December 15 I Tuesday

Amos 1-3

Revelation 6

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

The Gospel of John opens in a fashion that mirrors Genesis 1, the creation account. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” 
(John 1:1). John is deliberate with his style of writing as he draws the reader’s attention to the reality of who Jesus is.

Jesus is the “Word.” Our English translation does not fully convey the meaning of the original Greek word, which is logos. Logos was a common term in John’s day; in fact, it had been created about 600 years before John’s writing. John used the term logos to describe Christ in the beginning, before time. The term logos was created by Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher from the city of Ephesus. Heraclitus used the word logos to describe the reason “why.” He was a scientist by nature, believing that the universe had been ordered, created and not chaotic. He was constantly looking for the reason “why” behind biology and meteorology, where biology (bio-logos) looks for the reason why behind organisms, and meteorology (meteor-logos) looks for the reason why behind weather patterns.

Revisiting the opening of John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Logos…”––in the beginning was the reason why. When we drive around during this Christmas season, we may see signs at churches that say, “Jesus is the reason for the season.” This echoes what John is saying in his Gospel: “Jesus is the reason for everything. Jesus is the reason why. He was with God. He is God.”

John 1:3 emphasizes Jesus’s unique role in creation: “Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made.” This is a huge statement because through Christ came everything, and without Christ there is absolutely nothing. Have we considered the depth of that verse? When we look at a photo of the Milky Way, we see billions and billions of stars; on our planet, there are about 7.5 billion people—everything was created through Him, by Him and for Him.

The mystery of the incarnation is that the Logos would clothe Himself with flesh and make His dwelling among us. Why did He do that? John 1:4 reveals, “In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.” Jesus is the light that we crave and seek. He is the ultimate revelation of who God is. In Him was eternal life and that life is what all mankind longed for—it is what we were created to be. Jesus is our Logos. He is our reason why.

Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus Christ, You are the reason why I have life and breath. Thank You for coming into this world not only to be our light but to also give us eternal life. Praise You!