City Life Starter

By Ji Yun

”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 nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” John 1:1-5

The first book of the Bible known as “Genesis” to the English readers is actually ‘Bereshit” in Hebrew or translated as “In the Beginning.” This book of the Bible would be more properly be called the book of “In the Beginning.” This book begins with God and His creation of the world where He would speak, and things came into being.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1

Whether you are of Jewish descent or not, anyone who have read the Bible before would remember this first word of the Bible. The Gospel of John begins with the same word, even though it was originally written in Greek, it would be safe to remind ourself that Apostle John had Hebrew language in mind. He was of Jewish descent, who were born in Judea of the first century who studied the Bible in Hebrew, along with other languages. He might be writing the gospel in Greek, but Hebrew language would be the first and foremost thought in his mind.

What is John’s intent? Why would he begin his gospel like other gospels?

John’s intent is to establish the link between the Old Testament to his writing, as one continuation of what God is doing on earth through Jesus Christ.

What’s with the “Word?”

In the beginning, we see God creating everything on earth by His Word. Whenever He spoke, things came into being. There are eight “God said” in Genesis that describe His creations. The final and the greatest creation is the creation of man and woman.

”Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness,… God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” Genesis 1:26, 27.

What John is saying to us is quite simple, that God of the “In the beginning” is also the Word that he (John) and others encountered in their life. This God, would came from heaven to earth, in order to provide healing or reconciliation to the broken relationship between God and man. The rest of John’s Gospel is to reveal this Word, who is also the Lamb of God, the Light, the Life, the Truth, the Way, the Door, the Bread, the Living Water, and all the I AM.

John’s intent is to reveal Christ divinity, in order that we “may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:31)