Why did God give us the Bible anyway? Was it just a matter of showing us right from wrong? Was it created as a guide for living as we should? Or does it go beyond that? One thing that “stunned” me in my search for the truth about God and the Bible was that the Word of God is not just words. In the book of John it reads,
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1 KJV)
This seems to be telling us that God was called the “Word” “in the beginning”. Remember that the first verse of the Bible starts with “In the beginning…” when describing God’s creation of the Heavens and the Earth. This seems to be stating that “The Word” existed before God created the heavens and the Earth and that “the Word” was “with God”, and is a being because it says He in fact was God. But why would this scripture exist? It seems to be just calling God by a different name. So why write this Scripture in the Bible anyway? Later in the book of John it becomes clearer when it states,
“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.” (John 1:14 KJV)
The only being “with God” in eternity past who became flesh is Jesus the Christ, the Messiah. As part of trinity of God (God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit), Jesus was the Son of God who became a human being to save the world by His act of atonement on the cross. So “The Word” in John 1:1 is Jesus before He became human, in eternity past. Jesus is called “The Word” in His per-incarnate state of being. And it says “in the beginning” as to show us that Jesus was the part of the Trinity that created the heavens and the Earth. Jesus did not come into existence at his human birth. He existed BEFORE the creation of the universe! He was God who became flesh (human). Jesus Himself acknowledges this to be true in the Scriptures.
“For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me.” (John 5:46 KJV)
Where did Moses write about Christ? Wasn’t it God the Father that spoke with Old Testament believers? There are some verses of Scripture that indicate that this is not be the case at all.
“No man hath seen God at any time, the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, HE HATH DECLARED HIM.” (John 1:18 KJV)
“And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.” (John 5:37 KJV)
If this is the case, who was the Angel of the Lord in the Old Testament Scriptures? Who was the Angel of the Lord during the Exodus? Who was the God of the burning bush that Moses encountered? If you look at the Scriptures regarding the Exodus God makes it clear who He is when Moses asks God:
“And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?” (Exodus 3:13 KJV)
Here we see Moses asking what God’s name is. And so God answers him,
“And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you.”
(Exodus 3:14 KJV)
This makes it clear that the Old Testament God Head of the Trinity during the Exodus was called “I AM”. So who is the I AM of the God head? Father, Son, or Holy Spirit? Jesus Christ Himself gives us the answer in the book of John when he says,
“… Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am..” (John 8:58 KJV)
Jesus tells us clearly that He is the “I AM” of the Old Testament! Christ was the pillar of fire by night and the pillar of clouds by day (Exodus 13:21). Jesus was the person of the Trinity of God that led the Israelites out of Egypt during the Exodus. If we look in the book of Genesis we see the story of how Sodom and Gomorrah was destroyed. The sudden appearance of three men caught the attention of Abraham as it reads,
“Then the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. 2 So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground.” (Genesis 18:4 KJV)
We see here that these were not just three men arriving near their tent. There was something stunning about these three. In fact, Abraham knew they were not just men because as they approached closer we see Abraham “bowed to the ground” . This is why it reads “the Lord appeared to Abraham…” One of these three visitors was the Lord. It was Jesus Christ Himself in his preincarnate form of “The Word”. It was the part of the Trinity known as “The Son”. Many Christians believe that God the Father is the Lord Almighty in the Old Testament and Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit in the New Testament. However, the Scriptures clearly state that it was God the Son, the “Word”, in both the Old and New Testament.
“I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.” (Jude 1:5 KJV)
Of course, this is in the literal sense. Because we know that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are all God almighty together, one God and each are completely equal. So it was really all three persons of God in that sense. But it is also clear in Scripture that each part of the Trinity does take on specific tasks. After all, God the Father and the Holy Spirit did not become flesh and die on the cross, Jesus Christ, the Son did that. And when the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles in the upper room, it was clearly the Holy Spirit sent for that occasion. And Jesus said He would send the helper (Holy Spirit) to dwell in us starting at Pentecost. And for those wondering about the other two individuals in the Sodom and Gomorrah story; the other two appear to be Angels. Angels often appear as men on Earth as we see throughout the Bible. In the book of Hebrews it reads,
“Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” (Hebrews 13:1-2 KJV)
We often think from the human point of view until God shows us the truth in the Word of God, the Holy Bible, and then our eyes start opening to the reality and truth. The entire Bible, both New Testament and Old Testament are all focused on ONE CENTRAL BEING and He is Jesus The Christ, the Savior of the world.
