Fruitful Living
The Word became flesh
• The word of God feeds the soul
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. – John 1:1-2, 14.
INTRODUCTION
John 1 focuses on Jesus’s divinity and role in creation as well as the start of His earthly ministry.
The Word, Jesus, is divine, distinct from God the Father but one with Him. God created everything through the Word. Nothing came into being without His direct involvement.
Life came through Jesus, who provided the light of God’s love and guidance.
As physical light dispelled the darkness on the first day of creation (And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light – Genesis 1:3), so Jesus’s light pierced through the darkness of sin to provide eternal salvation to those who believe in Him.
Although the world had been created through the Word, the world’s people did not recognise or respond to Him. Despite that rejection, some accepted Jesus, believing in Him as Saviour. In addition, John’s gospel also emphasised the humanity of Je sus. By coming in human form, Jesus allowed us to see the glory of God. John the Baptist’s witness proved true as the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus revealed God’s grace and truth. In Him, we find grace, truth, and salvation. Like the first disciples who answered Jesus’s call to follow Him, once Christ changes our lives, we are compelled to live for opportunities to demonstrate the power of the gospel, pointing others to Jesus.
JOHN 1:1-51
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through Him all might believe. He Himself was not the light; He came only as a witness to the light.
The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognise Him. He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him. Yet to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
(John testified concerning Him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) Out of His fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is in closest rela tionship with the Father, has made Him known.
Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in J erusalem sent priests and Levites to ask Him who He was. He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”
They asked Him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No.” Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’” Now the Pharisees who had been sent questioned Him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messi ah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ I myself did not know Him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that He might be revealed to Israel.”
Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heav en as a dove and remain on Him. And I myself did not know Him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”
The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
“Come,” He replied, “and you will see. “So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with Him. It was about four in the afternoon. Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to J esus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).
The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, He said to him, “Follow me.” Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. When Jesus saw Nathanael approach ing, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.” “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”
Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.” Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”
Conclusion
Glory is the weight or importance of God. It is the shining light in which God confronts humans as His way of visible revelation of the invisible God. It is the radiant power of the Creator appearing in creation. It is that which the human eye cannot see without facing death. The radiance of God became visible to humans in Jesus Christ.
John’s Gospel highlights the close and unique connection of Jesus the Son with God as Father. One way of reinforcing this unique relationship by the term ‘only begotten’ or ‘one and only’. Another way of expressing this distinctive relationship of God the Father to Jesus the Son of God is to stress the distinctiveness of their inner involvement. Jesus does this in John’s Gospel. God sends the Son. God loves the Son. The Son depends completely on the Father. The Father, in return, commits everything to the Son. Giving honour to the Son is giving honour to the Father. Jesus declared Himself to be the Son of God or demonstrated Himself to be so by His works. Father and Son share an eternal glory. The entire Gospel of John is written that we might believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
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“There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; no one seeks God. But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ, to all who believe. For there is no difference.” — Rom. 3:10, 21–22 (NIV)
INTRODUCTION
We bring you this week the concluding part of “A Righteousness Revolution,” published last week. For ease of reference, we recap the last paragraph of last week’s article. Please enjoy and pass it on!
THE GOAL OF THIS TRANSFORMATION
What is the goal of this metamorphosis? Scripture states it in a number of different ways, which overlap and can be seen as different ways of expressing the same basic concept. Scripture often does this because our minds are inadequate to comprehend, and our language inadequate to express, the full scope of God’s revelation to us.
TO BECOME LIKE GOD IN CHARACTER
The whole concept can be summed up in the simple and astonishing statement that we are to become like God. Not like God in power; we can never aspire to that, although we can move in much greater power than many Christians have ever imagined. But like God in character.
We are to “put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” — Eph. 5:24; the “new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator” — Col. 3:10. “We, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord who is the Spirit” — 2 Cor. 3:18. “When He appears we shall be like Him” — 1 John 3:2. We are to “participate in the divine nature” — 2 Pet. 1:4. We can have “the mind of Christ” — 1 Cor. 2:16; Phil. 2:5. (Emphasis added in each case.)
Adam and Eve were created in the image of God — Gen. 1:26. With Adam’s Fall, much of that image was lost. But with Christ’s sacrifice for us, those who accept Him as Lord and Saviour can be restored into God’s image.
“Just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man [the first Adam], so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven [the second Adam, Jesus Christ]” — 1 Cor. 15:49.
Jesus said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father” — John 14:12.
We think of this (if we dare think of it at all) as meaning that we can heal, cast out demons and even raise people from the dead. It does mean that, and people who have faith in Jesus Christ are doing that now. But does it not mean more?
Jesus said that He did only what He saw the Father doing and spoke only the words the Father gave Him. Can we, should we, expect to do the same? He said, “I and the Father are one.” Can we expect this for ourselves? He said, “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father” — John 14:9. Can this be said of us?
