The Source of Light and Life • 12.04.22
Nick Lees   -   December 4, 2022

The Source of Light & Life
John 1:1-5

Beholding the incredible identity of Jesus

  1. Jesus is eternal
  2. Jesus is God
  3. Jesus is the agent of creation
  4. Jesus is the light of the world

Good morning church family! Welcome to the Christmas season! Let the songs of Christmas ring out as we celebrate our Savior’s birth.

I really appreciate how our singing this morning tied in both the coming of Christ and the reason he had to come. Glory to the newborn King who was born to reconcile God and sinners. He’s the light of the world who stepped down into darkness. And yet, as we’ll read this morning, the darkness has not overcome him. He has made a way for sinners like us to be forgiven and redeemed!

HALLELUJAH! That’s why we sing “Gloria in excelsis Deo” which means “Glory to God in the highest.” This plan to send His Son as the King Among Men the one who made us and sustains us entering his own creation… Who could conceive of such a thing!? This is GOOD NEWS.

All the honor, all the glory, all the praise is indeed Yours, Lord! It is good and appropriate for us to join our voices with the chorus of saints before us singing, “Holy is the Lord”! *Pause*

Is that your response to King Jesus? … Are you here this morning rejoicing in the Good News that God sent His Son to rescue and redeem? … Has the way you lived this past week reflected that you willingly and joyfully bow the knee to Jesus as YOUR Savior? … These are questions each of us needs to wrestle with this morning. *Pause*

Dismiss 4th + 5th graders

Today as we kick off our Christmas sermon series – Light & Life – in the Gospel of John chapter 1, we will have the opportunity to behold the incredible identity of Jesus. To see He is eternal. He is God. He is the agent of creation who gives life and light to men. He is the light of the world.

With that in mind, let’s turn to John 1:1-5 now…

Ushers + Bibles (John 1; page 1053)

John 1:1–5 (ESV)

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Five verses for our study today. Quite a change from studying two entire chapters last week! And yet, there is so much packed into these five verses. This is the beginning of John’s Gospel where he is establishing the foundational truths upon which he will build throughout the rest of his writing. And as we consider these five verses today, we’re going to spend our time…

Beholding the incredible identity of Jesus

Remember that John was writing his Gospel after the life and public ministry of Jesus. It is the last of the four Gospel accounts to be written, likely written between 70-95 A.D. Its author was the Apostle John, the son of Zebedee, who was one of the twelve men that Jesus first called to follow him. John had spent years of his life following Jesus by this point. He even tells us the reason for his writing towards the end of the Gospel:

John 20:30–31 (ESV)

30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Pastor Jack will unpack this passage in more detail during our Christmas morning service. What you need to understand for today is that John knew Jesus well, he walked with him and talked with him, he sat under his teaching and was convicted of his own need for Jesus as his Savior, he gave his life to follow Christ to the point of enduring great suffering for Christ, and now he has written this Gospel so that we might behold the incredible identity of Jesus and respond to it with faith! So, let’s turn our attention to what John 1:1-5 tells us about Jesus, starting with…

  1. Jesus is eternal

Too often in the church we take this kind of statement about Jesus for granted. If you’ve grown up around the church or the Bible, then you’ve likely heard something like this before. Jesus is eternal. Pre-existent. There was never a time when he did not exist. He is NOT created. These are the types of truths that John is communicating in verses 1-2 when he said:

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.

“In the beginning” would have been very familiar to the original audience of this Gospel, the Jewish people. These were the very first words of the Old Testament in Genesis 1:1 which says, “In the beginning, God created…” This phrase would have reminded them of when God spoke, and all things came into existence for the very first time. It would have caused them to go back to the start of all things.

The Apostle John uses these words intentionally. But what he says next is quite shocking. “In the beginning was the Word…” Who is the Word? John will answer this more clearly later, but the Word is Jesus of Nazareth! How is he in the beginning? John is saying that Jesus is eternal, existing before time began!

Many of you hear that and take it in stride. It’s not the first time you’ve heard it, after all… But try to put yourself in the position of hearing it for the first time again. Jesus always was? He is outside of time? This man born by Mary and Joseph of Nazareth existed before them?!

