John 1:1-5

John 1:1-5:

These verses form the opening of the Gospel of John’s prologue, introducing Jesus Christ as the eternal “Word” (Logos). 

It declares that the Word existed from the beginning, was with God, and was God Himself. 

Through the Word, all things were created, and nothing exists apart from Him. 

In Him is life, which serves as the light for humanity, and this light shines in the darkness without being overcome by it. 

This passage emphasizes Christ’s divinity, role in creation, and His life-giving illumination.

John Calvin, in his commentary on the Gospel of John, reflects on these verses: 

“In this introduction he asserts the eternal Divinity of Christ, in order to inform us that he is the eternal God, who was manifested in the flesh… By these words, therefore, the Evangelist assures us that we do not withdraw from the only and eternal God, when we believe in Christ, and likewise that life is now restored to the dead through the kindness of him who was the source and cause of life, when the nature of man was still uncorrupted.” 

Reflection:

John 1:1-5 reminds Christians that faith in Jesus connects them to the eternal Creator, offering a foundation for identity and purpose. 

In daily life, this encourages believers to live as reflections of His light amid darkness—through acts of creation, compassion, and truth—resisting despair and drawing others toward the life found only in Christ. 

It calls for a transformed existence, where recognizing Jesus as divine empowers overcoming personal and worldly shadows.

The Promised Child

The incarnation is not merely a historical event but the fulfillment of God’s eternal decree, where the Triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—works in perfect harmony to redeem His people. 

The Old Testament prophecies shimmer with divine promise, pointing unerringly to the Messiah who would come to crush the serpent’s head (Genesis 3:15) and establish an everlasting kingdom. 

Consider Isaiah 7:14: “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” 

This foretells the miraculous virgin birth, where God Himself enters humanity to dwell among us, bridging the chasm of sin through sovereign election and irresistible grace.

Echoing this, Micah 5:2 proclaims: “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.” 

Here, God’s plan unfolds from an unlikely village, underscoring His choice of the humble to confound the mighty, much like His election of sinners for salvation not based on merit but on His unchanging will.

Yet, perhaps no prophecy captures the majesty of Christ’s birth more profoundly than Isaiah 9:6-7: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.” 

This child is none other than the eternal Son of God, incarnate to fulfill the covenant of grace. 

He is not a mere human king but the divine Sovereign whose rule extends over all creation, securing total redemption for His people through His life, death, and resurrection.

John Calvin, in his commentary on this passage, beautifully expounds its Christ-centered depth: “He describes a child that was afterwards to be born… In Christ are hidden the invaluable treasures of wonderful things… We must meet with the majesty of God in him.”  

Calvin reminds us that these titles reveal Christ’s deity and His role as the Mediator, far surpassing any earthly figure like Hezekiah, and pointing to the eternal, unchangeable government that only God incarnate could establish.

Reflection: 

In light of these prophecies fulfilled in Christ’s birth, believers are called to live with profound assurance in God’s sovereignty. 

Knowing that the Prince of Peace has come to rule our hearts eternally, we must surrender daily to His government—repenting of self-reliance and resting in His grace alone for salvation. 

This means pursuing justice and righteousness in our lives, families, and communities, not out of legalistic effort but as fruits of the Spirit’s work within us. 

Amid the world’s chaos, let us proclaim this gospel of sovereign love, finding joy in the knowledge that our King, born in Bethlehem, upholds us forevermore, drawing us into deeper communion with Him through Word, sacrament, and prayer.

Pointing to Jesus (Exodus 29)

Summary:

Exodus 29 details God’s instructions to Moses for consecrating Aaron and his sons as priests to serve in the tabernacle. 

The process involves washing them with water, dressing them in sacred garments, anointing them with oil, and performing sacrifices: a bull as a sin offering, a ram as a burnt offering, and another ram as an ordination offering, where blood is applied to their right ear, thumb, and big toe, and parts are waved before the Lord. 

They eat portions of the offerings, and the consecration lasts seven days with daily sacrifices. 

The chapter ends with ongoing daily offerings to sanctify the altar and affirm God’s dwelling among Israel.

