Bible Conference ‘06: Dr. Bauder – “Let us adore Him”
This is number 2 in a summary of the BJU Bible Conference messages.
The Sunday evening message was brought by Dr. Kevin Bauder, president of Central Baptist Theological Seminary. He preached from John 1:1.
John 1:1 shows us three things about Jesus, the Word.
- His Eternity – He is the eternal One (“in the beginning was the Word”)
The word was does not mean “came to be,” it means “always existed.” Likewise, the word begetting does not and cannot mean “beginning.” (Acts 13:33). Also, the word beginning is indefinite; whatever point you consider “the beginning,” at that point the Word already was.
This has a theololgical implicatation – The Word is self-existent. He doesn’t depend on anyone or anything; He is the source of all things. This then has a practical ramification: If He is the source of all things, including life, if we want that life we must get it from Him. - His Trinity – He is the other One (“and the Word was with God”)
The Word is with God, there is something that is God that is not the Word. Our finite minds cannot grasp a three-person single being, but that’s what God is.
What exactly does the word with mean? In Greek, the language of the New Testament, there are several words for with. The one used here is the most intimate one, pros (????), it can literally mean, “face to face with.” What are the Father and the Word doing together? They are fellowshipping and enjoying one another’s presence. He is also resting from His creative work (Gen. 2:2-3).
There is also a practical ramification of the Word being with the Father. He is our intercessor and advocate “with” God. He is Someone Who is God Who stands between us and God. - His Deity – He is God (“and the Word was God”)
Dr. Bauder related a story of an oppotunity he had to witness to a Jehovah’s Witness (JW). JW’s believe, due to their theology that Jesus is not Jehovah, that the last phrase of John 1:1 should be translated “and the Word was a god” because the word God (theos) lacks the definite article (english: the) in the Greek. Dr. Bauder showed this JW three other instances in John 1 (John 1:6, 12, 18) where God (theos) lacks the article, and the JW agreed that these 3 places referred to Jehovah.
The fact that there is no article, does not mean that God is indefinite (a god), but it instead means that the Word has all the qualities or essence of God, and obviously One Who has all the qualities or essence of God is God. It could not be a definite article because then it would mean that the Word and God are completely equivalent, and this is not the case because there is a part of God that is not the Word (the Father and the Holy Spirit).
Disclaimer: This is my unofficial summary of the message; it may or may not be entirely accurate as to what the speaker actually said. Any errors are almost certainly the fault of my summary, not what the speaker said.
