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Who Jesus Really Is: Jesus is the Eternal Word (Part 3)

Never forget darkness is not an entity itself, but the condition of being without the Light. Darkness is the spiritual emptiness created by sin.

 

John 1:1-5 - 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

 

Does darkness scare you? Ever since I was a boy, I have been terrified of darkness. I thought that when I grew up, I would not be scared of darkness, but it has not changed. When I moved out of the city, it took me over two years before I was brave enough to go into the backyard in the dark after a certain hour. I think this is because I was born and raised in a large, busy city that was never quiet or dark. As much as I am terrified of darkness at night, I am more terrified of the spiritual darkness that in talked about in John 1:4-5.

 

The problem is that physical darkness can be unsettling, but spiritual darkness is worse because it can go undetected. People need to know that spiritual darkness is why the world is the way it is, why there is no peace in the world, in families, and even within ourselves. Since they live in a dark world filled with confusion, moral decay, fear, and hopelessness, and search for meaning in relationships, careers, possessions, and pleasures, they remain unsatisfied.

 

This was the opening message of John 1:1-5 to its original audience, a mixture of Jews and Gentiles who were searching for the meaning and purpose of life. In this dark world, led by the Spirit, John took them to a time when time and space did not exist and introduced them to the source of creation, the Eternal Word, logos, who was with God and was God, and nothing that is created was created without Him. In doing so, he focused on the preexistence of Christ, the preeminence of Christ, and the power of Christ over this dark world. Today, we cover the third idea, Christ’s power over darkness— the darkness of the mind, heart, or soul.

 

The big idea is, without the power of Christ, our whole being, that is, our minds, hearts, and souls, remain in darkness. The question is, what is this power and how do we get it so that darkness cannot overcome us?

 

Christ’s Power

 

John 1:4-5 reads, “4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” The “Him,” here, refers to the Word, in Greek, logos, which we have already established is Jesus.

 

The argument in verse 4-5 is, Jesus is the unquenchable, unconquerable, and unfathomable Eternal life-giving light that shines in the darkness. The text moves from the preexistence and preeminence of Christ to His power over darkness because John intends to show the connection between the need of the eternal divine Jesus and our human need for a savior who is eternal.

 

The Bible teaches that ever since the fall in Genesis 3, everyone is born in darkness and has become darkness themselves. Ephesians 5:8 says, “for at one time you were darkness” and Colossians 1:13 tells us that we were under the domain of darkness.

 

Logically, therefore, a world that permeates darkness, in and of itself, is darkness; it cannot offer salvation from darkness, and the fruit of it, which is envy, hate, sexual immorality, and murder.

 

If you want to see the list of the fruit of darkness, read Ephesians 5. The solution there in Ephesians and here to the problem of darkness comes from outside of this dark world, space, and time. This was an important distinction for John’s Greek and Jewish audience because they were looking for answers in this dark world through philosophy and religious human works.

 

John’s message was clear; the world is the problem and it said with absolute certainty that no matter how deep the darkness gets, it cannot overcome the power of Christ because He is God’s man, God’s solution to the problem of darkness, and that He is God Himself who is the source of life and light that guides us to God Himself.

 

What we have in John 1:4-5 is the first appearance of the complete gospel, the good news that describes how Jesus is the source, sustainer, and Savior of life.

 

Jesus is the Source of Life

 

The first part of John 1:4 says, “In him was life.” That means Jesus is not just transmitting life, but rather He is the source of it. If there is any life in the universe whatsoever, it finds its origin in Jesus, and not some big bang theory because He is the eternal life that always existed and brought all life into existence. The Greek word for “life” here is not the usual word, bios, from which we get “biology,” referring to physical existence; rather, it is the word zoe— a term for God’s essential, spiritual, and eternal life. Though Jesus is the origin of all life, the focus of verse 4 is on Him being the eternal life. Darkness can overcome what is physical and created, but it cannot overcome what is eternal. In other words, we may suffer pain, face injustice, and death, but if Jesus is in our lives, we have eternal life.

 

I was talking to a sister who has been dealing with a health problem that has no cure. I prayed with her that God may give her endurance. If we have eternal life, sometimes in this life, all we need is endurance which only Jesus can give. Our text tells us He is the source of your life, and you matter to Him. If Jesus is the source of both bios for physical life and zoe, spiritual and eternal life.

 

Application

 

Jesus should be our primary connection for all decisions related to life and death. That means we must stop relying on our own small batteries of willpower and emotion to run our lives. We need to plug into the source. We do that by spending more time in and with the Word rather than the world. How much time did you spend last week in the Word?

 

Jesus is the Sustainer of Life

 

John 1:4b-5a, in the NIV, says, “and that life was the light of all mankind.” In this particular case, I like the NIV over the ESV because Jesus is not the source and sustainer of life only for believers but for all mankind, whether they believe in Him or not.

 

I have had conversations with people who say they don’t believe in God. It doesn’t matter whether they believe in God or not; still, God is sustaining them. It is like not believing in oxygen yet breathing it and living because of it. Jesus is the life and the light of mankind.

