Hughes John (ESV Edition)

That You May Believe
1. Auflage 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4335-3922-0
Verlag: Crossway
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection

E-Book, Englisch, 528 Seiten

Reihe: Preaching the Word

About John While each of the Gospels presents Christ with a distinct emphasis, the Gospel of John focuses on his greatness-as the timeless Creator-God of the universe, as the Word made flesh, as the gracious lover of our souls, and as the only way to the Father. Instead of detailing the facts and events of Jesus' earthly life, as the other Gospel writers did, John concentrates on the meaning of his words and the message of his works, clearly presenting him as the long-awaited Messiah with one mission in mind: to do the work of the Father who sent him. a Follow along with pastor Kent Hughes in this engaging commentary as he leads you through this magnificent book of the Bible. His careful exposition and wise application will guide you to a richer understanding of not only God's greatness, but of his great goodness to us all. Part of the Preaching the Word series.

R. Kent Hughes (DMin, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School) is senior pastor emeritus of College Church in Wheaton, Illinois, and former professor of practical theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Hughes is also a founder of the Charles Simeon Trust, which conducts expository preaching conferences throughout North America and worldwide. He serves as the series editor for the Preaching the Word commentary series and is the author or coauthor of many books. He and his wife, Barbara, live in Spokane, Washington, and have four children and an ever-increasing number of grandchildren.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Hughes, R. Kent

Leseproben

1

The Greatness of Christ

JOHN 1:1–18

IT IS RIGHTLY SAID THAT each of the Gospels presents Christ with a distinctive emphasis. Matthew emphasizes his kingship, Mark his servanthood, Luke his manhood, and John his Godhood. Certainly all the Gospels present all four truths, but their separate emphases have allowed them unique functions in telling the story of Christ.

John is unique in his powerful presentation of Jesus as the great Creator-God of the universe. His massive vision of Christ has been used countless times to open the eyes of unbelievers to who Jesus is and the way of redemption.

This Gospel’s continuing effect on Christians is equally profound because in John’s account believers find an ongoing source for expanding their concept of the Savior’s greatness. The serious student of John will find that each time he returns to the Gospel, Christ will be a little bigger—something like Lucy’s experience with the lion Aslan (the Christ symbol in C. S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia) as she again gazed into his large, wise face.

“Welcome, child,” he said.

“Aslan,” said Lucy, “you’re bigger.”

“That is because you are older, little one,” answered he.

“Not because you are?”

“I am not. But every year you grow, you will find me bigger.”1

My hope is that as we work our way through the wonders of this book, we will find Christ bigger and bigger and bigger.

The prologue to John’s Gospel (1:1–18) is considered to be one of the most sublime sections in all of Scripture. Some believe it was an early Christian “Hymn of the Incarnate Word,” for Christ’s incarnation is its subject, and it is marvelously poetic. Even more, it introduces us to some of the major ideas of the book: the cosmic Christ who came as light into the world, suffered rejection, but gave “grace upon grace” (v. 16) to those who received him. This hymn gives us a sense of the matchless greatness of Christ (vv. 1–3), the greatness of his love (vv. 4–13), and the greatness of his grace (vv. 14–18).

As John begins this introductory song, the force of what he says is so staggering that the words almost seem to bend under the weight they are made to bear. The opening three verses are an amazingly congealed expression of the greatness of Christ.

The Greatness of Christ (vv. 1–3)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. (vv. 1–3)

Eternally Preexistent

“In the beginning was the Word.” There never was a time when Christ did not exist because the word “was” is in the Greek imperfect tense, which means “was continuing.” In fact, the entire first verse bears this sense. “In the beginning was continuing the Word, and the Word was continuing with God, and the Word was continually God.” Or as one of my friends accurately (though ungrammatically) concluded, “Jesus always was wasing!” That is precisely it. Jesus Christ is preexistent. He always was continuing.

