404. God’s Word

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” John 1:1-5.

The Word is Christ. He was in the beginning with God and was God. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. That is why Christ could say: “Before Abraham was, I AM.” The Word was the light of men from the days of Adam and Eve down through the ages until John the Baptist. It was a light that came to people from the outside. People were in darkness and did not receive the Word so that it could come in and take root in their heart and mind. The most God-fearing men and women aligned their lives with the light with which Christ enlightened them, for He was the light of men. Among these God-fearing people were Noah, Enoch, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the prophets, and John the Baptist. When the fullness of the time came, then the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. John says concerning Him: “And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

The Word is the power that creates. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. When everything was created, God could say that it was all very good. But then, through the Fall, Satan entered into people and into the rest of His creation, so God had to say: “Cursed is the ground for your sake.” This curse must now be removed by the same Word, through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Therefore the apostle says that it was the Word of faith that he preached. When the Word enters our hearts by faith, it effectively works there and transforms us into a new creation in Christ Jesus. A division occurs within us—everything that is cursed in us is crucified on the tree of cursing, and our spirit is made alive through the same Word of the last Adam.

In the resurrection, the creation, which came under the curse through the fall of man, will be delivered into the glorious liberty of the children of God. Rom. 8:21. God’s exceedingly great power is clearly revealed in His creation. So it is blatant unbelief that causes people to think that God lacks the power to send His Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and on account of sin to condemn sin in the flesh, in order to liberate them according to the spirit. Jesus did not come in a sinful flesh; He never committed sin. But His flesh was the flesh of the human race since He was born of the virgin Mary. Through His life and His godly fear He brought the whole fall of man to the cross where He put to death the enmity. For it was the seed of the woman that crushed the serpent’s head.

All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and if we say that we have no sin, we make Him a liar. So all people have a sinful flesh, but Christ did not. He had the likeness of sinful flesh. Sin could never be condemned in sinful flesh, but it was condemned in the likeness of sinful flesh. And if sin was to be condemned in this “likeness,” then obviously, the sin had to be there. We can say that the fiery serpents had a sinful flesh, for the people who were bitten by them died from their poison. But the bronze serpent did not bite anyone because it was only the likeness of the fiery serpent. When the children of Israel were bitten by the serpents (sinful flesh), they could look up to the bronze serpent (the likeness of sinful flesh) and remain alive. For the poison of sin was condemned in this serpent.

We understand all this by faith. But the Word did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. These poisonous serpents therefore persecute and attempt to bite those who look up to the bronze serpent by faith, so if possible they can kill them. But praise God, the just shall live by faith.