Paul told the Corinthians that they were “clearly an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart” — 2 Cor. 3:3 (NKJV).
Is this not part of what it means to “be” His witness — Acts 1:8 — so that people can look at us and see Christ? We are to be witnesses by who we are, not just what we say. Jesus expects that there will be something different about us, that people will be able to look at us and know that we are His disciples — John 13:35.
He said of His disciples, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of it” — John 17:16.
His demands are to imitate and model Christ’s behaviour and to be clear reflections of the Lord — Matthew 5:16.
ESTABLISHING OUR ATTITUDE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS
Writing from a prison cell in Rome, the apostle Paul wrote about the attitude a Christian should have: “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ” — Philippians 1:27.
He is telling us that no matter what unexpected disruptions, frustrations or difficulties come our way, we are to respond with a Christ-like attitude.
Paul later writes, “Your attitude should be the same as that of Jesus Christ” — Philippians 2:5. He also encourages us in Ephesians 5:1 to be “imitators of Christ as dearly beloved children.”
As children love to imitate what they see and repeat what they hear, we also are charged to imitate and model Christ’s behaviour and to be clear reflections of the Lord.
Jesus maintained a perfect attitude in every situation because He prayed about everything and worried about nothing. We, too, should seek God’s guidance about every aspect of our lives and allow Him to work out His perfect will without interference.
Jesus’ attitude was never to become defensive, discouraged or depressed because His goal was to please the Father rather than to achieve His own agenda.
In the midst of trials, He was patient. In the midst of suffering, He was hopeful. In the midst of blessing, He was humble. Even in the midst of ridicule, abuse and hostility, He “made no threats . . . and did not retaliate. Instead He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly” — 1 Peter 2:23.
MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS: LOVING MUHAMMAD MEANS FOLLOWING MUHAMMAD
We say: “We love the Prophet.”
Alhamdulillah.
But the real test of love is not how loudly we shout when someone insults him.
The real test is: Do we behave as he behaved?
Allah says: “Indeed, you are surely of outstanding character.” (Qur’an 68:4)
And Allah says: “Indeed, in the Messenger of Allah you have an excellent example.” (Qur’an 33:21)
Therefore, if we claim to defend Muhammad (pbuh) but abandon his patience, mercy, justice and wisdom, we must ask ourselves:
Are we really defending him or are we betraying his example?
AN INSULT DOES NOT MAKE A PRIVATE PERSON A JUDGE AND EXECUTIONER
This point must be understood clearly.
Islam has laws concerning crimes.
Islam has courts.
Islam has legitimate authority.
Islam does not turn every angry individual into judge, jury and executioner.
The Qur’an says: “O believers! Stand firm for justice.” (Qur’an 4:135)
And the Prophet gave severe warnings against unlawful killing.
He said: “Whoever kills a person under covenant will not smell the fragrance of Paradise.”
(Sahih al-Bukhari, 3166)
Therefore, no Muslim should stand in a mosque and mobilize ordinary people to kill another person because of an insult.
That is not prophetic leadership.
That is not emotional courage.
That is not the Sunnah.
And it is certainly not a license for vigilantism.
If an offence has been committed, report it.
If a crime has been committed, let the competent authorities investigate it.
If punishment is legally warranted, let lawful judicial institutions determine it.
The Ghana Police Service has itself reminded religious leaders and the public that freedom of religion or expression cannot be used to justify inciting violence or encouraging people to harm others.
For Muslims, this is not merely a question of Ghanaian law.
It is also a question of taqwā (fear of Allah).
THE PROPHET TAUGHT US HOW TO SPEAK
Allah says: “Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good instruction, and argue with them in the best manner.” (Qur’an 16:125)
This is the Islamic methodology of da’wah:
Wisdom.
Good counsel.
Best argument.
Not abuse.
Not threats.
Not mob action.
Not revenge.
WHAT SHOULD WE DO WHEN SOMEONE INSULTS THE PROPHET MOHAMMED (PBUH)?
Servants of Allah, remember these SEVEN STEPS.
1. PAUSE
Do not react while you are angry.
Allah praises those: “Those who restrain anger and pardon people.” (Qur’an 3:134)
2. VERIFY
Do not forward every video.
Do not believe every audio.
Do not react to an edited clip without knowing the context.
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Allah says: “Then verify.” (Qur’an 49:6)
3. DO NOT RETALIATE WITH AN INSULT
Remember Qur’an 6:108.
We do not insult Jesus (Peace be upon him).
We do not insult Christianity.
We do not insult churches.
We do not insult the Bible.
We can disagree theologically while remaining respectful.
The author is the chief Imam of katamanso Municipal and Certified Counsellor and Governance Exper
