He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. He “came”. In context, this is most profound. I’m sure that back in Jesus’ day, His coming seemed like a random guy had walked into town and started talking in parables and maybe healing some people, which would seem […]
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. The world. There is a funny duplicity in the way John uses the word “world”. The world was made through Him. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being […]
There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. In contrast to John’s function, which not to be the light but to give witness to the light, there is the true light. I think the reason he says “the true light” is because some people were saying things about John about […]
1:6 There came a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light. There is no story given here, John simply cuts to the essential truth of things. There […]
In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. John 1:4 Everyone who is alive at all has the breath of life in them. Even microbes are alive. In a different sense all people are alive. However, there is a unique sense of the word “life” that was in Him that was […]
All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. All things came into being through Him. Now we have added the notion of creation. The word who is to become flesh (v.14) is the Creator. However, His activity as creator is not His identity. […]
He was in the beginning with God – John 1:2 NASB “He” indicates that the Word is not just a force, but a Person. He was in the beginning, not “it”. If you have an impersonal force operating on a rock, it drops straight towards the center of gravity. If you have the rock in […]
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1 NASB Beginning. The word “beginning” is the Greek word “arche” – meaning the start of time, and beginning as in the origin. Gen 1:1 – “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”. Clearly […]
Christian Community Communal Attribute Reference Christian Manifestation Antichrist Manifestation Defined Fellowship 1:1-4 fellowship with apostles – Light 1:5-2:2 light/authenticity/fellowship/confession dark/pretense/isolation Commandment 2:3-11 keep commandments/loves hates Generation 2:12-14 children/youth/fathers – Distinguished What you Love 2:15-17 tempted, but incompatible compatible Spiritual Affiliation 2:18-29 of apostolic faith antichrist Hope 3:1-3 called children of God – Practice 3:4-10 practices […]
“Someone died for this slightly off-base irritating brother. He is Abel offering his blood sacrifice, and love says I count his offering as sufficient.” From the book Grace in Community by Jim McNeely I wanted to return to the very powerful and fruitful story of Cain and Abel as it pertains to the idea of […]