God's Mission
John 1:1-18
The Word Became Flesh
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
~ The Apostle John,
John 1:14
1 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 all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) 16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.
Pondering Point
The devotional theme this week is fellowshipping together as a form of loving our neighbors. Fellow Christians are, of course, our neighbors also. In John 1 we see Jesus coming to fellowship with us on earth, “full of grace and truth” (v. 17); he came to dispense that grace and testify to the truth. He came so that we, through his sacrificial death for sin, could enjoy heavenly fellowship with Him – in His glory.
Jesus’ purpose, as the Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:15ff, was to create in himself one new humanity in one body. He came to reconcile all people to God, Jew and Gentile, through the cross. He sought peace not just between us and God the Father, but between each other as well. Through Him we all have access to the Father – as fellow citizens and members of God’s household.
Prayer
Father God, I thank You for the grace and truth that comes to us through Jesus Christ our Lord. I celebrate my place in the Body of Christ along with my fellow brothers and sisters. BY Your Holy Spirit, lead me to be at peace with them, in fellowship with them, and of service to them as You desire. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.