In my last post, I described John’s introduction to his gospel as aesthetic. Unlike the synoptic gospels (i.e. Matthew, Mark, and Luke), the art of what the author is doing here is apparent. Matthew begins with the genealogy of Jesus firmly establishing him within his Jewish roots. Mark gets right to it with the beginning of Jesus’s ministry. Luke takes us back to the circumstances surrounding two miraculous births (i.e. that of John the Baptizer and his cousin Jesus). But John is taking us back to the very beginning of time.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was fully God (John 1:1).

It occurs to me that writing in the first century was a very expensive technology. You couldn’t run down to Staples and pick up a new ream of paper. There were no laser printers and writing utensils must have been in short supply. Therefore, economy of word and thought must have been important. So I’ve got to figure John was very intentional in his choice of topic and words. I see him as an artist used by God to tell us something not found in the other accounts.

Just what is it John is trying to tell us about Jesus? One idea I have is that he is providing his answer to the question: What was it like to actually meet and live with the God of the Universe? For those of us who have ever considered Jesus, haven’t we all wondered what it would be like to meet God in the flesh?

From the Gospels, I see how Jesus was here on a mission to do his Father’s will and offer up his life as a sacrifice on behalf of all who would call upon his name. But at the same time, to hang out with Jesus is to hang out with the One who has created everything. I mean, when the disciples were walking around with Jesus they could have asked him about quantum physics or any manner of modern scientific curiosities, and although he may have redirected them to more pressing topics, he would have known*.

All of this gets me back to what John is saying and how he does it. He’s opening his book with the cosmic, mind-blowing thought that this One who created everything came into the world and lived with us.

Presenting a concept that big seems as though it requires an artistic approach. Therefore he paints us a picture. There is the Word, there is light and dark, there is life emanating from him, and though we may experience darkness the light of the Word shines on never to be mastered by it.

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*When I say “known” here I keep in mind that what Jesus allowed himself to know while Incarnate is up for debat (see Philippians 2:7).