He Hath Declared Him

The God of heaven came to earth to dwell among men. Our passage of the day talks about this “Word made flesh,” who came to die in our place on a cross.

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John 1:14-18

There are some very significant doctrinal concepts in the chapter we’ll address today
We begin in a verse that effectively reveals the identity of the Word
The One who is introduced at the beginning of this portion of scripture, when it says…

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

The Word is eternal
There from the beginning
With God the Father
Declared to be God himself

This can only be Jesus
And that is made obvious in our passage of the day

Not only do we discover more about our Savior in this text
We find that our Savior reveals His Father
Who, it says in this chapter, has not been seen by man at any time

Yet we know “He Hath Declared Him”
Which is our theme
From John 1:14-18

The God who had no beginning and will have no end dwelt on earth
With those He created
He was seen and known by many

John the Baptist declared His identity
And men committed their lives to Him
Finding in Him grace, truth, and the perfect reflection of the One True God
Sinless, speaking and acting with power and authority

Let’s read these five verses about Him first
Then explain them…

John 1:14-18

14 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.

15 John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.

16 And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.

17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

18 No man hath seen God at any time, the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

When we consider the Savior’s position in heaven
We have a hard time understanding why He would come to dwell with us
Or why He would come to know people that reject Him and violate His commands

But He did come
And He did more than just come
He loved sinners
And then died in our place
Suffering a punishment we should have suffered

This is a kind of mercy and grace and love that could only come from God himself

Let’s talk about this further…

John 1:14

14 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.

It can be easy to overlook the profound truth of these statements
Another New Testament text in Colossians may help us get a better picture of Jesus…

“For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.”

But He became flesh
And dwelt among sinners

And when He did, He revealed His glory
The Only Son of God
Filled with grace and filled with truth

That grace provided the only way for sinners to know God
It led Him to a cross of punishment, having committed no sin
There He died for us
And made a way for our salvation

As Romans 5 reveals…

“For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

God’s chosen man for that time in history declared His identity…

John 1:15

15 John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.

Jesus was greater than John
And came before John
From eternity past

This from the man who was sent by God to “prepare the way”
As the voice of one crying in the wilderness
The Savior is here – He walks among us
He came to save us
To bring us nigh unto God

And He brings abundant blessings…

John 1:16

16 And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.

This Savior, full of grace and truth, from His abundance, provided one blessing after another
He blessed those in His ministry in that day
Providing grace
And blesses all that call upon Him today
With eternal salvation
And abundant life

There is another statement about Him…

John 1:17

17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

The law of Moses revealed to Israel their sin
And for those trying to keep it in any age, it reveals our depravity

Grace and truth come by Jesus
He gives the free gift of salvation
And reminds us that He is our only way of salvation

As Abraham believed God
And it was counted to him for righteousness
He was not justified by the law
So, we are not justified by the law
But by faith in Jesus Christ

The One God sent…

John 1:18

18 No man hath seen God at any time, the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

There are three verses in Hebrews 1 that, perhaps, explain this a little further…

“God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:”

The “express image of His person” it says
Jesus shows us the Father
God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are one
If we know Him
We know the Father

We made a way for us
To dwell with God in heaven, forever

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