John 1:14-15 — On Riddles and Enigmas

[14  And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.] [The Word Who always WAS GOD], was with God, and He came to be flesh.  The Incarnation.  [In carne = in flesh].  In flesh He came to be.  Same word, the verb for genesis, came to be something else.  We say He “took on” flesh.  He didn’t cease to be God or change His divine power or eternal essence in any way.  Christ TOOK ON flesh.  John gives us another mind-blowing truth.  THE great Enigma.  How does the immutable infinite take on the finite?  How does the Eternal robe Himself in a “mortal” body?  Lungs filling with air, heart pumping blood, legs walking, hands holding.  The Word came to be flesh.  It’s one of the great antinomies of Christianity, where two things cannot both be true, but somehow must both be true. A riddle for the ages.

And THEN He dwelt among us.  Literally, He tented in us.  Jesus camped out, in our midst.  Of course bodies are tents —> not permanent dwellings [2Cor. 5:1-2  For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven,].  So… the King of Glory basically came and [lived in a tent].  God with us.  But there is another amazing beautiful picture here, because the place where God had lived among His people, His shekinah glory, was literally a tent.  [The Tabernacle] was a really big, very special tent.  “The Tent of Meeting”.  THE place where the people of God encountered the presence and power of almighty God Himself.  [THE God•send]…

AND WE SAW HIM!  John says, He tented among us!  He showed up and lived in our midst.  We had a front row seat!  Maybe we wouldn’t have believed it if we didn’t see it with our own two eyes.  [The Word became flesh…] [1John 1:1  What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life...].  We saw Him, we touched Him.  We beheld Him.  John loves this word, behold.  It gives us our word, theater.  Theatrical.  Something to notice, and watch.  We noticed it.  Cuz it’s possible for something to be in your field of vision and you [don’t see it].  Not really [Matt. 13:14 “In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,  ‘YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND; YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE].  We beheld Him.

And what exactly did we behold?  We saw His glory.  We saw exactly what you’d expect if God showed up in human flesh.  Glory makes you say, [whoa].  Talk about noticeable.  Breathtaking goodness, greatness that is so good it’s hard to describe.  Pictures and words don’t do it justice - you know that kind of extra-ordinary?  Beauty.  Majesty.  But THIS goodness, THIS glory - it was on another level.  Jesus came to be that Place where people encounter the presence and power of almighty God Himself.  God with us.  He camped out, WITH US!  We saw His glory. [Like Moses, we need to turn aside…!]

When John says WE saw His glory, I think he’s recalling the Mount of Transfiguration.  The [unforgettable sight] he and his brother and Peter beheld up on that mountain…  [Lk 9.28-36].  John is the only Gospel writer who was actually on that mountain, and (strangely) he’s the only one who does NOT mention it.  Except I think here.  We SAW it.  Up on that mountain.  We saw His glory.  Glory.  As of the only begotten of the Father.

The Only Begotten of the Father.  Only begotten.  I.e., there is no other.  This word describes a parent who only has one child.  Only begotten means there are no others.  The word is [mono-genes].  That which makes God God, which is peculiar to His makeup, the “divine DNA”?  Jesus - and NO ONE ELSE - has the same DNA, the exact same essence.  The same glory.  And He always has.  Divinity.  Eternal.  Holy holy.  Almighty.  God.  Enigma.  People bear God’s image yes, and He adopts us into His family as sons and daughters when we believe in Jesus yes, but Jesus is the only begotten God.  There are no others.  There is no one else like Jesus.

And this Word, Who was God, DID become flesh.  Somehow - God the Son was conceived by God the Spirit in the womb of a young Jewish virgin.  Somehow.  And He lived, He tented among us.  For a season.  Took on flesh.  He got tired.  He got hungry.  He had to use the bathroom.  He got splinters.  He bled.  He was tempted.  He was rejected and disrespected.  He was mistreated and misunderstood.  He felt everything that we feel - in the flesh.  He knows.  He can sympathize [Heb. 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.].  Jesus feels what we feel.  What is it you’re going through?  He knows.  He knows how you feel.  He knows what it feels like. He sees you, struggling up that hill.  He is with you.  Emmanuel - God with us.

