Imagine Jesus | Gospel of John

Welcome to Real Life. What’s God like? My late friend Bob pictured him as the bald “Mr. Clean” from the detergent bottle.

What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. –A.W. Tozer

Jesus Christ. He’s my savior, my friend, my God. I know him. But not well enough. I want to know him better. Though I’ve never seen his face, I will one day.

John saw his face. As apostle and intimate friend, he knew Christ as well as a person could. In his Gospel, John uses imagery to help us know Jesus too.

WORD

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was 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 1:1, 14 NIV)

Words express reason and thought. Our words reveal who we are, what we’re like. We think in words; our essence is the sum of our thoughts. As a writer, words are my medium. Words holds power to inform, encourage, embolden, heal.

Jesus is the Word. He is the foundation of reason and thought. He mapped out the pathways of our brains and formed our mouths, giving us the ability to express ourselves in words. Jesus Christ walked the earth as the Word—the revelation and physical expression of God. He holds infinite power.

LIGHT

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.
The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.
(John 1:4, 5, 9 NIV)

Light gives life—calling forth a tree from a dead seed in moist soil. After a night in sleep’s womb, light gently awakens us to fresh day possibilities. Light shatters darkness. It unveils what darkness kept hidden: autumn’s crimson leaves, the final pages of my novel, my husband’s adorable smile. 

Jesus is light. He gives life—calling forth eternal citizens from walking dead. He gently awakens within us hope for nothing-is-impossible tomorrows. Christ shatters darkness. No hidden evil resides in him; he is wholly good. He unveils what was once hidden: the person of God.

BREAD

Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life.
Whoever comes to me will never go hungry,
and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
(John 6:35 NIV)

From civilization’s dawn, bread has sustained us. It satisfies the hungry. Nourishes pauper, priest, president. It fuels conquests mighty and minuscule. It appears in many forms—humble cracker to Cinnabon to artisan loaf. Warm bread fresh from the oven comforts us.

Jesus is the bread of life. Before civilization's dawn, he was. He creates and sustains life. He satisfies hungry souls. Nourishes pauper, priest, president. He fuels conquests mighty and minuscule. He appears in many forms—helpless babe to sacrificial lamb to conquering king. Jesus comforts us—promising, “I am always with you.”[1]

John knew Jesus as Word, Light, Bread. Francis Thompson knew him as the Hound of Heaven. C.S. Lewis knew him as the lion Aslan. I know him as:

• Crashing ocean waves
• Warm chocolate chip cookie
• Love ballad
• Broken chain
• Sunburst
• Pristine white paper
• First responder
• Baby’s laughter
• Diamond
• Airline ticket

Sunburst

Dear Lord Jesus,
We want to know and love you more.
We want to worship you in spirit and in truth.
Thank you for revealing yourself clearly in the words of your book, the Bible.
And in this universe you created.
And in our souls you created.
Give us eyes to see you and hearts to respond to you.
Amen.

What images come to mind when you think about God? 

Take it Further . . . Read John’s Gospel.

[1] Matthew 28:20
Photograph of Sunburst over Pymatuning Lake by Calvin Tustan