The Thought of God (John 1:1)

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God"

What an amazing statement. This is one of the most quoted verses of all time throughout history. This is how the apostle John starts off his writings. With this deep revelation of who Jesus really is; God.

The gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are called the synoptic gospels because of their parallel writings (similarity). But the gospel according to John is different since it is the one that contains more Christology. It is the one that describes the incarnation in a higher quantity. And it does so in its opening statement; John 1:1:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God"

This article will try to explain the "withins'" of this verse. In contrast with some other doctrinal beliefs, I would like to state that the doctrine of the oneness of God is the one that best explains what this verse really means. And it does so with solid truth of the bible, giving us a better understanding of who God really is, and His purpose.

Many people believe that this verse actually shows another person in the Godhead separate from God and yet still being God (Trinitarian doctrine). Others believe that this verse shows that there is "a God" for they translate this verse in the last clause as "and the Word was a God". The latter believing that this other God is merely a prophet, or another separate person from God. And many other beliefs.

These arguments are incorrect, and it isn't a lack of knowledge but a lack of revelation. For in every one of the previous mentioned arguments a second person or being is presented, calling Him or it "God" thus creating a second God from the God mentioned in the second clause of John 1:1. Thus rejecting and contradicting the whole message of the bible, and that is "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD"

This is where the doctrine of the oneness of God comes into action by revealing what this verse is all about. The incarnation is at the very center of this article. Christology is the study of the relationship between the two natures of Jesus; Deity, and humanity. And it is to notice and remember that this is what actually answers what this verse means, and the problems of different aspects or beliefs people have about the Godhead. The proper way of placing the distinction between Father and Son is the key for the answer in John 1:1

In the Beginning was the Word...

Let's divide John 1:1 into three clauses:

1. "In the beginning was the Word…"

2. "...and the Word was with God…"

3. "… and the Word was God."

In the beginning…

In the Greek is:

en ar-khay'

This "beginning" is connected with the account in Genesis 1:1, where the bible says that "in the beginning God created..."

So the "beginning" in John 1:1 is the same "beginning" in Genesis 1:1. It echoes the beginning in Genesis 1:1. In fact the Greek translation of the old testament in Genesis 1:1 starts with "en ar-khay'" which is the same original scripture of the Greek in the new testament, in John 1:1.

So, the beginning being mention in John 1:1 is the echo of the beginning in Genesis 1:1.

And before I go any further, I have to introduce what is next in this section of this clause.

Was the Word…

en ho Logos (Gk)

In the beginning was the Word (en ar-khay' en ho Logos). The word "Word" here is translated in English from the original word "Logos" which means a thought or a plan.

In other words, John 1:1 says in the first clause; in the beginning was the thought… or, in the beginning was the plan.

We know this beginning to be in the days before creation, or at least at the beginning of creation, according to Genesis 1:1.

Back then, when God was creating or about to create, God thought a plan. "in the beginning was the plan/thought"

Let's keep in mind this "Word" "Plan" or "Thought", which is in John 1:1

Before I go any further, I would like to bring this scripture into the scene. This verse is in the same book, in the same chapter, in verse 14 of the gospel of John. A couple more verses from John 1:1 in John 1:14 it says:

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."

The word "Word" here is the same "Word" in John 1:1. And in verse 14 it says that this Word became flesh, or was made flesh.

This is where we know that the thought or plan that existed in the mind of God, was not another person of the Godhead, or someone else with God.

The thought became flesh. The apostle Paul gives us a better understanding of this in 1Timothy 3:16:

"And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory."

God was manifested in the flesh.

So, in the beginning was the thought. What was the thought? The thought was God, we see this in the 3rd clause; "…and the Word was God."

The thought or plan, was God Himself. In other words, God was thinking about Himself in human form, coming into existence as human, manifesting himself in the flesh (John 1:14), God was manifested in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16). For instance, "I have a plan that tomorrow I'm going to be in Canada". What am I thinking? That someday in the future I'm going to be somewhere else. I have a thought that I'm going to be in Canada, and what am I thinking? I am thinking about myself in Canada. That doesn't mean that my thought is another me next to me, or face to face to me. My thought is abstract, is simply a thought, a plan, my thought is with me, is in my mind.