Pointing to Jesus:

One clear example of how this chapter redemptively foreshadows Jesus is in the sin offering’s requirement to burn the bull’s remains outside the camp (Exodus 29:14), symbolizing the removal of sin and uncleanness. 

John Currid explains this as pointing to Christ: “The act of burning the carcass of the animal sacrificed as a sin offering outside the camp of Israel provides an interesting backdrop for a statement made by the author of Hebrews. He says, ‘For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin, are burned outside the camp. 

Therefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people through his own blood, suffered outside the gate. 

Hence, let us go out to him outside the camp, bearing his reproach’ (Heb. 13:11–13). The picture is astounding! 

Jesus, because of our sin, suffered outside the camp / gate—he, metaphorically, went to the place of the unclean and defiled, and he took upon himself the curse that we deserve. 

He was sinless, yet he went to the cursed place for us!” 

Reflection:

Exodus 29’s emphasis on consecration—being set apart through cleansing, anointing, and sacrifice—mirrors the Christian’s call to holiness. 

Just as the priests were dedicated for service to God, believers are sanctified by Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice, empowered by the Holy Spirit (the anointing oil) to live as a “royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9). 

This encourages daily surrender, reminding us that our lives are not our own but consecrated for worship, service, and communion with God amid a broken world.

Pointing to Jesus (Exodus 28)

Summary:

Exodus 28 details God’s instructions to Moses for creating sacred garments for Aaron, the high priest, and his sons to wear while ministering in the tabernacle. 

These include the ephod (a vest-like garment with onyx stones engraved with the names of Israel’s tribes), the breastpiece of judgment (with twelve precious stones representing the tribes and containing the Urim and Thummim for divine guidance), a blue robe with bells and pomegranates on the hem, a checkered tunic, a turban with a gold plate inscribed “Holy to the Lord,” and linen undergarments. The garments, made from fine linen, gold, and colorful yarns, symbolize holiness, glory, and dignity, consecrating the priests for service.

Pointing to Jesus:

The high priestly garments in Exodus 28 typologically foreshadow Jesus Christ as the ultimate High Priest, who perfectly fulfills the role Aaron shadowed. 

One key example is the breastplate and shoulder stones, which bear the names of Israel’s tribes, symbolizing the priest’s intercessory burden. 

John Calvin comments on this as pointing to Christ: “Christ deigned to ingraft us into this body, in Him we are precious stones… In his one person they were all a kingdom of priests… fulfilled in Christ.”  This reflects how Jesus, as our High Priest (Hebrews 4:14-16), bears believers before God, interceding perfectly and granting us access to the Father through His righteousness alone, not our merits.

Reflection:

Exodus 28 reminds Christians that, as a royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9), we are called to live holy lives, “clothed” in Christ’s righteousness rather than our own efforts. 

Just as the priests’ garments covered them for sacred service, believers rely on Jesus’ atoning work to approach God, encouraging us to intercede for others, pursue purity, and reflect God’s glory in daily worship and community.

Pointing to Jesus (Exodus 27)

Summary:

In Exodus 27, God instructs Moses on constructing key elements of the tabernacle’s exterior. 

This includes the bronze altar for burnt offerings, measuring five cubits square and three cubits high, with horns on its corners and a grate for the fire. 

The chapter also details the courtyard surrounding the tabernacle, enclosed by fine linen curtains hung on bronze pillars with silver hooks, spanning 100 cubits long, 50 cubits wide, and featuring a gate with embroidered screens. 

Finally, it commands the Israelites to provide pure beaten olive oil to keep the lamps burning continually in the tent of meeting.

Pointing to Jesus:

Exodus 27, particularly the altar of burnt offerings, typologically foreshadows Christ’s sacrificial death as the perfect atonement for sin. 

As John Calvin explains in his commentary: “The altar of burnt-offerings reminds that the flesh must be burnt by the Spirit for men to offer themselves to God, acknowledging under type that the flesh of Christ must become a perfect victim for propitiation, offered through the Spirit (Hebrews 9:14).”   