If you are like me, this kind of thinking makes for a super-headache. Our minds look backward until time disappears and thought collapses in exhaustion. Thus we begin our thoughts of the greatness of Christ. (The same thought can be found in 2 Corinthians 8:9, Philippians 2:6ff., and Colossians 1:17.)

Eternally in Relationship

Next the apostle adds, “And the Word was with God.” Literally, “the Word was continually toward God.” The Father and the Son were continually face-to-face. The preposition “with” bears the idea of nearness, along with a sense of movement toward God. That is to say, there has always existed the deepest equality and intimacy in the Holy Trinity.

Again our minds stagger as we think of Jesus as always having continued (without beginning and without end) in perfect joyous intimacy with the Father.

Eternally God

Moreover, as the final phrase of verse 1 adds, “And the Word was God.”2 The exact meaning is that the Word was God in essence and character. He was God in every way, though he was a separate person from God the Father. The phrase perfectly preserves Jesus’ separate identity, while also stating that he is God. This was his continuing identity from all eternity. He was God constantly.

The simple sentence of verse 1 is the most compact and pulsating theological statement in all of Scripture. Jesus was always existing from all eternity as God, in perfect fellowship with God the Father and (though not mentioned) the Holy Spirit. He is the cosmic Christ.

Eternally Creator

Finally, Jesus is the Creator of the universe. “All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.” The fact of Christ’s Creatorship is the consistent witness of the New Testament. Colossians 1:16, 17 says: “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” Hebrews 1:2, 3 adds: “In these last days [God] has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.” Revelation 4:11 states: “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.” Also 1 Corinthians 8:6 says: “Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.”

There are about one hundred billion stars in the average galaxy, and there are at least one hundred million galaxies in known space. Einstein believed that we have scanned with our largest telescopes only one billionth of theoretical space. This means that there are probably something like 10,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 stars in space (ten octillion). How many is that? 1,000 thousands = a million; 1,000 millions = a billion; 1,000 billions = a trillion; 1,000 trillions = a quadrillion; 1,000 quadrillions = a quintillion; 1,000 quintillions = a sextillion; 1,000 sextillions = a septillion; 1,000 septillions = an octillion. So ten octillion is a 10 with twenty-seven zeros behind it. And Jesus created them all!

Not only is he the Creator of the macrocosm of the universe, but also of the microcosm in the inner universe of the atom. The text in Colossians explains that he holds the atom and its inner and outer universe together (“in him all things hold together”).

We can trust such a God with everything. Because he is Creator, he knows just what his creation, his people, need. It was said of Charles Steinmetz, the mechanical genius and friend of Henry Ford, that he could build a motor in his mind, and if it broke down he could fix it in his mind. So when he designed it and actually built it, it ran with precision.

One day the assembly line in the Ford plant broke down. None of Ford’s men could fix it, so they called in Steinmetz. He tinkered for a few minutes, threw the switch, and it started running again.

A few days later Ford received a bill from Steinmetz for $10,000. Ford wrote back, “Charlie, don’t you think your bill is a little high for just a little tinkering!” Steinmetz sent back a revised bill: “Tinkering—$10. Knowing where to tinker—$9,990.”

Only Jesus knows where the tinkering should be done in our lives to keep us in perfect running order. Christ always knows which screw to turn, which belt to loosen, and the most beneficial octane.

He is our Creator. Are you resting in him? Have you entrusted your life to him? Considering the greatness of Christ, nothing else makes any sense at all.

The Greatness of Christ’s Love (vv. 4–13)

The greatness of Christ’s love is apparent from the opening line of John where he is mystically identified as “the Word.” Though much can be said about this term because of its rich history in Greek literature, its main significance here is that Christ has always sought to reveal himself. An interpretative paraphrase could well read, “In the beginning was the Communication.” Ever since man’s creation, Christ has sought to communicate with him in love. That Christ was always “the Word” should remind us that he has always loved us, for the nature of love is to express itself, to find an object.

In verses 4–13 the metaphor of Christ as light stresses the revelation, rejection, and reception of his love as it came to the world.

In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not...