So, God was thinking of Himself in the world as a human being, not as a Spirit.

And the human form of God was Jesus. Let us not get confuse that just because I say "Jesus" I'm talking about someone else, no. Jesus is just the name of the same God that has always existed, but now taking this name in His humanity. In fact the name "Jesus" literally means Jehovah Savior. So we can conclude that when the "Word" became flesh, or came into exist as human, He took upon the name of Jesus. So the Word is Jesus.

… and the Word was with God…

This is where people get confuse. We now know that the Word was God, with the newly name of Jesus, but the same uni-personal God.

This second clause states that the thought was with God. I do not know why so many people state that this Word was with God as in separation of persons. The doctrine of the trinity stated this. They say that this actually shows that the Word was separate from God and at the same time He was God.

By doing this, they state that Jesus have always existed in eternity with God and the Holy Ghost. Thus creating the belief that there is one God (being) that co-equally exists within three persons (Father, Son, Holy Ghost).

This is quite contradictory. They say that there is only one God, but that, that God is formed of three persons, calling each and every one of them, God (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit). In reality, or terminologically speaking this is not right. I understand that they believe in one God, but the fact of the matter is that if they call every single one of the three persons God, there actually stating that there are three Gods (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit). This Trinitarian doctrine was invented. Calling each of the three persons "God" is actually a form of tritheism.

The Word was with God is not to be understood as "God the Son was with God the Father" like Trinitarians like to express it. But we have to understand that the Word was with God as if the Thought was with God. The Thought of God was the one that was eternal, not the manifestation of it, or a person.

To support their claim, Trinitarians like to translate this into the original Greek, which is:

kai ho logos en pros ton theon

This pros (with), they like to say that means a "face to face relationship".

Pros can mean "face to face relationship" but this is only if the verse is actually talking about another person separate from God.

In other words, if the text would of say "and Jesus was with God" then we can say that this means "a face to face relationship" of Jesus with God the Father.

But that is not what the text says, the scripture tells us that the Logos was with God the thought of God or the plan, was with God. This Logos was not Jesus until it was manifested in the flesh, therefore in the beginning was not another person, but simply the plan that God was going to manifest Himself in the flesh one day. Why? Because God knows everything. He knew that one day He had to manifest Himself in the flesh.

So with this we cannot conclude that pros means "face to face relationship" but it simply means "with" in this verse. For example, if I say, "My hand is with me". I do not mean that my hand is separate and face to face with me, but that is simply with me, attached to me.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God...

… and the Word was God.

In other words; and the thought was God himself. God was thinking about Himself in human form, for what we see in John 1:14 that the thought or the Word was made flesh. And if we connect this with what Paul said in 1 Timothy 3:16; God was manifested in the flesh… then we can now we know that the Word was made flesh, and Paul tells us that that Word was actually God that was made flesh or manifested in the flesh. That is why in the 3rd clause of John 1:1 it is said that the Word was God, because He was thinking of Himself.

Paul understood this, and instead of saying that the Logos was manifested in the flesh, he said that God was manifested in the flesh, why? Because Paul understood what John tried to say, that the thought was God manifesting himself in the flesh.

Let me put this example to better understand that this verse is not talking of another person separate from God. Trinitarians say that the Word was Jesus existing as a separate person from God in eternity, which of course deny the real translation of the word Word which is Logos which is a thought or plan, and instead they just say that the Word is simply the person of Jesus and not a thought or plan. Let's see if what they say is true by replacing the terms in John 1:1 with the terms they would like use:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

In a Trinitarian prospective this verse would read:

In the beginning was the Son, and the Son was with God the Father, and the Son was God the Father.

Trinitarians would not even admit this, since they say that the Son cannot be the Father, so let's change the terms.