Truly this is an incredible statement about Jesus’ identity. If someone walked up to you and said, “I am eternal” you would rightly be shocked. “HAH good one!” And yet this is what John is stating about Jesus at the very start of his gospel account. In fact, it is what Jesus claimed about himself as well. Listen to John 8, where Jesus makes this claim in a dispute with the religious leaders of his day.

John 8:57–59 (ESV)

57 So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” 59 So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

The Pharisees understood what Jesus was declaring here – that he was pre-existent. That he was God. Which is why they want to stone him for what they perceive to be blasphemy. They do not realize that Jesus is not lying, he is eternal, and he is God. *Pause*

Now the Pharisees response was to try to stone Jesus! Is that how you want to respond to Jesus’ claims? Sure, he’s not standing here today for you to physically stone, but do you scoff, “HAH good one!” at Jesus?

What is your response? Jesus being eternal warrants a response. What kind of response do you think is appropriate? *pause*

May I suggest humble faith and obedience? Because Jesus is not only eternal, he is God. You just heard him claim it in John 8:58 and John also stated it in John 1:1.

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

This brings us to our second incredible statement about Jesus’ identity:

  1. Jesus is God

The Word was “in the beginning” meaning eternal, he was WITH God, and the Word WAS God. With God and was God are both important statements by John. “With God” indicates that the Word (Jesus) is present with God yet distinct in some sense and “was God” tells us that he is truly God. This is a real brain workout isn’t it!? John is beginning to flesh out our understanding of the triune God.

Triune meaning three in one. (IMAGE) God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Three distinct persons in one God. Each is fully God. Listen to how Paul speaks of Jesus in Colossians:

Colossians 2:9 (ESV)

9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,

The whole fullness of deity dwells in Jesus. He is fully God.

This Jesus, the one whom John had spent three years of his life with day-in and day-out, eating, sleeping, traveling beside and learning from… this Jesus that so many of the Jews had rejected and eventually crucified… this Jesus is God.  *Brain explodes*

How do you even compute that!? These are jaw-dropping statements. Can we cultivate afresh the amazement of realizing this truth about Jesus? He is the eternal, supreme being. As God, there is no one greater or more worthy of praise. As the Word he is the clearest revelation of God. As the Word he is God’s self-expression to a watching world.

How incredible it must have been for John to realize whom he walked beside. Whom he shared life with for those years and whom he had the privilege of serving in the remaining years of his life, even enduring great suffering and exile to the island of Patmos.

Jesus’ identity as God demands a response as well. God deserves your total allegiance. He deserves your worship. Will you give Jesus your worship this Christmas season? What might that look like in your conversations with your co-workers this month?

  • Worship Jesus by speaking boldly about him as you ask about their Christmas plans
  • Worship Jesus by sharing what you’re excited about in the study of John 1
  • Worship Jesus by inviting them to come and hear for themselves (invite cards in padfolio + Christmas invites)

How about with family and friends?

  • Worship Jesus by keeping him the main focus of the gathering
  • Worship Jesus by praying with as many of them as you can
    • Comfort the grieving
    • Encourage the discouraged
    • Confront the unrepentant
  • Worship Jesus by discipling the next generation to treasure the newborn king

How might you change the way you use your time/talent/treasure this month?

Since coming back from Thanksgiving, I’ve realized how much time I wasted that week. There was so much more fruitful ministry and worship that could have taken place. I wish that I could go back and have a “do-over”. But that’s not how life works. Thankfully, by God’s grace there is today and perhaps tomorrow. How will we change for these? I/You can worship God today/tomorrow, regardless of how last week went. Perhaps some confession and repentance is needed. If so, do that. But don’t stay stuck in a pattern of defeat or darkness. *Pause*

As we continue to flesh out what it means that Jesus is God, it also means that Jesus is the agent of creation. The One we look to for our daily life and breath. That’s where John goes next in verses 3-4.

John 1:3-4 (ESV)

3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

In verse 3 specifically, John is stating the same truth in two different ways. The truth is…

  1. Jesus is the agent of creation

“All things were made through him…” That’s a statement describing how things came about in the beginning. The process of their creation was carried out by Jesus. Again, the Jews would have been thinking Genesis 1 here and so should you. Jesus was speaking on behalf of God at Creation to bring things into existence. Taking a brief tour through Genesis 1, this means that light, heaven, dry land/earth, seas, plants, the stars/planets/Sun/moon, land and sea animals, and human beings were all made through Jesus.

