And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them he gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name; who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we behold His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.' " And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

- John 1:1-18

Today, we begin readings from the Gospel of John. We have just finished the Gospel of Matthew. On Saturday we read that the chief priests and elders gave money to the soldiers at Jesus' tomb, saying, soldiers, "Tell them, 'His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.' And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will appease him and make you secure." Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In the final reading from Matthew, Jesus' last words are to teach us all that He is always with us, ever-present. My study bible pointed out that this teaching denoted not a beginning nor an end to that presence, but that this power of the Resurrection was something always with us. Here, in the beginning was the Word teaches us that there was never a time when the Word was not. My study bible says that "it's an existence without reference to a starting point." Word is Logos in the Greek, signifying "wisdom and reason as well as word: the Creator." Creation is logikos in Greek, participating in the divine Word. A note also tells us, helpfully, that the Old Testament prophets saw the Word of God as the presence of the Lord.

In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. My study bible says, "By seeing and participating in Christ's life believers become light and children of light (12:36). Moses saw this light in the burning bush (Ex. 3:2), Isaiah saw it in his heavenly vision (Is. 6:1-5), and Peter, James and John saw it on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matt. 17:2). In the Divine Liturgy at Easter, light breaks forth from the night at the proclamation of the Resurrection: "Come, take light from the light that is never overtaken by night." Only God has life in Himself, and this is the source of life and enlightenment. The darkness is that which refuses to accept the light, to receive it -- and actively opposes it. Again, my study bible has a helpful note here: "Though the world has embraced darkness, the Word freely offers light to all. . . . Darkness will oppose the light, yet cannot defeat the light." In the Greek, the word for comprehend has similar meanings to the English word. "Comprehend" can mean both to understand and to overtake something.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. John the Evangelist speaks of John the Baptist. John the Baptist is the herald of the Kingdom, the Forerunner, bearing witness of what is to come. He is the last of the Old Testament style prophets. To believe in the Greek is to trust, and implies relationship, participation.

That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. My study bible says, "The true Light, Jesus Christ, enlightens every person, but the world refuses to receive and live in this light, and does not know Him." Most of His own people did not receive Him.

But as many as received Him, to them he gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name; who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. By faith, we can participate in the life of God. All that is "in His name" is in His Kingdom, in some sense a part of the presence of His Person. My study bible says, "This is a gift, not an inalienable right. Those who receive Christ are given His power, His grace, to become children of God -- no longer servants, but friends of Christ (15:15). . . . divine sonship is a gift of grace through faith . . Whether we are of a privileged race or not, we are born into the family of God and saved not by 'the faith of our fathers,' but by our own faith in Christ. His name: His identity, the Word, the Son of God, the Messiah and Savior, who in His humanity is called Jesus. To believe means to trust oneself completely to Him: who He is, what He does, what He teaches."

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we behold His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.' " And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him. Jesus Christ was the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. John the Evangelist was himself a witness, one of the apostles who saw His Transfiguration (which is celebrated today in the Eastern Church), His good friend who became the second son to Mary. As witness John can tell us of the grace and truth of the person who was Jesus. Jesus was Christ Incarnate - the Son, fully divine, became fully human. Only He could reveal God to us from His full experience and understanding.

And the word became flesh and dwelt among us . . . The Greek for "dwelt" is the verb "to tabernacle." It also means "to tent." Another note tells us something significant: "We are the disciples, the people of God, pilgrims in this transient world. In the Old Testament, God's glory, His radiant power, dwelt ("tabernacled") in the temple. Here, the eternal Word in His divine glory comes to dwell in the midst of humanity through the Incarnation." So we begin the Gospel of John. John, by tradition John Zebedee, disciple to Jesus, one of the "sons of Thunder" with his brother James, has been through life as a friend to Jesus, a disciple, one of His inner circle, second son to Mary His mother -- and then through exile and the terrible persecution that was to come to the Church. John gives us His special insights, and is called Theologian in the Eastern Church, one of only a handful to bear the title. In his prologue, he introduces us to Christ, God made flesh who dwelt among us, of whom John the Baptist bore witness. John's Prologue gives us a number of ways in which we may know Christ, His name, who He is, as well as through His light, through our faith. So the question might be today, thinking about all these things that Jesus is, how do you know God? Is God the Light for you? Is He the Christ, the Son? Is He Jesus, son of Mary? Is He brother, Teacher, friend? In all these ways we can know Him. He dwelt among us. How do you dwell in His glory, and His radiant light? As His divine nature became human, so our human nature can also - through participation in Him in faith - become imbued with the divine, "godlike without ceasing to be human," as my study bible puts it. John knew Him in so many ways. Today he introduces us to the ways in which we can know Him too.