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

 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 beheld 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

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.   The Gospel of John begins with a phrase that gives us a hint of what this Gospel is all about.  In the beginning recalls the creation story of Genesis.  But this book is not so much about creation as it is a revelation of our Creator.  Moreover, Genesis spoke of the first creation, but this Prologue (for so all the verses of today's reading are called) of John's Gospel is a revelation of the new creation in Christ.  Was the Word:  Word is the Greek word Logos.  The Word, my study bible explains, is the eternal Son of God.  Was teaches us about an existence without reference to a starting point.  It emphasizes the Word's eternal existence without beginning.  Logos has several meanings, possibly including "wisdom," "reason," and "action" as well as "word," which are all attributes of the divine Son of God.  The Word was with God:  With tells us that the Word -- who is the Son of God -- is a distinct Person from the Father, and also that the Word is in eternal communion with the Father.  The Word was God:  The Word -- again, the Son of God -- is co-equal and co-eternal with the Father.  The Word is God with the same divinity as the Father.   In these first  verses, we are given our theological underpinnings of the One at the center of our faith.

All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.   My study bible explains that the Word is the co-Creator with the Father and the Holy Spirit (Genesis 1; Psalm 32:6, 9; Hebrews 1:2), and not simply a servant or instrument used by God the Father.  It notes that will, operation, and power are one in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  In this understanding, we are given to know that the heavens and the earth of the creation story of Genesis are the works of the One who made them.  But the Son was not made and is eternally begotten of the Father.

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 explains that only God has life in Himself.  Therefore, the Word, who is God, is the source of life, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit.  The life was the light of men:   It should be noted that the word translated as men is Greek anthropos; it is a masculine word, but it literally means "human being."  John is introducing humankind as receiver of the divine light.  As they participate in the life of the Son, believers also become children of the light (12:36; Ephesians 5:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:5).   This light is found throughout the spiritual history of the people of God.  Moses saw the divine light in the burning bush (Exodus 3:2), the whole nation saw it at the Red Sea (Exodus 13:21), Isaiah saw it in his heavenly vision (Isaiah 6:1-5), and three apostles saw it at the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-5).   Darkness is a word that used by Jesus throughout the Gospels to indicate both spiritual ignorance and satanic opposition to the light.  My study bible notes that those who hate truth prefer ignorance for themselves, and strive to keep others ignorant as well (3:19).  The word in Greek translated as comprehend has similar possible meanings to the English:  it can mean both "understand" and "overcome", to "take in."  Therefore, darkness can never overpower the light of Christ, my study bible says, nor can it understand the way of love.

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.  This John referred to here is John the Baptist, and not the Evangelist, author of the Gospel.  My study bible notes that Christ offers light to each person, but the world and even many of His own refuse to receive Him; therefore, they can neither know nor recognize Him.  Those who accept Christ have Christ's light.  In an Orthodox hymn sung after hearing the Gospel and receiving communion, the words are sung, "We have seen the true light, we have received of the heavenly Spirit."  The right to become children of God:  Right also means "authority," which my study bible says indicates a gift from God, not an inalienable right.  It explains that those who receive Christ become children of God by adoption (Galatians 4:4-7) and by grace inherit everything that Christ is by nature.  To believe in His name is to believe and trust in the One who in His humanity took the name Jesus as Word, Son, Messiah, and Savior.  To be adopted as a child of God isn't a matter of ethnic descent (that is, of blood), as it was in the Old Testament.  Neither is a question of natural birth (that is, the will of the flesh), or even by one's won decision (the will of man).  To become a child of God is a spiritual birth by grace, through faith, and in the Holy Spirit.  This is accomplished and manifested in the sacrament of Holy Baptism, which Jesus explains to Nicodemus in 3:5-8; see also Titus 3:4-7.

