Day
One: John 1:1-5 In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He
was with God in the beginning. All things were created through Him, and apart from
Him not one thing was created that has been created. Life was in Him, and that
life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness
did not overcome it.
WHEN PEOPLE THINK ABOUT JESUS there are many different
pictures that come to mind.Many of them are ridiculous.For instance, He is often pictured as a mild-mannered,
European, blond-hair, blue-eyed, well-groomed man.In reality, we know that He was Middle Eastern.Further, the Bible says He wouldn’t
have stood out in a crowd based upon His appearance alone.Perhaps the real Jesus wouldn’t make a
good picture to hang on our church walls!
We often produce and embrace these images of Jesus based on
what we want to see.We make Jesus in our image.The fault with this process is simple: It is impossible for
us to imagine an image of Jesus that is anywhere close to as great as He really
was.So
how do we begin to think rightly about the image of Christ? By turning to the
Scriptures!
John tells us that Jesus is the eternal Word.That image of Jesus may not hang on the
church walls, but it does say something powerful about Jesus.Think about what you do with a word.You interact with it.You receive it and you respond to it.
Fundamental to Jesus’ nature is His desire to be in a
relationship.Communication,
which entails receiving and responding to a message, is a necessary component
of any relationship.Notice the connection between these truths: Jesus is the
Word, and the Word is meant to be received and responded to.This connection teaches us much about
who Jesus is and how He interacts with us.
PAUSE AND REFLECT
▷▷Why are inaccurate depictions of Jesus so common?
▷▷What would an accurate depiction of Jesus look like?
▷▷Why is it important to have a right depiction of Jesus?
▷▷What
does depicting Jesus as the “Word” communicate?
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