Perhaps you’re not struggling like that so much in this season (give it a minute…?).  Maybe it’s everything around you.  Maybe it’s those people around you?  Jesus was around all kinds of annoying people.  All kinds of brokenness.  Think about how messy people are.  Think about this holy eternal Son of God, taking on flesh, and camping out in the midst of all our messiness.  John says, we saw it all.  Front row seat.  But when we looked at Him, when we beheld Him, we saw Glory.  The breathtaking goodness of God.  We saw Love.  We saw Perfect Patience, and loooong suffering.  We saw great Kindness.  True Compassion and caring.  We saw Full Mercy, and gentleness.  We saw total Faithfulness.  We saw righteous Zeal.  We saw power, and holiness.  He camped out with us.  He took on flesh.  Subject to ALL the same temptations that we are.  Jesus was IN the flesh - BUT He never gave in to the flesh.  He related to ALL the messiness around Him in ways that showed off the great goodness of God.  He could enjoy all the good things His Father had given, but they did not consume Him.  Zeal for His Father consumed Him.  Somehow He never took His eyes off the Father.  And when our eyes were on Jesus, John says, they saw glory.  We saw His glory.  

[15 John testified about Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’”].  John the Witness repeats this exact phrase in v. 30.  John the author includes it twice - so this must mean something.  We don’t want to hurry past it.

Literally, the One coming [BEHIND me, has come to be IN FRONT OF me, because BEFORE me HE WAS].  He WAS.  This is where John started us out, the very first thing he said about Jesus - He was.  [In the beginning The Word WAS].  He always WAS.  And THIS gets Jesus to the head of the line.  IN Front, front and center.  For all of history.  For all humanity.  For you and me and Bobby Lee.  

The preexistence of Christ - “He WAS” - establishes the preeminence of Christ.  He must come to be first because He came first.  He must come to be first because He was.  In the beginning.  And before the beginning - He was.  Always was.  And one reason then that the preexistence of Christ becomes so central to John our author is, it was central to John the Witness.  It’s the first thing John writes about - and it’s the first thing we see John the Witness talk about.  The One coming behind me HAS come to be in front of me.  He must come first.  He must increase - in your heart and my heart - and every heart.  Every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord.  He is first.  He must increase…  May that be true in our lives and hearts - and in our world...

John 1:12-14 — Born of God

So far we’ve seen how the Word, Who was and is God, Who is the Life and [True Light] of all people, came into our world to enlighten every person.  Came into our world of darkness, but darkness did not eagerly take Him, the world He made didn’t recognize Him, and even His own people did not receive Him.  BUT [12 But as many as received Him, to those who believe in His name, to them He gave the right to become children of God]  Whoever DID receive the True Light, Whoever DID believe in His name - all these get the right to become children of God.  And remember, this is not just believing about.  Knowing things about Jesus.  [Receiving = believing (IN).  Believing = Trusting].  Trusting in Jesus --> The right to become children of God.

This right, this authority to become God’s children - this is not merely a mind-boggling unparalleled privilege of unprecedented proportion.  This is a guarantee.  When you have authority, you have the [guarantee] of that thing happening for you, or thru you.  This is my right.  I have the authority to receive it or do it, whatever it is.  And the authority-granting Power is pledged to back it up.  They guarantee that [right].  For believers, THIS particular authority [12], this guarantee is given and backed up by God Himself.  Whoever receives Jesus, to any and all who believe/trust in His Name, is guaranteed - by God Himself - to become a CHILD of God.

THIS word for child does not mean a very young person.  Oh, you’re just a child.  It’s not just any old child.  This word is about the relationship with the parent [A child vs MY child].  This child is the true child of the parent in question.  Belongs to their family.  When you and I trust in Jesus, we become a true child of our Father in heaven.  We truly belong to His family [Rom. 8:15b-16 …you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God].  When you trust in Jesus, suddenly the nebulous God up there in the heavens somewhere is now “Our Father”…  He's MY Father.

But we become a child of God.  It’s this same verb of the noun, genesis.  You become, you come to be something else.  You were NOT that, but then you came to BE that.  In other words, when we are born the first time, out of our mommy’s tummy, we are not truly children of God.  Not in this sense.  Spiritually speaking we are born not children of God but actually children of wrath [Eph. 2:3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.].  Look at that life.  It’s all about what I want.  It’s all about me.  Children of wrath - this is really bad news.  But John is saying, we CAN come to be true children of God, actual members of His family.  But what does it mean to become a true child of God?  

