JESUS IS “THE WORD”
Commentary
Scripture References
The opening line of John's gospel states, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1). John further declared, "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 1:14).
Many who deny Jesus is God and reject His eternality and incarnation claim “the Word” in John 1:1 referenced God’s spoken words or utterances—not Jesus. They rely on the literal definition of the Greek word for “word” (logos), which means “a word uttered by a living voice” or “what someone has said.” They also use John’s subsequent mention of Creation in John 1:3 to confirm their interpretation since God spoke the world into existence. However, in context, overwhelming and irrefutable evidence proves that Jesus Christ is “the Word” John spoke of in His gospel, invalidating any other possible interpretation or meaning.
The first proof is found in John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” This passage is key because it says “the Word” was in the beginning with God and was, in fact, God. This description is crucial in determining the identity of “the Word” because it does not depict an attribute of God or an act of His divinity. Rather, John equated “the Word” to God Himself.
This Greek word for God (“Theos”) is used exclusively in the New Testament to describe God Almighty—never His attributes or spoken words. Remarkably, it is the same word God used to identify His Son, Jesus Christ, in Hebrews 1:8. It says, “But to the Son He says: ‘Your throne, O God (“Theos”), is forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.’” Paul also referred to Jesus Christ as God (“Theos”) in Romans 9:5, “According to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God.”
John also specified that “the Word” was present in timeless eternity and was with God before anything existed. This statement conveys “the Word’s” eternal nature yet distinction from God the Father. Such a declaration depicts Jesus Christ, who said in John 17:5, “Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.” Paul confirms Jesus’ eternal nature in Colossians 1:17 when he wrote, “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”
The next piece of evidence that denotes Jesus was “the Word” is found in John 1:3, “All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.” John used the pronoun “Him” to identify “the Word” and proclaimed that He was responsible for creating everything. This evidence points to Jesus Christ because God declared of Him in Hebrews 1:10, “You Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the works of Your hands.”
Paul also affirmed this fact about Jesus in Colossians 1:16, “For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.” Additionally, Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Therefore, “the Word” cannot be spoken words but is a timeless, eternal Being—Jesus Christ.
Another proof that Jesus was “the Word” is found in John 1:4, “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.” Once again, John used a pronoun (“Him”) to describe “the Word.” He also revealed that life exists in “the Word,” which denotes Jesus Christ. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” He also said in John 11:25, “I am the resurrection and the life.”
Furthermore, John’s description of “the Word” as the Light of men also points to Jesus, who professed in John 8:12, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness but will have the Light of life.” He also said in John 9:5, “While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world.”
Another piece of evidence pointing to Jesus as “the Word” is John 1:10-11, “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 those who were His own did not receive Him.” This verse is crucial because John directly linked “the Word” to a person who was in the world, who created the world, and who came to His own but was rejected. Only one human fits these criteria—Jesus Christ.
Multiple passages describe Jesus’ rejection by His own people. One is Luke 17:25, “He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.” Another is Luke 4:28-29, “So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.” Again, Mark 6:2-3 records, “Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?’ So they were offended at Him.” Additional passages describing Jesus’ rejection include Mark 6:4, 12:10, Matthew 21:42, Luke 23:18, and Acts 13:38-41.
The final proof that irrefutably confirms Jesus as “the Word” and excludes all other interpretations, meanings, or usages of this phrase is John 1:14, “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.” This passage unequivocally reveals Jesus Christ as “the Word,” for He alone fits the criteria of becoming flesh, dwelling among the Jews, and being the only begotten of the Father.
According to Scripture, Jesus Christ was God who came in the flesh and dwelt among His people. 1 Timothy 3:16 says of Him, “God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory.” Colossians 2:9 states, “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form.” 1 John 4:2-3 reads, “By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God.” Also, 2 John 1:7 states, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the Antichrist.”
Likewise, Jesus is God’s only begotten Son. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” 1 John 4:9 also declares, “By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.” John also testified that Jesus was God’s Son in John 1:34, “I myself have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.”
Therefore, through John’s systematic and explicit unveiling of “the Word’s” identity as Jesus Christ, he pronounced and verified several facts essential to the Christian faith:
Jesus is God (v.1)
Jesus and the Father are God yet distinct Persons (vs.1-2)
Jesus is eternal and was with the Father at the beginning (vs.1-2)
Jesus created all things (vs.3, 10)
Jesus was fully God and fully human (vs.9-11, 14)