In the beginning was Jesus, and Jesus was with the Father, and Jesus was the Father

This is clearly the same scenario, and no matter how you call Jesus, and try to replace the terms. It will always come out with the fact that Jesus is in fact the same as the Father, not as a separate person, but as the same God, simply existing in human form, and still existing as a Spirit like He has always existed.

Let us see how the oneness puts this.

In the beginning was the Logos (Thought), and the Logos, was with God, and the Logos was God.

This Logos being simply the thought or plan, like I said before. It is clearly shown that this plan was God himself manifesting Himself in human form, as we see in John 1:14 and 1 Timothy 3:16

This Logos came to be God in human form with the name of Jesus. So the Logos is Jesus, let us replace now the terms.

In the beginning was Jesus (as a thought, not a person), and Jesus was with the Father, and Jesus was the Father.

This is what the oneness is all about. Jesus is the Son and at the same time He is the Father, for He is the root and He is the Branch. In other words, He is the Father of David, and the Son of David, at the same time.

But if the Son is the Father how is it that Jesus repeatedly claimed a distinction between Him and the Father?

This is simple. Because God has always existed as a Spirit (Which by the way, this is the reason why God is the Holy Spirit as well). So what God did was that He prepared Himself a body (Hebrews 10:5) and manifested all His deity (everything that God is) in that flesh, for in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily (Colossians 2:9). God came to exist not as He has always existed (a Spirit) but now in a different manner of existence (a human existence) and still existing beyond the incarnation, since He is still omnipresent, but only as a Spirit can He be omnipresent. There is a distinction, but not a separation.

So now, we have the same uni-personal God existing as human and still existing beyond the incarnation at the same time. Thus calling his human existence the Son of God, and His existence beyond the incarnation the Father, since His existence beyond the incarnation is pure deity, and His existence as a human is the same pure deity (Col. 2:9) with humanity. And the Name of Jesus is simply the new name of God. This is why the bible talks about Jesus creating the world and creating everything that it was, simply because the name of God is now Jesus. It was not that another person separate from God, who's name was Jesus created everything and the Father did not created anything. But it is that the Father created everything, but since in the new testament the name of the Father is Jesus, the bible states that it was because of Jesus that this creation came to be, simply because the name of the Father is now Jesus (Isaiah 9:6) (John 5:43)

When the Father was creating everything, He already had the thought that one day He was going to manifest Himself in flesh and His name was going to be Jesus, therefore calling the creator Jesus, who is the same Father existing in human form. So the Father created everything, but it is expressed in the bible that Jesus created everything because Jesus is the Father, it is just that in creation the Father was creating everything, as if the Jesus was creating it, because God calleth those things which be not as though they were (Romans 4:17).

And just as God called Abraham the father of many nations, and he did not even had a son yet, and his wife was barren. The same happened with Jesus, when God calls Him the creator of everything even though He was not born yet, or God had not manifested Himself as Him yet, but God was calling the things were not as though they were.

The reason why I bring all this up, is because many people argue that Jesus is eternal, co-existing in eternity with God the Father. They argue that the doctrine of the eternal son is correct because of scriptures like Colossians 1:15, John 1:1, Colossians 1, etc. Where we see Jesus creating the world and "existing in eternity" as mentioned above. But this is incorrect, the answers for this is in the above paragraphs.

Conclusion

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God"

(En arche en ho logos, kai ho logos en pros ton theon, kai theos en ho logos)

God is a God of plans, but the truth of the matter is that God Himself is the plan.

Dr. Jeffers puts it this way:

"… God is the plan… the Logos means the thought, the plan, or the discourse of God. So in the beginning was the plan, and the plan was with God, because the plan was God.

Now the Greeks who believe in "Arete" which means Excellence, they say that in order to have a plan you must have a thought. So:

In the beginning was a thought, the thought was with God, because the thought was God; because God was thinking about Himself.

But the Hebrew says you cannot have a thought without having a thinker, so:

In the beginning was a thinker, and the thinker thought a thought, because the thinker was thinking about Himself."