[13 ...who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.]  Born of God.  Born of God.  What does that mean?  God is spirit [John 4:24 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”].  God is spirit —> we’re talking about a spiritual birth.  Because… [Eph. 2:1  And you were dead in your trespasses and sins…]  Even tho we were physically alive, we were dead.   Our spirits are dead - from the moment of conception.  The Light of Zoe is out.  The spiritual death, this separation from God, we inherited from our first father, Adam [1Cor. 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.  Rom. 5:18   So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.].  Zoe.

We all get bios life in the womb, passed down from Adam, but NOT zoe life.  From Adam we get death.  Physical death, and spiritual death.  So much [death] in our world, images of death.  Death truly haunts our reality.  The Lord really meant it when He said, this one thing I’m telling you NOT to do, if you do it, you will die [Gen. 2:17 “…but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”].  When we’re conceived as babies, our spirits are actually dead.  And we are born separated from God and His zoe life.  His Light is out in our hearts.  Darkness, remember?  Living/walking in darkness.  But there is good news! God made a way back to Zoe.  To Him.  Born of God.  The right to become true children of God!

And yes, God is the One Who makes it happen.  He is the One Who so wants it to happen!  He wants it for you and me way more than we do.  This spiritual birth, John says, we are born of God’s will [13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.].  This is God’s [thelema], God’s [desire].  THIS is what HE wanted.  He wanted us to be restored.  God so wants us to have Zoe, to enjoy abundant life with Him, this vital connection to Him.  You know how much He wants it?  You know how much He wanted it, for us, AND for Himself?  He wanted it SO MUCH!  [God SO loved…].

But THIS birth is NOT of blood.  NOT from some fleshly desire, in some heat of passion.  NOT because some couple wanted to make it happen.  This is definitely NOT a biological birth.  Spiritual birth is not a result ANY thing that ANY person does.  It happens because God SO WANTS it to happen.  All we have to do is receive.  Receive Him.  Believe IN Jesus.  God sent the Word, the Light of life, AND He has sent messengers, so many messengers with messages of words to tell us about the Light.  And when we believe, when we trust in The Message, we are authorized and guaranteed to become the true children of God Himself.  Actual members of HIS family.  Children of the Light. [Rom. 9:8 That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.]  Born of God, in His family.  God’s promise.  Guaranteed by God Himself.

This is a different kind of family, tho.  Not of blood.  This family is not a bunch of blood relatives, maybe who gather on occasion at some family [reunion].  This is God’s family.  He is our Father, ALL those who believe in Jesus, and WE who believe are all brothers and sisters in Christ.  Family.  WE gather all the time to learn more about Him, and to celebrate this One Who makes us one.  Who makes us family.  Who makes us His.  Born of God.  This is the re-genesis of zoe, the igniting of spiritual life.  And this Light is kindled in us, our spirit is made alive, we are born of God when we receive Jesus.  As many as receive Him.  When we eagerly take Him and believe in Him.  Have you done this?  When are you going to believe?

Note that John gives us three triple-clauses (double ands) in this prologue:

1:1  In the beginning was the Word, AND the Word was with God, AND the Word was God. 

10  He was in the world, AND the world was made through Him, AND the world did not know Him. 

14 The Word became flesh, AND He dwelt among us, AND we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Note the progression of the three climax statements here: 

The Word was God --> The world did not know Him --> We saw His glory.

But WE saw His glory, John says.  The world didn’t recognize Him, they didn’t know Him [darkness, remember?] - but John did!  We DID know Him!  And we saw His glory, he says.  Glory is God’s blazing breathtaking greatness and goodness.  To see Jesus, this Word Who was God, to receive Him, to eagerly take Him, to know Him is to have a glimpse of how brilliantly glorious He is.  The Light of His truth and glory blazes up and shines in your heart.  The Light is shining… The darkness, it did not eagerly take it.  BUT whoever does, as many as do receive Him, who believe in His Name (Jesus), to them He gave the right to become children of God. 

Patrick Henry once said, “The most cherished possession I wish I could leave you is my faith in Jesus Christ, for with Him and nothing else you can be happy, but without Him and with all else, you’ll never be happy”

How about you?  Have you received Him?  Will you eagerly take Jesus into your heart today?  Born of God.  There is no real Zoe, no lasting joy apart from Him...

John 1:9-12 — (Did Not) Know Him

We're looking at Good News in John's Book.  And we're in the [Prologue, vv1-18].  So far John’s shown us the Word God Who always was.  Everything else WAS NOT - and came to be - thru Him.  The Word gave life to all living things and gave people the capacity to receive Zoe Life, the Light of men.  We see Light shining in the darkness, but the darkness not eagerly taking it.  And a man named John sent from God as a witness, with words about the Light.  Pointing to the Light, to this Word Who was God and [in Whom was life].  The goal of this witness, of John's entire book - is to introduce us to the Light.  