While you can travel around and see the incredible things Jesus created in our world, I want to show you some that you can’t see with your naked eye. These first two images are taken by the James Webb Space Telescope.

(Image #1) – Take a moment to stare into thousands of never-before-seen young stars in the Tarantula Nebula. The James Webb Space Telescope reveals details of the structure and composition of the nebula, as well as dozens of background galaxies.

(Image #2) – With giant storms, powerful winds, auroras, and extreme temperature and pressure conditions, Jupiter has a lot going on. Now, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has captured new images of the planet. Webb’s Jupiter observations will give scientists even more clues to Jupiter’s inner life.

(Image #3) – While not a photo from the space telescope, I thought it would be helpful to remember how much larger Jupiter is than our own planet. And it was made through Jesus! Absolutely stunning. Jesus is the agent of creation.

(Image #4) – Anyone know what this is? This is a 3D rendering of a eukaryotic (U-kar-i-ah-tik) cell in the human body. It is modeled using X-ray, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and cryo-electron microscopy datasets for all of its molecular actors. Although dilute in its concentration relative to a real cell, this rendering is also an attempt to visualize the great complexity and beauty of the cell’s molecular choreography. (Source: ArtStation – Cellular landscape)

Jesus made the real versions of these cells. From epic scale and scope in the universe to the minutest of details in individual cells.

John restates this truth in a different manner in the second half of verse 3, “and without him was not anything made that was made.” Nothing currently exists that was not made by Jesus!

Look around you (seriously, do this right now)… What do you see? People – Made by Jesus! Sunlight – Made by Jesus! A building composed of materials from our earth – Made by Jesus!

Last week we drove to North Carolina for Thanksgiving to see Micaela’s family. I love getting to see the different landscapes and colors along the way. From the rolling hills of Iowa to the desolate wasteland of Illinois (I kid, I kid), to the mountains of the Virginias, to the beautiful pines and forests of North Carolina, all of it was made by Jesus! Every single person that we shared the roads with… Made by Jesus!

God’s Word, who we know to be Jesus, created everything. He is the agent of creation. He did it.

This gives inherent value and worth to everything that has been made. Because it is his and he made it. And it is also SUSTAINED by Jesus. He is the one who keeps the whole universe operating. From your heartbeat to gravity to the distance of the planets from one another and the sun… Jesus sustains it all.

Listen to the author of Hebrews on this matter:

Hebrews 1:1–3 (ESV)

1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.

3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

Jesus, God the Son, is the agent of creation and the sustainer/upholder of creation! How? By the word of his power. Jesus continues to speak, and you continue to exist. What an incredible truth to dwell on this morning.

Your life… My life… Every single one of our days… is bound up in the Word of God. We are 100% dependent on him. You cannot sustain yourself. You do not have control over your heartbeat or breath or the alignment of the planets to keep us from freezing to death or burning to a crisp, but he does.

Paul, the author of Colossians agrees:

Colossians 1:15–17 (ESV)

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

Not only did Jesus create all things, they were created FOR him. The trees, the moon, the birds, the bees, the rivers, the rocks, all are created to reflect the majesty of our God. To reveal his incredible nature. That includes you and me, by the way. We were made to bring him glory. To represent and reflect him. Do you believe that?

If you follow that train of thought to its logical conclusion, that means we don’t get to live however we want for whatever purpose we want. Our purpose is determined by the one who made us, and he has told us that we are to live for him! This is how the Apostle Paul viewed it:

Galatians 2:20 (ESV)

20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Christians die with Christ and are raised to new life in Christ. The life we now live we live by faith FOR him.

Now, before you say, “that sounds lame! I’d rather have autonomy and be able to do whatever I want whenever I want!” consider what verse 4 reveals about Jesus’ identity.

John 1:4 (ESV)

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

Jesus is the one who gives life and light to humanity. Meaning, without Jesus you would not exist. He is the reason you are created. And by choosing to live in selfish rebellion against your creator you are actually dead! Is that the reality you want to choose?

Now when I say dead, my primary meaning is not physically dead, although that is not out of the question if Jesus chooses to stop upholding your life. What I mean is spiritually dead. You are dead in the darkness of sin and rebellion.

