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The Gospel of John
Perhaps one of the clearest and yet most mysterious verses in the Scriptures is
found in the beginning of the Gospel of John. John writes:
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God
and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.
Through him ALL THINGS WERE MADE; without him nothing
was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was
the light of men" (John 1:1-4).
Now compare this verse with Genesis 1:1:
"In the beginning GOD [Elohim, "The Mighty Ones"] created
the heavens and the earth."
Notice! The Greek word for "Word" in this passage in John's gospel is Logos. It
means literally "word," divine "expression," "utterance," "reasoning" or
"communication" of God. In this Scripture is it clearly a reference to a DIVINE
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BEING and PERSONALITY -- One who was with the Father, and through whom He
made ALL THINGS -- the WHOLE CREATION -- THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE! In
fact, according to this verse, nothing was made without the involvement or agency of
this "Word." Who was this "Word" or Logos of God?
John goes on to tell us:
"The Word BECAME FLESH and made his dwelling among
us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the ONE AND ONLY,
who came from the Father, full of grace and truth" (verse 14).
This divine Being who was involved in all Creation literally became human flesh
and blood, so that He could die for our sins on the cross. These verses do not merely
discuss some "thought" that was in the mind of God in the beginning. This is far more
than the mere personfication of a "thought." John does not use such personfications in
his gospel. It is not his writing style. It requires major forcing of the text and major
surgery to interpret this passage as a mere "allegory" or "personification." Such
twisting and wresting of the Scriptures, and manhandling of the Word of God, is a sign
of arrogance and lack of submission to the power of God and the Spirit of God.
Paul wrote of those who wrest and twist the Scriptures, and their followers, "I am
astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of
Christ and are turning to a DIFFERENT GOSPEL -- one which is really no gospel at
all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to
PERVERT the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach
a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be ETERNALLY
CONDEMNED! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching
to you a gospel other than what you accepted, LET HIM BE
ETERNALLY CONDEMNED!" (Gal.1:6-9).
This may seem like severe language. Paul means every word of it, and so do I!
Paul goes on, "Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying
to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ"
(Gal.1:10).
Who Is the LORD of the Old Testament?
Jesus Christ is the Logos, or Word, the Second member of the Godhead, who did
the creating in Genesis 1:1 and John 1:1. He, as the "Word," is the One who spoke the
Ten Commandments (Exodus 20). He is actually the One who revealed Himself to the
children of Israel and to Moses, and who spoke to Moses in the burning bush! That is
why He told the Jews who questioned Him as to His identity and authority, "I AM."
The proof of these remarkable assertions is really very simple. We read in the
book of John, the words of Christ:
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"And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning
me. You [referring to the Jews, as well as all mankind] have
NEVER HEARD HIS VOICE NOR SEEN HIS FORM, nor
does his word dwell in you" (John 5:37-38).
Jesus Christ also pointed out: "NO ONE has SEEN the Father except the one who
is from God; ONLY HE has seen the Father" (John 6:46). Who, then, was it Who
revealed Himself to the Jews at Mount Sinai, and spoke with them? Who really gave
the Ten Commandments at Sinai?
If no one ever heard the voice of the Father, or saw His shape or form, then it
could not have been the Father who gave the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai.
We read in Exodus 20, "And God spoke all these words . . ." (Exo.20:1). When the
people heard the thunder and the trumpet blast, and the words of God, and saw the
lightning on the mountain, they were terrified, and trembled with fear, and said to
Moses, "Speak to us yourself, and we will listen. But do not have GOD speak to us or
we will die" (Exo.20:18-19).
Since it was GOD who spoke to them, yet no man has heard the Father at any
time, as Jesus said, then the One who spoke must have been the Logos -- the One who
became Christ!
Furthermore, Jesus said that no man has ever seen the shape or form of God the
Father. Yet we read in the book of Exodus this remarkable statement:
"Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders
of Israel went up and SAW THE GOD OF ISRAEL. Under
his feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire, clear
as the sky itself. But God did not raise his hand against these
leaders of the Israelites; THEY SAW GOD, and the ate and
drank" (Exodus 24:9-11).
The God of Israel, the LORD of the Old Testament, the One who brought Israel
out of Egypt, then, was SEEN OF MEN, including the elders of the tribe of Judah. Yet
Jesus Christ said that NO MAN had ever seen the form or shape of the Father. Is this a
contradiction in the Scripture? Has the Scripture been broken? Not at all! There is no
contradiction whatsoever. The simple explanation of this anomaly is simply that the
One whom they all SAW was the LOGOS -- the WORD OF GOD -- the ONE WHO
BECAME CHRIST! He WAS the "LORD" or YHVH of the Old Testament who
revealed Himself to Israel!
Moses said to this same One, on a later occasion, "Now show me your glory"
(Exo.33:18). Because God was pleased with Moses, we read:
"And the LORD said, 'I will cause all my goodness to pass
in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in
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your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy,
and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
But,' he said, 'you cannot see my face, for no one may see me
and live.'
