The Word Became Flesh
And made his home among us!
A programming note: During these twelve days of Christmas, Jesus Daily will be simple and focused on the nativity stories and entrance passages of Jesus in the gospels. On January 1, with the new calendar year, we will add readings from another biblical book to go along and carry us as well, finding parallels between the two. We will again read the whole of the gospels within this calendar year (invite your friends!). We’re beginning with Luke this time around and will pair it with his second volume, the book of Acts. That will begin January 1. For now, enjoy a slower pace with these first six days of Christmas focusing on Matthew & John’s Jesus-entrance passages.
John 1:1-18
Biblical scholars hold firmly that John’s gospel1 was written last and quite well after Mark, Matthew, & Luke. John seems to be comfortable that the birth of Jesus was covered enough by other gospel writers. John’s intent in writing the gospel of Jesus is quite different, approached somewhat sequentially, but more focused on theme and theology.
He gets right at it in chapter 1, verse 1. And what a powerful entrance: Word, beginning, God, being, life, light, world, belief, blood, grace, truth, glory…in the flesh.
We won’t get to it until later in 2024 as a whole, but John’s gospel leans heavily on all these themes introduced in the very first passage. Read it slowly this Christmas Day and be grateful for such proximity to the heart of God: Jesus.
John 1:1-18
In the beginning was the Word
and the Word was with God
and the Word was God.
The Word was with God in the beginning.
Everything came into being through the Word,
and without the Word
nothing came into being.
What came into being
through the Word was life,
and the life was the light for all people.
The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness doesn’t extinguish the light.
A man named John was sent from God. He came as a witness to testify concerning the light, so that through him everyone would believe in the light. He himself wasn’t the light, but his mission was to testify concerning the light.
The true light that shines on all people
was coming into the world.
The light was in the world,
and the world came into being through the light,
but the world didn’t recognize the light.
The light came to his own people,
and his own people didn’t welcome him.
But those who did welcome him,
those who believed in his name,
he authorized to become God’s children,
born not from blood
nor from human desire or passion,
but born from God.
The Word became flesh
and made his home among us.
We have seen his glory,
glory like that of a father’s only son,
full of grace and truth.
John testified about him, crying out, “This is the one of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is greater than me because he existed before me.’”
From his fullness we have all received grace upon grace;
as the Law was given through Moses,
so grace and truth came into being through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God.
God the only Son,
who is at the Father’s side,
has made God known.
Prayer2
God,
You have given your only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him,
and to be born this day of a willing young woman:
Grant that we,
who have been born again and made your children by adoption and grace,
may be renewed this day by your Holy Spirit;
through our Lord Jesus Christ,
to whom with you and the same Spirit be honor and glory,
now and for ever.
Amen.
A reminder: While most biblical scholars don’t hold that John himself sat down and wrote his gospel, but rather it was perhaps drawn from his teachings about Jesus and written by the Johannine community that followed him. Regardless, we will here use the simplicity of using John’s name when considering the act of writing.
Adapted from the Book of Common Prayer, Contemporary Collects: The Nativity of Our Lord: Christmas Day, page 213.
Merci! The Light shines powerfully through your work. Viens Seigneur Jésus!