 

Those who receive eternal life, Jesus sustains them eternally. John 1:5a, “5a The light shines in the darkness.” The verb tense for “shines,” is present, active, and continuous. This life-sustaining light of Christ is persistent, no matter how dark the world becomes. Since He is the eternal source, He will sustain us eternally; that starts here. In the created order, there is nothing that illustrates the eternal source that sustains eternally.

 

Application

 

No matter what comes against you, if you have Jesus in your life, not only will Jesus sustain you in your most chaotic, most broken, and most hopeless situation in this life, but also in life hereafter. He saves us and guides us by the power of the Holy Spirit to glory through sanctification.

 

Jesus the Savior of Life

 

John 1:5 says, “5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” The Greek word for “overcome” is katalambano, which carries two powerful meanings, and both speak to the absolute triumph of Jesus over darkness, whether of mind, heart, or soul.

 

  • The first meaning of katalambano is to grasp, seize, or extinguish. God wants us to know that darkness has failed, and will always fail, to extinguish the life-giving light of our Savior Jesus, unto the salvation of mankind. That means nothing can stop people from coming to Jesus.

  • The second meaning of katalambano is to comprehend, understand, or mentally grasp. That means people on their own cannot comprehend who Jesus really is. God has to draw them to Jesus, the source, sustainer, and savior of life, because the darkness has darkened their minds, hearts, and souls.

 

Darkness of mind. It is the intellectual darkness and can be synonymous with confusion, error, and blindness to God's truth and purpose. On one hand, such a mind cannot grasp the gospel, the good news, and on the other hand, it believes in falsehood. First Corinthians 1:18 says, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” The Holy Spirit can transform our minds.

 

Darkness of heart. It is the moral darkness, evident in immoral behavior, evil actions, and spiritual corruption. It causes our hearts to choose sin over the Savior and hide sinful deeds from the Light of Christ because, as it says in John 3:19, “men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.” Only the Holy Spirit can convict our hearts.

 

Darkness of soul. It is the darkness that symbolizes alienation from God. It is the condition of life apart from the light of Christ. Ephesians 4:18 says, “They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God,” and 1 John 5:11-12 says, “… God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”

 

When our minds and hearts turn from the Creator to creation, we lose our moral compass and spiritual sight, and the darkness of the soul blinds us to God’s holiness, our sinfulness, and His grace. As a result, some of us reject the Jesus who is the eternal life, and live openly in rebellion to God, and others try to hide their sins with moralistic makeup.

 

Darkness is not only committing evil deeds and choosing sin, but it is also being self-righteous and legalistic; moralism is the cause of this. Moralism is a disease that has no cure, and it leads to self-deception and self-righteousness. Instead of gospel transformation, it seeks moral modification by one’s own efforts, which makes them their own saviors; that is the darkness of mind, heart, and soul.

 

Application

 

Choose Jesus the eternal life because there is nothing more precious than Jesus, more powerful than Jesus, and more personal than Jesus. When we choose Jesus, we choose the source of eternal life, sustainer of life, and the savior of our lives.

 

Closing Thought

 

As I close, I want to challenge you. If you are struggling with a deep personal darkness— a fear, a grief, a doubt— do not try to fight the darkness alone. Open the window of your heart and the eternal life-giving light of Jesus will shine and will continue to shine through eternity.

 

Action Step

 

If you want the unquenchable, unconquerable, and unfathomable Eternal Light to never stop shining in the darkest hour of your life, then let Jesus save you and sustain you. He is here, willing to shine into the very corners of your personal or collective gloom.

 

Appeal

 

Never forget darkness is not an entity itself, but the condition of being without the Light. Darkness is the spiritual emptiness created by sin. It is the pain of despair, the fog of confusion, the bondage of addiction, and the chill of grief.

 

The good news is that Jesus is the source, sustainer, and savior of all mankind, but the bad news is that unless we receive Jesus, our souls remain darkened and under the judgment of God.

 

Do you want to avoid the darkness of mind, heart, and soul? Do you want to escape the judgment of God? If the answer is yes, then let the source, sustainer, and savior of your life enter your life to transform your mind, heart and save your life.

 

Study Questions

 

  1. What keywords stand out to you in John 1:4–5? Why? 

     

  2. John uses the word zoe for “life” instead of bios in John 1:4. What difference does this make in understanding the kind of life that Jesus gives?

     

  3. What did John mean by calling Jesus “the light of men” in John 1:4?

     

  4. What tense is used for the word shines in John 1:5? Why might that be significant?

  

Application Questions

 

  1. Where do you see darkness (confusion, sin, despair) most clearly in our world today? How does Christ’s light shine into that darkness?

     

  2. How has Jesus brought light into a dark area of your own life?

     

  3. Believers are called to reflect Christ’s light (Matthew 5:14–16). How can you practically shine His light in your home, workplace, or community this week?

 

Equipping Resource

 

  1. Read the article in the link: https://jewsforjesus.org/learn/the-trinity-based-on-the-hebrew-scriptures

     

  2. What insights from the article might be helpful in sharing your faith with Jewish people?


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