The Light of men.  This Word created people with a vital connection TO the Light.  That we could know Him, relate to Him, enjoy a personal forever relationship with Him.  Zoe Life - the abundant experience of God’s glory.  But that Light in us was extinguished.  The first couple disobeyed God, and all their descendants including us are born separated from God.  From the Light.  From His life.  We’re born with the need to be reconnected to Him, to the Light.  Jesus.  

[9  There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.]  Have you ever watched the [sun rise]?  Owing to the rotation of the earth, that not-so-distant star comes into our “world” every morning, like clockwork.  Literally.  In fact it NEVER fails to light our world.  And it literally enlightens every person, without bias.  No exception.  Race, creed, gender, age, socio-economic status.  That’s how it is with Jesus.  The True Light.  He came into the world to enlighten every person, like a blazing sun rising in our hearts.  To rekindle the Light of God’s eternal Life in us.  He offers ZOE to every person - that’s what John says.  And John calls Him the True Light because there are many false lights, which present as ways to somehow rekindle God’s glorious zoe life in our hearts - but are counterfeits.  Gurus, and self help schemes, mantras and medicines, and technologies, and so many false religions.  Google [live your best life] and see how many different things come up.  Not that these are never helpful.  But there is only one True Light.  In Him only was and is Zoe.  The Light of Men.  And for John, to see Jesus, to know Him, was to know for certain that He was, He is the True Light.  Who came into the world to enlighten every person.

Many of us grew up in a Christian family.  Came to know the Lord early.  We know He is the true Light.  We can’t remember a time when we DIDn’t know Christ.  When God WASn’t in our life.  I do.  But I know.  I remember what it was like, growing up in an unbelieving home.  Looking back now, it was like the light was just off.  Literally.  Living in darkness.  And when darkness presses in, surrounds you, any light will seem like [a beacon of hope].  But I didn't know God personally, nor was I about to eagerly “take Him”.  I never talked to Him - except maybe in a pinch.  Maybe not even in a pinch, tho.  Maybe when I cussed (altho that wasn’t talking TO Him, so much).  I never really even thought about God.  And I had no hope.  No hope of eternal life.  Any hope of living my best life was false hope.  I was on my own, my own best efforts - which were never going to be good enough.  And I was living on [cotton candy].  It was going to leave me empty, for sure.

Really knowing someone is qualitatively different.  I’m talking about when you’ve met them, you know their name, you know they know your name, you can call them or text them and they will answer.  [Jer 33.3].  That's how it is when you come to really know Jesus, Whose life is the Light of men, and He takes up residence in your heart, He fills it up.  That hole that nothing else could fill, the infinite abyss, it’s full.  And only Jesus fills the hole in your heart.  Piercing the darkness, drives it away.  That’s what True Light does…

John says the True Light came into the world.  Now for John, the world is not so much the [great blue orb] which is in orbit around the star we call the sun.  In John, the world represents the specific sphere of darkness which did not eagerly take the Light [v 5].  What must it have been like for the Word-Who-was-Light to come into this world? [10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.]  Remember, “John” - his book - is about knowing Jesus.  Not knowing about Him; no, recognizing Who He really is, and really knowing Him.  Personally.  The Light of men.  His Light was shining.  Had been shining.  Since the beginning.  But the world had not eagerly taken Him.  He made the world - every thing on this planet - including and especially every person - His special creation, made in His image, made in His likeness - and when He showed up in person as a person, the world didn’t even recognize Him [so much so that at one point at least it made Jesus weep].  People like me didn't recognize Him - not at first.  But the more I read about Jesus, and the more I saw the lives of those who were following Him, the more it became clear that He really is Who He claims to be.  He came to light up our lives.  Maybe you’ve noticed - folks who are truly following the True Light, who have eagerly taken Him into their hearts, there is a light in their eyes.

There are three did-nots in this prologue:  5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.