This aligns with emphasis on Christ’s substitutionary atonement, where He fulfills the Old Testament shadows as the sovereignly ordained Lamb of God, securing redemption for the elect through His once-for-all sacrifice.

Reflection:

This chapter underscores the holiness required to approach God’s presence, reminding Christians that true worship begins with atonement—pointing to our reliance on Christ’s cross as the “altar” where sin is dealt with. In daily life, it calls us to live as a “living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1), maintaining the “light” of faith through the Holy Spirit’s illumination, while the courtyard’s boundaries encourage separation from the world and communal devotion in the church.

Pointing to Jesus (Exodus 26)

Summary:

Exodus 26 provides detailed instructions from God to Moses for constructing the Tabernacle, the portable sanctuary for Israel’s worship.

 It describes ten inner curtains of fine twined linen embroidered with cherubim in blue, purple, and scarlet, joined by gold clasps; an outer covering of eleven goat-hair curtains; additional layers of rams’ skins dyed red and badger skins; upright acacia wood frames overlaid with gold, set in silver sockets and connected by bars; a veil of similar embroidered linen to separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place, hung on gold-overlaid pillars; and a screen for the Tabernacle’s entrance made of embroidered linen on pillars.

Pointing to Jesus:

The Tabernacle’s design typologically foreshadows Christ as the ultimate dwelling place of God with His people, emphasizing imputed righteousness and atonement by grace through faith. 

One example is the innermost curtains of fine twined linen, symbolizing Christ’s perfect righteousness credited to believers (Rom. 3:22-26). 

As theologian Ervin N. Hershberger explains in Seeing Christ in the Tabernacle: “Non-Christians never see the inner beauty of Christ. They may see Him as an ordinary man (leather), or perhaps as a good man and a spiritual leader (fine leather). 

But looking deeper, we find Christ to be the Blessed Redeemer – the atoning Sacrifice (rams’ skins dyed red) – by whom God can justly redeem fallen man from human failure and sin (goats’ hair curtain). 

Jesus Christ is the ‘righteousness of saints’ (ten curtains of fine twined linen), bringing home ‘to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish’ (Eph. 5:27).” 

Reflection:

This chapter reminds Christians that just as the Tabernacle was God’s holy dwelling among Israel, providing a structured way to approach Him, Christ now tabernacles in believers through the Holy Spirit (John 1:14; 1 Cor. 3:16), making us part of His body, the church. 

It calls us to live with reverence for God’s presence, pursuing holiness in worship and community, while resting in the access to God secured by Christ’s atoning work, which tore the veil of separation (Heb. 10:19-22). 

This fosters a life of gratitude, obedience, and mission to reflect God’s glory in the world.

Pointing to Jesus (Exodus 25)

Summary:

In Exodus 25, God speaks to Moses on Mount Sinai, instructing the Israelites to bring voluntary offerings of precious materials like gold, silver, fine linens, and spices to construct a sanctuary where God can dwell among them. 

The chapter details the blueprint for key furnishings: the Ark of the Covenant (a gold-covered acacia wood chest with cherubim on its mercy seat to house the tablets of the law), the table for the bread of the Presence (also gold-overlaid, for displaying twelve loaves symbolizing Israel’s tribes), and the golden lampstand (a seven-branched menorah to illuminate the holy place). 

God emphasizes that everything must be made according to the heavenly pattern shown to Moses.

Pointing to Jesus:

One key example is the mercy seat on the Ark of the Covenant, which served as the place of atonement where blood was sprinkled to cover Israel’s sins, pointing forward to Christ’s propitiatory sacrifice. 

Reflection:

Exodus 25 reminds Christians that God desires to dwell intimately with His people, not in a physical tent but through the indwelling Holy Spirit in believers, who together form the body of Christ (the church). 

This calls us to offer our lives as “living sacrifices” (Romans 12:1)—giving generously of our resources, time, and talents to build up God’s kingdom. 

Just as the tabernacle’s precise design reflected God’s holiness, our daily lives should pursue purity and obedience, allowing His light (like the lampstand) to shine through us in a dark world, fostering community and worship centered on Christ’s presence.