3-27-16 The Logos is Alive!

Scripture   John 1:1-5, 14; 8:32

John 1:1-5

          In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

John 1:14

          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.

           John 8:32   “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

God and the word are one and have been so from the beginning

In the beginning was the Word…

…and the Word was with God…

…and the Word was God.

          In the beginning was the Word…with God…who is God! Therefore the Word spoken of is not an impersonal entity like we think of when we talk about “words”  This Word is a personal living being. Next sentence starts with a personal pronoun: “He”…

2 He was with God in the beginning.

All we know at this point is that the He is a personal being and is referred to as the “Word”

A little study of the original language (Greek) shows that this (logos) Word who was in the beginning is eternal – “Beginning” is in the imperfect tense – meaning a time before creation with a continued timeless existence; so now we know this personal Word who was with and is God has an existence in eternity past.

3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. (Nothing was going to become something once the Word decided there should be something, then went ahead and made something out of nothing.) That just took us from God’s beginning which is eternity past to our beginning which is CREATION. Vs 1-2 are timelessness before creation – Vs 3 is the time of creation. Everything that came into existence did so at his command and in his presence (without him nothing was made that has been made, but THROUGH HIM all things were made). Great and creative things happen when the “Word” is present and working.

4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

In the “Word” was Life (zwn) = the power to make something alive (Ezekiel / Valley of Dry Bones) – pointing to a particular part of the Word’s creation – mankind. And embedded in that life was light = the ability to recognize where the life has come from – ie. the Word = a personal GOD! That light never stops shining – even in the darkest darkness!

All that being true – is there a way to know the “Word”?...this always existing - creation making – life giving – light bearing - personal being?      Of course – if I didn’t know the answer, I wouldn’t have asked the question. Jump ahead to vs. 14.

          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.

          This always existing Word/God who created us has now himself become one of us. How do we know who he is?  John tells us by revealing the entire reason he wrote all this: John 20:30-31 Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

          Therefore – the Word John referred to is none other than Jesus! Jesus is the personal Word who existed in eternity past, brought about creation, gave us life and light and became one of us so he could do what none of us are able to do without him – receive “Life” (that is life in eternity future) = eternal life!

          The synoptic gospel (Mt Mk Lk) see life and death, heaven and hell, temporal and eternal life in a vertical sense “This age and the age to come” relating more to time.  John, however sees those things in a horizontal sense: “This world and the world above” relating more to place. Both are correct – time and place and the reality of the Logos is where those two meet at the center of the cross!

          We are looking more at John’s perspective today. He sees the world we live in (earth) as evil whose ruler is the devil and the world above (heaven) as good whose ruler is God. He begins his gospel by clearly stating that the good God of Heaven has broken through time and place to enter our dark world with his in comprehensible light!

          What does this have to do with Easter? Nestorius (5^th c.) writes: “Is the Logos risen from the dead? And if the life-giver (Logos) died, who then could give life? The mystery of godliness must, however, be expressed in this manner: ‘One thing is the Logos who dwelt in the temple formed by the Holy ghost, and another is the temple itself, different from the God who dwells within it.’ This acknowledges the unity of the combination [trinity], but the duality [triality] of the natures and substances.”

          Maximus (7^th c.) writes: “All visible realities need the cross, that is, the state in which they are cut off from the things acting upon them through the senses. All intelligible realities need burial, that is, the total quiescence of the things which act upon them through the intellect. When all relationship with such things is severed, and their natural activity is cut off, then the logos, who exists alone in himself, appears as if risen from the dead. He encompasses all that comes from Him, but nothing enjoys kinship with Him by virtue of natural relationship. For salvation of the saved is by grace and not by nature.”

          Luke 15:31-32  "My son,' the father said, 'you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.  But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found."