Jesus makes this pretty clear throughout John’s gospel as he gives people the hope of life in him:

John 8:12 (ESV)

12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

John 11:25–26 (ESV)

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

John 14:6 (ESV)

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

If life and light are found in Christ, then if you reject Christ, you are choosing death and darkness! And sadly, this is where the majority of our world chooses to dwell… in death and darkness. It is where we all dwell until Jesus Christ opens our eyes to see and our hearts to believe in him.

This is why we so desperately need Jesus. He is our life and light.

What I found interesting as I studied this more is that John uses the terms light and life in two different ways in his gospel. Throughout most of the gospel, ‘light’ refers to the revelation that people may receive by faith to be saved and ‘life’ is either the resurrection life or spiritual life here and now that is a foretaste of heaven. However, in these earliest verses of the gospel, it appears John is speaking of life as it relates to creation – that through Jesus everything came to exist/be alive – and that the light necessary to exist is found in Jesus. He is the light of men, whether they realize it or not. These are complementary ways of understanding the use of light and life in John’s Gospel. Life and light are rich terms with significant meaning for us! We need to embrace the source of light and life by faith! YOU need to embrace the source of light and life by faith! Don’t let this blow by you this morning. This is a personal call for you to confess your sin and believe in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, who alone can save you from your sins and give you the hope of new and eternal life. Will you turn from your sin and follow Jesus in faith? *Pause*

You see, we not only need Jesus as our life and light at creation, we need him for our ongoing hope of overcoming sin and having true eternal life with God.

Listen to how John put it in verse 5.

John 1:5 (ESV)

5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

The word translated “overcome” could also be “mastered” – the darkness has not mastered it. It is not greater than the light.

I really appreciate how Commentator Edward Klink III explains what is happening here:

The subtle shift from the created life of humanity in v. 4 to the spiritual life of humanity in v. 5 is summative of the entire redemptive storyline. Jesus did not just come to the world he created; he came to the fallen world. (ZECNT)

Part of what makes Jesus’ entry into our world so incredible is that he came in response to OUR sinfulness to address OUR need for a Savior. He did not enter a world that was already full of light, he entered a world full of darkness. He is the light! This is our final observation about the incredible identity of Jesus.

  1. Jesus is the light of the world

Again, John is intentionally pointed back to Genesis 1. In Genesis 1 there was physical darkness over the land and light was necessary for physical life to exist. John 1 speaks not only of the physical darkness that needed to be overcome, but also of a spiritual darkness that needed to be extinguished for spiritual life to exist.

As you heard earlier in John 8:

John 8:12 (ESV)

12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

The assumption from God and His Word is that humanity is by default dead in their sin and rebellion. The whole of humanity has turned against God and gone their own way. Striving for that autonomy we talked about earlier. And yet, all they had to show for it was darkness and death.

There is a fundamental truth about our existence being revealed here… there are only two ways to live – in the dark, meaning living in moral evil… aka sin and death (the way of the world), or in the light, meaning living in moral good and life (the way of Jesus, which is only possible through faith in Jesus).

If this wasn’t clear here, it certainly is in another of John’s writings:

1 John 1:5–10 (ESV)

5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

John lays out it quite boldly and plainly. And what wonderful truth to lay hold of this morning! There is a way to live that does not leave you in darkness and death. There is a source of light and life and his name is Jesus. And by his coming into this world, by the shedding of his blood at the Cross, and, ultimately by uniting to him in faith, we are cleansed from ALL our sin. We no longer need to fear darkness and death.

However, that requires you to admit your sin. It is not possible for someone to say, “I’m an intrinsically good person” and have faith in Jesus. Intrinsically good people don’t need the Son of God to die for them. Sinners do. And we’re all sinners. And the promise from 1 John 1:9 is “if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” I promise you, if you do your part, God will do his! *Pause*

Jesus is the light of the world… As we’ll see throughout our study of John, the term “world” is used to describe humanity that has rebelled against and rejected God. This is the state of every man, woman, boy and girl unless they have received the light – Jesus. John very clearly explains that Jesus is the source of salvation for a hellbent humanity.

Something you need to understand about Jesus’ identity as the light is that he can either be the light of life or the light of judgment. He is a light that can purify or condemn. Which will it be for you?

Let’s pray.