"Then the LORD said, 'There is a place near me where you
may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put
you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until
I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and you will
see my back; but my face must not be seen' " (Exo.33:19-23).
Moses looked upon the God of Israel. He saw His back, although he was not
permitted to look at His face. Yet Jesus said NO ONE had ever seen the Father, or
heard His voice. Yet Moses was right there, communing with God, listening to His
voice, and even looked upon His form!
What an amazing event! What an astonishing, dumfounding occurrence! The
One who revealed Himself to Moses was none other than the Word, the Logos, the One
who became Jesus Christ, as both Paul and John so clearly record in the New
Testament!
Up until the time Christ came, the world was in virtual total ignorance of the
Father. There were several allusions to Him in the Psalms, but the Jews did not
understand the relationship of the Godhead. Jesus Himself said that He came to
REVEAL the Father. His exact words were,
"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one
knows the Son except the Father, and NO ONE KNOWS THE
FATHER except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses
to REVEAL him" (Matt.11:27; see also Luke 10:22).
Notice! Jesus said plainly that nobody knew or understood the Father -- He had
not been REVEALED to mankind. Yet the God of the Old Testament, the God of
Israel, revealed Himself to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses, and to the children of
Israel when He entered a covenant relationship with them -- a "marriage covenant"
(Exodus 24). He also revealed Himself to the prophets, Samuel, David, Isaiah,
Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and others. Yet Jesus declared without any equivocation
that NO ONE KNEW THE FATHER! That statement would have been bizarre and
erroneous if it had been the Father who had revealed Himself to the patriarchs and
prophets of old! Here again, then, is visible and palpable PROOF that the God who
stands REVEALED in the Old Testament is none other than the One who became flesh
and dwelt among us -- the Logos, who became Jesus Christ, the Messiah and Saviour!
Therefore, it is the Logos, who became Christ, who is quoted in the book of Isaiah
as saying, and speaking for the Godhead, "I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not
give my glory to another or my praise to idols" (Isa.42:8). He is the One who said,
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"Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the
LORD, and apart from me there is no savior" (Isa.43:10-11). This God says, "You are
my witnesses, declares the LORD, that I am God. Yes, and from ancient days, I am he.
No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?" (Isa.43:12-13).
This Personage says, "I am the LORD [YHVH], your Holy One, Israel's Creator, your
King" (verse 15).
This same Logos, or Word of God, continues, revealing Himself to Israel through
the prophet Isaiah: "I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.
Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it" (Isaiah 44:6). Interestingly, in the book of
Revelation, Jesus Christ also reveals Himself as "the first and the last"! He declared: "I
am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is, and who was, and who is to
come, the Almighty" (Rev.1:8). He said also, "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the
Last. I am the Living One; I was dead. And behold I am alive for ever and ever!"
(Rev.1:17-18). He said also to the Smyrna Church of God, "These are the words of him
who is the First and the Last" (Rev.2:8). How clear that these two Beings are One and
the Same!
Isaiah also quotes the LORD as saying: "This is what the LORD says -- your
REDEEMER, who formed you in the womb. I am the LORD, who has made ALL
THINGS, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself"
(Isa.44:24). He goes on to say, "I am the LORD, and there is no other; apart from me
there is no God" (Isa.45:5). "I am the LORD, and there is no other. I form the light
and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these
things" (Isa.45:6-7). This same God says, "Who foretold this long ago, who declared it
from the distant past? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no God apart from me, a
righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me. Turn to me and be SAVED, all you
ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn, my
mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every
knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, 'In the LORD
alone are righteousness and strength. All who have raged against him will come to him
and be put to shame. But in the LORD all the descendants of Israel will be found
righteous and will exult" (Isa.45:21-25).
Notice that paragraph very carefully, point by point. The LORD of the Old
Testament was the REDEEMER. Christ is our only Redeemer (Luke 1:68; 24:21;
Gal.3:13; Rev.5:9; 14:4). The LORD made "all things." So did Christ (Col.1:15-16;
John 1:1-3; Heb.1:1-2). The LORD is our Savior (Isa.43:3, 11; 45:15, 21; 49:26;
60:16). Jesus Christ is our Savior, and there is no other (Rom.4:12; Luke 2:11; John
4:42; Acts 5:31, 13:23; Phil.3:20; Titus 2:13, 3:6; II Pet.2:20; I John 4:14). There
cannot be two Redeemers, each saying there is no one else! There cannot be two
Saviors, each the "only one." There cannot be two different Ones, both of whom
independently made "all things." If it were so, they would mutually EXCLUDE each
other! Or One would have to be a LIAR! How can the riddle be solved? How can the
conundrum be resolved? How can the puzzle be put together?
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The answer is simple: Christ IS the LORD of the Old Testament -- the One who
revealed Himself to Moses, and the One who spoke to Isaiah! There can be no other
logical, consistent, coherent, cogent answer! Therefore, indeed, CHRIST IS GOD --
DIVINE GOD! Any other belief or doctrine is sheer heresy and anathema to the Word
of God!
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