That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.  We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.  We write this to make our joy complete. I John 1:1 – 4

If I may, I leave 2 Timothy with all that precious letter stirred in our hearts and minds, to ponder, consider and believe and turn to the faith of another Disciple, John.

He opens his first letter with a paragraph of surprises and assurances. The opening of his first letter is nothing less than a treasure trove of God’s grace and love.

John focuses his attention on Jesus, solely. Who is he? That which was from the beginning. Obviously this means Father, Son and Holy Spirit are co-equal in terms of time, if we can even conceive time as eternal, a thought too lofty for me.  Jesus is not created, HE IS!  He took on a mortal body in order to redeem us for God.  His birth on earth is nothing less than the appearance of Jesus in the form of a human being, a helpless baby.  Amazing. He existed long before that – “in the beginning.”  Think of that!

Jesus is eternal.  Quite a claim for a man born of Mary in Bethlehem that night of nights, under the moon and stars of our small solar system, taking on the form of man in order to rescue the race and turn the hearts of all who will believe, on to God.  Can it be?  And if that is true, what difference does that make?

It makes all the difference in the world. He is God among us! Emmanuel. And his purpose is to open the door to fellowship with the Father for all persons for all time.

This is not a hope or a desire but a reality.  And if a reality we do well to allow it to shape our faith and change our very lives. There is no other. He is the Word of life.  Only Jesus.