          Once the Word became flesh – EVERYTHING changed! For thousand’s of years the Jews had been waiting for the Word to become flesh. Creation was groaning for the creator to physically walk on that which He created. God was no longer just Spirit and Voice but had become flesh and blood with all the possible frailties of every human – including death.  One might have imagined that when the messiah were to come, it would not be possible for him to die or be killed. Jesus blew up everyone’s theory of how God would act in history and how people could know God and be granted life eternal with Him in heaven.

          If that wasn’t enough to caused a severe migraine to comprehend, then he did in fact die – was murdered by the Roman government at the urging of the Jewish religious leaders – as if the whole world were against Him.           …But wait it gets better…

          Acts 2:22-24    "Men of Israel, listen to this: God raised Jesus of Nazareth from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.

Acts 2:32-36   God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, "'The Lord said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." '  "Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."                                                       CONCLUSION

          I believe that this Jesus is the always existing - creation making – life giving – light bearing - personal being who alone can forgive us of our sins and grant us eternal life!  ALL glory be to the WORD – the risen living Logos – to Jesus…Jesus…Jesus!

O GLORIOUS DAY

One day when Heaven was filled with His praises
One day when sin was as black as could be
Jesus came forth to be born of a virgin
Dwelt among men, my example is He
Word became flesh and the light shined among us
His glory revealed
        Living, He loved me
        Dying, He saved me
        Buried, He carried my sins far away
        Rising, He justified freely forever
        One day He's coming
        Oh glorious day, oh glorious day
John 8:32  “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

                One day the grave could conceal Him no longer
                One day the stone rolled away from the door
                Then He arose, over death He had conquered
                Now He's ascended, my Lord evermore
                Death could not hold Him, the grave could not keep Him
                From rising again.  O GLORIOUS DAY!

3-6-16 “I came to be served!”

Scripture   Mark 10:41-45

Mark 10:33-34

          Jesus said, "We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise."

Mark 10:35-40

          Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him and said, "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask." "What do you want me to do for you?" "Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory." "You don't know what you are asking, can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?" "We can!" "You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared."

          Those who want to get to the top at all cost – no matter who’s shoulders they step on – often do get to the top – but it is short lived.

Eugene O’Neill in The Emperor Jones says “For de little stealin’ dey gets you in jail soon or late. For de big stealin’ de makes you emperor and puts you in the Hall o’ fame when you croaks. If dey’s one thing I learns in ten years on de Pullman cars listenin’ to de white quality talk, it’s dat same fact.”

Mark 10:41-45

          When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. Jesus called them together and said, "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Demosthenes cites the law that the one who was ransomed became the property of the one who freed him. Paul assumes this principle in his admonition to the Corinthians: 1 Cor 6:19b-20a You are not your own; you were bought at a price.

Mark 10:46-52

          Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (that is, the Son of Timaeus), was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." So they called to the blind man, "Cheer up! On your feet! He's calling you." Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. "What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked him. The blind man said, "Rabbi, I want to see." "Go, your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

          Asking a blind man what he wants Jesus to do for him night seem stupid – however consider when others were asked: The Pharisees wanted to outsmart and trap him, the rich man wanted eternal security at minimal cost, James and John wanted to be top dogs in the new kingdom – A blind beggar may want money – but Batimaeus just wants to see again.

          God asks us this important question all the time and we usually answer poorly. Biblical examples: Herod asks his step daughter what she wants for dancing for him? She says the head of JTB on a platter. Pilate asks the crowd: Barrabas or Jesus – they say Barrabas – Crucify Jesus!

          When you ask for the right things look what good can happen: Batimaeus was sitting on the road side begging – until Jesus gave him sight – then he got up and followed Jesus – follow doesn’t mean just walk behind him – it means to walk like him or to love like him which means to serve like him!  Has your blindness been healed? Here is the test – are you following Jesus or sitting on the roadside? Are you serving in ministry for the sake of His Kingdom?

Far too many of us believe we don’t have the qualifications to serve in and through the church.

Martin Luther King Jr. said: “You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You don’t have to know Plato and Aristotle. You don’t have to know Einstein’s theory of relativity. You don’t have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” “LOVE LIKE JESUS!

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