Notice the progression: The Light came into the darkness - but the darkness did not eagerly take it.  The Light came into the world - but the world did not know Him.  [This by the way is still true for billions of people around the world.  For tens of thousands of people right here in our own city.  They were made by Him, in His image, to have a personal relationship with Him, to live forever with Him in heaven, but they don’t know Him.]  And The Light even came to “His own” - but they did not receive Him.  God had sent them so many messengers over the centuries.  With words, telling His people about the Light, the Savior He was sending to them.  [Is. 9:2  The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them.  A Light for the whole world:  Is. 49:6  He says, “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also make You a Light of the nations so that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”].  But even those who were supposedly His people did not eagerly take the Light.  Just because you grow up in a supposedly Christian country, or the Bible belt, just because you grow up in a supposedly Christian family, doesn’t mean you are going to eagerly take Jesus and follow Him.  It sure doesn’t make you a Christian.  What makes a person a Christian?  [12 —> But as many as received Him, even to those who believe in His name, to them He gave the right to become children of God.]

As many.  Whoever.  Whoever takes Him.  The Light is shining… And the darkness did not eagerly take it.  BUT as many as DID take Him, whoever does receive Him, who believe in His Name (Jesus), to them He gives the right to become children of God.  This word for receive means, to take.  Now it may or may not have been offered.  but in this case, something IS being offered: the Light of life, eternal life thru Jesus.  And John says, [Receiving = believing (IN).  Believing = Trusting].  This is not just knowing facts about Jesus.  The devil knows facts about Jesus.  He even knows Who Jesus is - but he doesn’t really know Him.  He doesn’t trust in Jesus.  And this is a present tense verb.  Believing in Jesus in the present.  Ongoing, enduring faith, trust.  The root of this word means, being persuaded, being confident about something.  And our trust, our confidence is not in how much confidence we have.  It is in what gives us confidence.  It’s not about how much faith I have.  It’s the object of my faith, my trust.  In what/who am I trusting?  What gives me confidence of eternal life?  Only Jesus can really do that.  Are you and I trusting in Jesus today?  How well do we know Him today?  Are you and I eagerly taking Jesus today?  That's the main point today - Know Him… He is Him.  He's the One.  He's the Life.  Know Him.  Do you?

John 1.6-8 - Sent from God

Last time we looked at the first “God-send”, the first thing God sent out just in that nick of time, to help us out of our pinch.  He sent out Light.  We’re all born in spiritual darkness, separated from the eternal life God offers.  And God is sending out, He’s shining the Light of His truth in the darkness.  Believing IN Him, This Word Who was with God and IS God, trusting in Jesus the Word of Life reignites the Light in our hearts, it reconnects us TO the Life, the zoe of God, the abundant glorious experience of Life with Him, life as it was always meant to be.  [In Him was life], the Light of men.  And just how big is our pinch?  Desperate [a matter of life & death].  We must reconnect to the Light, to this One in Whom is Life, the Light of men.  Our eternal life - AND our zoe in this life - depends on it

With that in mind, John now introduces us to another God-send.  Not The Light itself, but a man. [6  There came a man sent from God]  There came to be (same word as came into being in v3) a man.  A person.  Everything came to be through the Word, especially people, and now a specific person comes to be.  And sort of like how light goes out from its source, this man was specifically sent out from God.  [apostello] - which gives us our word, apostle.  One sent out.  In this case, by God Himself.  A God-send.

God "sends out".  He sends out light.  Sends out angels.  In extreme circumstances He sends out plagues and locusts and droughts.  But mostly, usually, God sends out people.  He sends out people, people.  This word is [anthropos].  Anthropology = the study of man, of people.  And our author John tell us that there came to be this particular person, who had been sent out from God, by God.  His name was…wait for it…John.  Technically he’s the first John we meet in this book.  And John our author doesn’t go into the details of the birth and history of this first John.  What matters to author John is WHY this first John came and WHO sent him.  There came to be this person, sent from God.  And here's one takeaway: Your past and even your personality don’t matter as much as Who sends you and why.  All we read is, God sent —> and John went.  He showed up.  We don’t need to know where he grew up.  What he’s like.  What he likes to eat for breakfast.  Where he went to school.  We don’t need to know what he used to do.  God sent and John went.  The Lord is not looking for perfect people.  He’s looking for available people.  God sent and John went.

Why was John sent?  God has wired us as inquisitive beings - we instinctively ask the question, "why?"  There's a Greek word that answers our why - [hina - it means, "in order that" - it appears 145x in John] [7 He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him.]  John gives us the hina right in the middle there.  The verse should read, He came as a witness in order that he should testify about the Light.  God sent John to be a witness.  In fact this one we call John the Baptist could be called John the Witness.  A witness has witnessed something, they saw it, they know something about it - AND they have agreed to testify about it.  They’re going to talk.  They’re willing to confirm some fact [Deut. 19:15b  “On the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed.]. Often the challenge is getting [the witness to talk]. You’re not really a witness if you're unwilling to testify (UNavailable).  The Lord is looking for available people.  Available witnesses.  God sent John AS a witness [noun], IN ORDER THAT he should witness [verb] about the Light.  John was available.

