Everlasting birth and the incarnation of the Son of God.

(John 1:1-14).

        While the Evangelists Matthew and Luke narrate about the earthly birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, Saint John begins his Gospel by expounding the teachings of His everlasting birth and incarnation as the Only Son of God. The first three Evangelists begin their narrations with the event, which as a consequence the Kingdom of Heaven received its beginning in time and space, while Saint John, akin to an eagle, soars to the eternal basis of this Kingdom, observing the everlasting existence of Him, Who only in “these last days” (Hebrews 1:1) became a human.

        The second semblance of the Holy Trinity — Son of God — is named by John as “Word.” At this point, it is important to note and remember that the Greek word “logos,” unlike in the Russian language, doesn’t only mean the spoken word but also thought, reason, wisdom, expressed by word. Consequently, the naming of the Son of God as the “Word” means the same as Him being named “Wisdom” (see Luke 11:49 and Matthew 23:34). Saint Apostle Paul in 1Corinthians 1:24 calls Christ — “Wisdom of God.”

        Undoubtedly, the teachings about “God’s wisdom” is expressed in the same sense in the Acts (see especially the wonderful part in Proverbs 8:22-30). After this it is strange to insist, as some people do, that as if Saint John derived his teachings on Logos from the philosopher Plato and his successors, and in part from Philonus. Saint John wrote about events that were known to him from the Holy Books of the Old Testament. And also about that, which as a beloved disciple, he learned from the Divine Teacher Himself, as well as what was revealed to him by the Holy Spirit.

        “In the beginning was the Word” means that the Word is co-eternal to God. What’s more, Saint John explains further that in respect of His existence, the Word does not separate from God and consequently, It is One Essence to God and finally, he directly calls the Word God: “and the Word was God.” Here, the word “God” was applied in Greek without any co-member, giving rise to the Arians and Origen to assert that the Word is not the same God as God the Father. However, this is simply a misunderstanding. In reality, this hides a most profound conception of the non-confluxion of the three countenances of the Holy Trinity. The absence of a co-member indicates that the dialogue is about the same subject as that of the preceding lines; that’s why, had the Evangelist similarly applied the co-member “o Theos” (in Greek) and in the phrase “The word was God,” then it would have resulted in an incorrect thought — as though “Word” is the same God the Father as is mentioned earlier. Consequently, in speaking of the Word, the Evangelist names it simply “Theos,” indicating by this His Divine quality, but also at the same, underlining that Word has an independent hypostatic existence and not identical to the hypostasis of God the Father.

        As Blessed Theophylact notes that in revealing us the teachings on the Son of God, St.John calls Him Word and not Son, “so that we, having heard of the Son, did not think in terms of passion and carnal birth. He called Him Word, so that you would know that as the word is born from the mind without passion, so is He born from the Father without passion.”

        The words “all things were made through Him” doesn’t mean as though the Word was only an instrument in the creation of the world, but that the world originated from the Primal Reason and Primal Source of all existence (including the Word Himself) — God the Father, through the Son, Who He by Himself is already the source of everything that began to exist (that was made), only not for He Himself and not for the other countenances of God.

        “In Him was life” — here the meaning of the word life is not to be understood in the ordinary sense, but in a spiritual life, that induces intelligent creatures to strive toward the Cause of their creation, toward God. This spiritual life is obtained through the path of communion and unification with the hypostatic Divine Word. Consequently, Word is the source of genuine spiritual life for any intelligent being.

        “And the life was the light of men” — has in mind that this spiritual life that emanates from the Divine Word, enlightens a person with a full and complete guidance.

        “And the light shines in the darkness…” The Word that presents light of genuine guidance does not cease to direct them amid sinful darkness, as the light is not absorbed by darkness: those who persist in sin have preferred to remain in the darkness of spiritual blindness. However, “the darkness did not comprehend it” — did not restrict its activity and dissemination.

        Then, in order to join the people that abided in sinful darkness with His Divine light, the Word undertook extraordinary measures: John the Baptist was sent and finally, the Word became flesh.

        “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John” — “there was” as stated in Greek is “egenetos” (“became”) and not “inos” as enunciated about the Word; that is, John “came to being,” born in a point of time and did not exist eternally like the Word, Who Himself “gives light to every man coming into the world.”

        The world did not recognise the Word, even though it was obliged for its existence. “He came to His own,” ie. to His chosen people of Israel, “and His own did not receive Him.” — of course not everybody.

        “But as many as received Him” with love and faith, “He gave the right to become children of God,” that is He gifted them a beginning of a new spiritual life, which, like a physical one, also begins through birth — although the birth is not from carnal passion but through a higher power, from God.

        “And the Word became flesh.” Here, the understanding of the word “flesh” does not mean the human body alone, but the whole, complete person — in the same meaning as the word “flesh” is often applied in the Holy Gospels (eg. Mat. 24:22). That is, the Word became a complete person, at the same time not ceasing to be God. “And dwelt among us….full of grace and truth.” It must be understood that grace means God’s goodness, as are the gifts of goodness from God, reveal the access toward a new spiritual life for humanity ie. gifts of the Holy Spirit. The Word that dwells among us, was also filled with the Truth — complete guidance in everything that concerns the spiritual word and spiritual life.

        “And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father.” The Apostles actually saw His glory in Transfiguration, Resurrection and Ascension to Heaven; glory in His Teachings, miracles, works of love and voluntary self-abasement. He is — the “only Son of the Father,” for only He alone is the Son of God in essence, by His Divine nature. These words point to His immense superiority over God’s sons and children through grace, the faithful that are mentioned above.