John 1:1-18 (part 3) – Jesus and Moses
(Matt Koerber)
This is our third and final day looking at the prologue of the Gospel of John. When scholars describe the first eighteen verses as the “prologue” they are making note that these words come to us as editorial comments. They are not located in a particular time or place like the rest of the Gospel, which has a remarkable number of references to time and location. The prologue begins with a perspective on eternity past (“In the beginning”), and moves through the incarnation (“the word became flesh and dwelled among us”), and the ministry of John the Baptist (“he… came to bear witness about the light”.) These eighteen verses are clearly a unit which function as an introduction to John. But because there is so much content packed into this small section we have not only addressed in in the sermon from this past Sunday, but in the first two blog posts.
John 1:1-18 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.
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.
9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) 16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.
One aspect of the prologue which we have not examined so far is the relationship of Jesus to the Old Testament Law. There have been several OT references we have examined (“In the beginning” echoes the words of Genesis 1, and “he dwelt among us” uses the Hebrew word associated with the tabernacle.) In verse 17, John reminds us that “the Law was given through Moses.” He then goes on to contrast this with the way “grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” The contrast between Moses and Jesus is not meant to suggest that there was no grace in Moses. After all, the OT law included many rituals that highlighted God’s gracious provision. For example, the Feast of Passover highlights the way God provided a substitute (lamb) that allowed the sins of Israel to be “passed over” when judgment came on the land.
While the OT Law was not devoid of grace, the primary feature of the Law was its capacity for judgment. This is clearly seen in other NT writing, such as the letters of Paul. He called the Law of Moses a “ministry of condemnation” (2 Cor 3:9), that teaches us about sin (Rom 7), even “holding us captive” as “a guardian” until we could come to Christ (Gal 3). By contrast, the dominant feature of the ministry of Jesus Christ is that he brings an abundance of grace. John tells us that Jesus was “full of grace and truth” (1:14), and that “from his fulness we have all received grace upon grace.” In summary, Jesus brings a power charged deposit of grace through his ministry.
In conclusion, the final thing to consider as we think about the comparison of Jesus and Moses is that Jewish religious practice is an important part of the book. John is specific in telling us that Jesus “came to his own” (1:11), that is, he was a Jewish man who ministered almost exclusively in the presence of other Jewish people. The religious leaders of the Jewish people opposed him, but the disciples were all Jewish and the NT Church starts as an exclusively Jewish community. The conclusion of the Gospel shows that the Church will extend beyond the Jewish people as people from all nations enter through faith in Christ, but it starts off full of Jewish people.
Furthermore, John regularly shows Jesus teaching in the temple. One of his first acts of public ministry was to cleanse the temple, but after that most of his teaching in Jerusalem occurs in the temple – which is where we expect the Messiah to be located. Finally, John pays a great deal of attention to the Jewish feasts as a backdrop. There are references to the Feast of Booths, but the greatest focus is on the Passover Feast. John the Baptist introduces Jesus as the “Lamb of God”, which is a Passover reference. There are nine times that John mentions Passover, culminating in the connection between Passover and the crucifixion.
Keep an eye open for these features as we work through the book together.
Weekly Prayer Focus: Congregational Renewal
Daily Prayer Request: Our Commitment to Prayer. That we would be a congregation that sees prayer as central to our identity and that we would express our dependence on God through regular prayer, especially during this lead up to Easter.