The apostle John begins his Gospel with an extraordinary description of Jesus Christ as "the Word" (Greek logos, John 1:1). In the first century, both Greek and Jewish listeners would understand the deep meaning of this title.
Greeks would think of the fundamental forces that sustain the universe. Jews would remember God creating the world by speaking (Genesis 1:3–28; Psalm 33:6, 9). In Jesus' time, the "Word" of God had gained creative personal qualities. Jews saw God's "Word" as another way of speaking about God's "Wisdom." Through Wisdom, God entered the universe, to create the world (Proverbs 8:22–31).
John explains that Jesus shares the same essence or nature as God. The Son existed before time and created everything. John connects the truth that Jesus is God to the ancient Jewish idea of Wisdom. This divine Wisdom, present with God before time, God now reveals in Jesus Christ. In a powerful verse, John writes that this Logos, or Wisdom, became a human person and lived among us (John 1:14). What God is, the Logos is, and the Logos is Jesus Christ.
Passages for Further Study
Genesis 1:3–28; Psalm 33:6, 9; Proverbs 8:22–31; Isaiah 40:8; John 1:1–18; 1 John 1:1; Revelation 19:13