"The Word of Life and of Light"
Summary
John’s Gospel opens by declaring that the Word — the Logos — was with God and was God, and that this Word became flesh in Jesus of Nazareth. This chapter traces what it means for Christ to be the Word of life and light: he is the living expression of the Father’s wisdom and character, the bread of life prefigured by the manna in the wilderness, and the light of the world that dispels the darkness of the natural mind.
After his wilderness victory, Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit and began to preach: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." (Matthew 4:17)[1] John's Gospel gives the profound theological backdrop: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1)[2] Jesus was the embodied Word of God — not merely a messenger, but the message itself made flesh.
"All things were made through him, and without him nothing was made that was made." (John 1:3)[3] The creative word of Genesis — "God said, let there be light" — was the same Logos who later took flesh. Creation and incarnation are part of one continuous act of divine self-expression.
"In him was life, and the life was the light of men." (John 1:4)[4] Jesus declared himself: "I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." (John 8:12)[5] The spiritual darkness that characterises the natural human mind — unable to perceive divine things — is dispelled only by the illumination that comes from Christ.
Paul saw this as a parallel to the original creation: "For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." (2 Corinthians 4:6)[6] God said "let there be light" at creation; he says it again in the new birth.
Jesus also identified himself as the life-giving bread typeified by the manna: "I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever." (John 6:51)[7] The manna in the ark of the covenant had pointed to the Word stored in Christ — the hidden wisdom that sustained spiritual life. And he declared: "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)[8] Way, truth, and life — three aspects of the one memorial name, fully embodied in the Son.