Quote Originally Posted by natureisawesome
junkyard:



several times. How about I am the way, the truth and the light. And the I am statement, he conceded right there. And in the above post I made. And others I believe.



It says he is the word not has the word.
??God is love? (1 John 4:7-17) Love is the very essence or ??Spirit? of God, and Christ was the manifestation of that essence. Jesus was God??s only begotten son; the fullness of God dwelt within His human body. (Colossians 2:9) This does not suggest that Christ was God himself, but rather a vessel of God??s spirit. Born of the flesh and of the Spirit, Christ possessed both a divine nature and a human nature. He experienced the human struggle fully, yet through the indwelling of God??s Spirit, he was able to conquer the carnal attributes of his flesh .

(John 1:1-14)

1. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2. The same was in the beginning with God.
3. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4. In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
6. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
7. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
8. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
9. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
10. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
11. He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
12. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
13. Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
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.

The scripture quoted above speaks of the Word of God and its manifestation in Christ, the only ??begotten?? of the father. When reading these passages, it is helpful to keep in mind that when Christ taught, he did not teach of himself, (The man) but of the father that dwelt in him. (The Spirit) This helps to form a more accurate view when discerning Johns teaching on the Word, imo.

Christ himself speaks of the Word as being something he possessed rather than something he was; this suggests to me that Jesus was not the literal Word, but rather a vessel for the Word.

John 5:24 24.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

John 8:31-32

31. Jesus therefore said to those Jews that had believed him, If ye abide in my word, then are ye truly my disciples;
32. and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Christ speaks of God??s ??Spirit? in John 14, which again, is the fullness of God that dwelt within him bodily. Christ and the father were in complete unity through this spirit, and of one accord. (See also: John 10:30)

(John 14:10-11)

10. Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
11. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake.

Those who embrace God??s word are made clean through its power. Christ speaks of this to His disciples whom had received it in heart. They followed Christ in truth, becoming one with Him, and in unity with the spirit that dwelt in Him. We are to do the same, becoming Christ??s disciples also. We are to worship God in the beauty of holiness, and in spirit, and in truth. Only with a pure love can we do this.

(John 15:1--17)

1. "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.
2. Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
3. You are already made clean by the word which I have spoken to you.
4. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.
5. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
6. If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned.
7. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you.
8. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples.
9. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you; abide in my love.

10. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love.
11. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.
12. "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
13. Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
14. You are my friends if you do what I command you.
15. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.
16. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide; so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
17. This I command you, to love one another.

Christ tells us above to abide in his love, which is God??s ??Word?, whereby we are made clean, becoming his disciples. This was stated previously by Christ in John 8:31-32 "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free." God??s word is His Spirit, which manifest itself in Christ. Born of this Spirit, (God??s essence) Christ commanded that we love one another as he has loved us. Paul also speaks to this in Ephesians:

(Ephesians 3:14-19)

14. For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,
15. from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named,
16. that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with might through his Spirit in the inner man,
17. and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love,
18. may have power to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth,
19. and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

The only way to comprehend God??s fullness, is by experiencing His love on a personal level. Through His love we die to our natural selves and become a new man ??created?? in the likeness of God. We die to that which harms us inwardly, and to the things which cause us to offend others. We in short die to sin, and to the roots thereof. We can accomplish nothing of ourselves, but through the Spirit, we become new creatures in Christ.

Christ is our salvation, but he wasn't God, imo. He was God's only 'begotten' son, full of God's Grace and Truth.


Junk