And so this man named John sent from God came as a witness - with words.  With a Message of words.  God sends messengers with messages to people.  He communicates using words with His image-bearers who use words.  That’s what The Word does, what He’s done since the beginning.  He communicates with words.  And often times He delivers these words via messengers.  The OT word for these [messengers] is malakh.  Both angels AND people are called malakh.  The malakh shows up, carrying a message.  They may also have some commission to fulfill, specific task(s) to carry out.  And more or less the malakh officially represents the one who sent them.  A special function of God’s malakh is that they, by their very presence, present an aspect of God’s glory.  This is perhaps more obvious with angels?  But that’s something else that God’s messengers do - they present an aspect of God’s GLORY:

2Cor. 4:6 For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.  2Cor. 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.  1Cor. 10:31  Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.  Believers can shine an aspect of God’s glory in all that we do.  But specifically, the Lord says: Acts 1:8  You (all) will be My Witnesses.  One message John gives us in his book is that God sends all those who believe the Message about Jesus to communicate that message to others.  God sends US - all we who believe in Jesus to be messengers.  God•sends.

Obviously the response to the malakh, to the witness will vary.  2Chr. 36:15-16  The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word to them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place; but they continually mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, until there was no remedy.  Important point: the witness is not responsible for the verdict.  For the response.  The job of the witness is come forward and speak up.  To faithfully tell, to confirm the truth about what they saw, what they know. 

And so, God - the Word - sent out a witness, a person with words - words about the Word.  And his name is John [Luke 1:13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John.”].  It’s a traditional Hebrew name, a shortened form of [Johanan].  It means, the Lord is (or has been) gracious.  God gives undeserved favor.  John's parents had been unable to have any kids, and in fact had really grown too old to have kids, but the Lord was gracious to them and gave them this son in their old age.  This name reminds us that, God is gracious.  But there’s more to this name than just what God is doing for this one couple.  The Lord is getting ready to show His grace to the entire nation of Israel [Lk 1.16 “And he (John) will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God.].  And really to the whole world —> so that ALL should believe.  God IS gracious.

Let’s not miss the end goal of this particular witness - [7] …so that, in order that ALL might believe through him.  All.  That word in the Greek means ALL.  Everybody needs to believe.  And our English here says, so that all might believe.  But that’s not how the Greek says it.  It’s a strengthened form of the subjunctive.  Not in order that all might believe, but that all [SHOULD] believe.  Author John is really saying, John came as a witness so that all WILL believe through him.  There’s [expectancy], urgency, and scope to our vision, our calling: we want to give [ALL people] the chance to choose to (hear and) believe the Message, the Truth about Jesus.  [All of Jesus for All the World]

[8 He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.]  John the Witness was NOT the Light.  He was a great witness.  Many people came out to hear him.  But we need to be super careful not to place too much weight on the messenger.  That IS what fallen people do.  Someone comes along with a great message, and maybe they have an eloquent or entertaining way of delivering their message, and we prop them up.  We follow them.  We go out of our way for them, to hear them.  To a certain extent we can put our trust in them.  We may even idolize them.  But sooner or later, all human messengers prove to be all too human.  They are not perfect.  I’m not perfect.  Far from it.  The goal of the witness is to tell people, to point people to the Light.  John the Witness was a great witness - particularly because he pointed people like author John to the Light.  To Jesus.  As we’ll see, author John starts out following John the Witness, but he points him to Jesus.  [“He must increase; I must decrease…” Jn 3.30]  So that all should believe.  So that they will trust in the words about the Word Who Was and is The Light.  That’s our calling - to believe, AND to help others believe in Jesus.  [Is 6.8]  He must increase…

A decent name for our children? Johanan has given us the name John/Jon: Sean/Shawn, Jean (French), Giovanni (Italian), Juan (Spanish), Johann, and Hans (German), Jan (Dutch), and Ivan (Russian).  The female versions include Joanna, Joanne, Jan, Jane, Jani but also Hannah has given us Anna, Jana, Ann/Anne, Nan, Nancy, Anita (Spanish) and Annette/Nanette (French).