of grace.  That no one has seen God at any time tells us that no one can see the nature or essence of God (to see God is to die - Exodus 33:20).  Only One such as Christ, who is divine Himself, can see God; therefore the Son is the only One who can declare Him.  This revelation of God's energies may be received by the faithful; Moses saw the "back" of God (Exodus 33:21-23), Isaiah saw His glory (see Isaiah 6:1, John 12:41). 

The Prologue to John's Gospel gives us the theology of the Church, the foundation upon which it stands, with Christ not only as its center, but also at the center of the history of humanity and all of Creation.  It is this foundation upon which all else is built.  Let us give consideration to how these words shape and define the lives we live today, the lens through which we see our own strengths and struggles, light and darkness, and that which we seek for ourselves, and our communities, even for our world.  He was, in the beginning, and so the Scriptures testify, He is the one who has been with us from the beginning.   Let us remember that John's Gospel is also the Gospel of Love, as it is John who repeatedly gives us Jesus' new commandment for all of us:  "Love one another."  This, too, is part of the light that is the life of men, and that those who live in darkness cannot see nor comprehend.