Christmas Day Sermon on John 1:1-14

Text: 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.

Usually, in the opening chapter of a book, you are introduced to the main character. You will learn a little about him and something about the circumstances of his life. You will not learn everything about this character. That is for the rest of the book. In the opening words, though, you get a feel for the main character. The same holds true when you begin to read the book of John. In the opening verses, you get a feel for the main character, namely, Jesus. You see some of the things that he accomplished. You do not learn everything right away. That is for the rest of the book. Today, as we stand before the manger bed of Jesus, John introduces us to him by telling some important things about the Christ child. He helps us answer the question posed by the Christmas carol: “WHAT CHILD IS THIS?”. We will see that he 1. The Eternal Creator, 2. The Life-Giving Light and 3. The Divine Savior.

Actually, in our text for this morning, we do not see the name of Jesus, at all. The first three verses speak of “the Word.” Yet, as you read these verses, and compare them with the rest of Holy Scriptures, it is very evident that this is speaking about Jesus. Listen again to the verses 1-3, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” First, we note the words, “In the beginning.” Those words take us back to the opening words of the Bible. In Genesis 1:1, we read, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” John tells us that the Word was there “in the beginning.” Note that the Word was not created “in the beginning.” He was already there “in the beginning.” It says that he “was with God.” There is an intimate, inseparable communion with the Father. He is not greater. He is not less. More than that, it says very plainly, “the Word was God.” In this verse, we have the unshakable fact that Jesus, the Word, was God. This is of utmost importance, for only such a one could serve as our Savior. We remember this as we peer into the manger that the little baby is no one less than the eternal God.

His power is also described in these verses, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” (Verse 3) While all three Persons of the Trinity were active in creation, as we see in Genesis 1, our attention is on the Second Person of the Trinity, specifically on his power. The Son of God created all things. This point is emphasized as it says, “without him nothing was made that has been made.” All that exists came about by his power. Since he created all things, he is also over all things. We read in Colossians 1:16, “In him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.” Marvel at this fact, that the almighty God, by whom all exists and for whom all exists, left his throne of glory in heaven to become a helpless, little baby. What child is this that is lying in the manger? This is no one less than the eternal Creator of all things, come down to earth for you.

John goes on to describe Jesus with two interwoven pictures. He speaks of Jesus as Life and Light. These two things belong together for you cannot have life without light. Where you have light, you can have plants. Plants will die without light. So also, all mankind would die if it were not for the Light of the world, Jesus Christ.

John talks about the darkness into which the Light of the world was born. He says in verse 5, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” Later, in verses 10&11, “He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.” There was a great deal of darkness among the people that were there when Jesus came into the world. They were looking forward to the Messiah coming, but the Messiah they wanted was a Bread King, one who would provide for all their wants. They wanted a war hero, an unrelenting rebel against Roman authority. Instead, the Son of God appeared as a humble carpenter’s son from a backwoods, rural village with no formal training in the rabbinical school in Jerusalem. On top of that, he looked them straight in the eye and announced to them, ‘You need me to remove the filthiness of your sins and without me you will burn in hell forever.’ This was not what they were looking for, so they rejected him, handing him over to be crucified. This is what John meant when he wrote, “He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.” They rejected the Light, so the Life was not given to them.

Yet, this condition is not just something that was unique to the people of Jesus’ day. This state of walking about in darkness is how every single person comes into the world. There are many passages in the Bible that speak of us “walking in darkness.” Imagine, if you will, that you were lost in a cave, with no source of light. Somewhere in the cavern, there is a drop off of 200 feet. You would not know about the cliff, until it was too late, and you were falling to your certain death. This is the situation that John is describing all mankind being in. The darkness is the sin into which each of us is born. We would have groped around in that darkness until we fell into eternal death in hell.

Imagine what a foolish and senseless tragedy it would be if cave explorers, who were lost in a deep, dark cavern, were to smash the flashlights of those who came to rescue them. They would be lost forever. This would describe the condition of anyone who rejects Jesus. They will be lost forever. “The Light of the world,” (John 8:12) as Jesus described himself, has come into the world. He has come to show us the way out of that certain death in the darkness of our sins. The way is through Jesus. He is the one and only Light that gives eternal Life. This is the child lying in the manger. He is the Light that gives Life to all mankind.

The work that Jesus had come to do is described in the last verse of our text, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” First, it speaks of the fact that the Word became flesh. The Son of God took on humanity, so that he could serve as our Savior. Yet, as this verse also reminds us, the Word came from the Father. Jesus never stopped being God. This is the type of Savior that we needed. We needed our Savior to be human, so that he would be subject to God’s Law, just as you and I are. Yet, he needed to be God so that he could keep the Law perfectly, which we cannot do. We needed a Savior who could live for us. Secondly, we needed a Savior, who was a human being, so that he could suffer and die. God demands that blood be shed for sin. He tells us that “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23) However, we also needed a Savior who was God so that this suffering and death would count for all people. Everything that we needed in a Savior is what Jesus was. Without him, we would have been lost forever. He came to rescue us.

He came to make us his brothers and sisters. As we read in verse 12, “Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” It was through the faith that the Holy Spirit created in us that we became the children of God. With being a child of God comes many great privileges. We have the right to come to God in prayer and know that he will hear us. We have the privilege of knowing that he will provide for all our needs. We know that he will guide and direct our lives. We are not wandering aimlessly. God has a plan for our lives. We also know that we will be with our heavenly Father and Brother for all eternity. This is who the child is who is lying in our manager. He is our Savior from sin.

That child in Bethlehem’s stall is a study in contrasts. We see a child who was born yet has existed from eternity. We see a child who is weak and completely dependent on his mother yet is the almighty Creator of the universe. We see a child who is meek and lowly yet is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. It is because of the birth of Jesus so long ago in Bethlehem that we rejoice, not just today, but every day. This birth is more than just the precious gift of a baby. This Child is the eternal Creator. This Child is the Light that gives Life to the world. This Child is our Savior. When you go to look into the manger in Bethlehem, this is the Child that you will see. That is who this Child is. Amen.