• The Bible Studies for Life lesson for Dec. 20 focuses on John 1:1-5, 9-14.
As a child, I enjoyed watching the television show Lassie. The show focused on a beautiful collie who rescued her owners from various predicaments. One talent Lassie showcased was the ability to understand long human sentences whenever dangerous situations arose. Her owner Timmy might say, “Lassie, go get the doctor,” and Lassie would run and fetch the doctor. The story wasn’t logical but quite entertaining. Whatever happened in a particular episode, Lassie always came to the rescue.
We all find ourselves in dangerous situations and in need of rescue. Jesus came to rescue our lives from the danger and gives abundant and fulfilling life.
Jesus is God who created us and gave us life (John 1:1-5)
Have you ever thought about what it was like before creation and before the “in the beginning” of Genesis 1:1 occurred? I imagine darkness, which makes no sense. God is light. What else would be around but light. Still, I imagine darkness. Then, the “in the beginning” happened, and light splashed all across the universe.
John knew about the light of God. He recognized Jesus as the light of God. Jesus came and splashed light all over the place. He knew about light, because he was there when the “in the beginning” occurred.
The light of Jesus shined in the world draped with darkness. The darkness did not comprehend the light. A better understanding is the darkness couldn’t extinguish the light. The light of God is eternal.
You probably have a flashlight around your home. When you use it, a beam of light cuts through the darkness. Light pierces darkness. That’s why we have flashlights and not flashdarks. Nothing can be switched on and cast a beam of darkness.
When you read John’s Gospel, the author uses the term “darkness” to describe an evil environment and not necessarily people. Many people dwell in darkness where danger lurks. Darkness may describe the danger of a relationship, an addiction, a behavior or anything else negative in life.
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God’s light is an invitation to leave the darkness and enter the light of Jesus. Leaving the darkness is a challenge. People get accustomed to the darkness. In the darkness, however, true life never will be found. Life is in Jesus who is the light of the world (John 8:12). Does he light your world?
Jesus came to earth to make us God’s children (John 1:9-13)
From 1854 to 1930, orphan trains ran from the East to the Midwest, Plains and Southwest regions of the United States. These trains helped the street kids of the major cities by giving them another chance. Children who were without parents or who had been abandoned by their parents had the opportunity to escape the street or to leave the orphanage. They were given the possibility of finding a home and a family.
Everyone has had the experience of being left behind or forgotten. Perhaps your birthday was overlooked. Maybe you asked someone to pick you up from a place at a certain time, and they never came for you. Being forgotten feels like being abandoned in a dark place.
Jesus came to cast out darkness and give life. When we feel abandoned, Jesus invites us into his light by asking us to receive him. When we believe in Jesus, we become his children. We’re no longer abandoned and left as orphans in the dark. Darkness is no longer the realm in which we live, for we have a new family and a new home. We’ve been adopted into the family of God.
Being in God’s family means we have new siblings—our brothers and sisters who also have received Jesus in faith. It means we have new resources from the light of the world. We have a new destiny. Our future is secure living in Christ.
Jesus came to earth to bring God’s glory and grace to us (John 1:14)
Thus far, we have made an assumption about the Word, that the Word is Jesus. The reason for the assumption is found in verse 14. The Word who came from God and is God became flesh. Only Jesus fulfills that description; he is the Word.
In the Old Testament, God manifested his presence in the tabernacle. This portable tent-like structure was made to the specifications spelled out in the book of Exodus. In the tabernacle, God’s glory dwelt. His magnificence could be experienced, as he revealed himself in the tabernacle.
John used this concept of God dwelling in the tabernacle to describe Jesus coming to earth. Jesus dwelt—or “tabernacled”—among us. In coming to earth, Jesus revealed the glory of God—his magnificence, honor and renown. The greatness of God is evident in the life of Jesus Christ.
Imagine being alive in the time of Jesus and being able to see him. What do you think you would have seen in Jesus’ face, his eyes, his countenance? John said you would have seen God’s grace and truth.
Lassie seemingly could understand human language in a time of danger. Jesus actually became human and came to earth to be with us. His goal was to rescue us from a desperate situation. John 3:16 states, “ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
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