And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, . . ..  That the word became flesh speaks of the Incarnation -- this is a clarification of the way in which the Son and Word of God came to His people (His own, above).  The Word became fully human without ceasing to be fully God.  Christ assumed complete human nature, in body, soul, will, emotion, and even mortality.  That is, all the things that pertain to humanity but sin.  As God and Human Being in one Person, Jesus pours divinity into all of human nature, my study bible explains, because anything not assumed by Christ would not have been healed.  This is perhaps the most crucial and central understanding of the Church.  Time and time again, it becomes a stumbling block, but also a guidepost to the direction of our faith at significant times of questioning and decision-making.  That the word dwelt among us is a significant phrase.  The word here for dwelt is literally "tabernacled" in the Greek.   In the Old Testament, God's presence dwelt or tabernacled in the ark of the covenant, and later in the temple.  Here, my study bible says, the eternal Word comes to dwell in and among humanity itself.  His glory refers not only to His divine power shown by the signs and wonders of His ministry (2:11; 11:4, 40), but also to His humble service to mankind, shown most perfectly on the Cross (12:23-32; 13:31), the full expression of compassion.  In both of these ways, Christ reveals that He is the One sent from the Father.

. . . the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.   The Son has no beginning, but rather has the Father as source from eternity.  The Son is called only begotten as there is no other who is born from the Father.  (Theologically understood, the Holy Spirit exists eternally from the Father through another mystery which is called "procession"; see 15:26).   Full of grace and truth:  this phrase references not only the Word but also His glory.  My study bible explains that grace is the uncreated energy of Christ which is given to us through His love and mercy.  Truth, it says, includes His faithfulness to His promises and covenants, and also to the reality of His words and gifts.   

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.   My study bible comments that in saying that we have all received of His fullness, the Scriptures here confirm that God's grace can fill human nature to the extent of actually deifying it.   In Christ, God's children become gods by grace (10:34-35), but without ceasing to be human.  That is, fulfilling our creation in the image and likeness of God, we take on qualities that are "God-like."  The classic patristic metaphor is that of metal thrust into fire:  the metal takes on properties of fire (for instance, heat and light) without ceasing to be metal.  So human nature, which may be permeated by God through God's grace, takes on properties of the divine nature.  Therefore, we have all received, and grace for grace:  "grace for grace" is a Semitic expression which indicates an overabundance of 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.  That no one has seen God at any time indicates that no person can see the nature, or essence, of God, for to see God is to die (Exodus 33:20).  My study bible comments that only One who is divine can fully see God, and therefore only the Son can declare Him.  This revelation of God's energies (or grace) can be received by the faithful.  Moses saw the "back" of God (Exodus 33:21-23); Isaiah saw God's glory (see Isaiah 6:1; John 12:41). 

Thus in today's reading we have what is called the Prologue of John's Gospel.  It gives us our theological underpinnings and foundation of our faith.  What is in this Prologue has fed the successive Councils in which our faith has been hammered out, questions of the identity of Christ -- and we as "Christians" -- have been debated, and settled.  But the questions are ongoing, as our faith is ongoing.  Yet, at each new juncture in which we must settle a dispute or answer a question regarding our faith, we turn back to this place, where we are given the foundations and bedrock of what we know, even as we remain entered into Mystery we can't yet understand or which is not yet revealed to us.  Who is Christ?  This Prologue goes far to answer that question for us, and its hidden meanings and implications remain questions for us, for our individual faith, and for the life of the Church as it is guided into its mission in the future.  Over the past couple of months on this blog, we have been reading through Mark's Gospel.  Returning over and over again to themes of both compassion and the use of authority and power in His Church, Christ reminded the disciples of their mission to care for the littlest ones who will come in His name.  In today's reading, the Prologue of John, my study bible reminds us of the same, that Christ's glory and identity as divine Son and Second Person of the Trinity, came to dwell (to "tabernacle") with us as one of us, and thereby God is known to us not only through the miracles and wonders of the Incarnation and His ministry, but most especially through His compassion and His death on the Cross, for He died for us.  That is, for you, for me, for each one of us.  We cannot forget that the majesty of the Divine Son, which is unknowable to us in its fullness, was given to us in the person of Jesus Christ, as human being, and revealed to us particularly and most completely in the death He shared with us, as one of us.  St. John the Evangelist also writes to us, in his Epistle that speaks of God as love, that "we love Him because He first loved us" (1 John 4:19).  We are invited into that love, and to share it ourselves.  This is the thread that runs for each one of us through all the Gospels, but nowhere will it be more explicit than in this Gospel of the beloved disciple.  As we read it through Lent, let us continue to explore, remember, and live in God's revealed light and love, Christ who became human for each of us, so that we too may share in "grace for grace."