Forms of the Word

11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. 12 His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. 13 He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.

John is exclusively the author who uses the term translated “Word” - LOGOS to describe Jesus, however, it was significant in the Greco-Roman thought.

John was primarily influenced by his OT and Christian background, but he would have understood the wider connotations of the term LOGOS and probably used it for the purpose of conveying this additional unique meaning

Greek philosophy of creation - the term LOGOS was used to describe the intermediate agency by which God created material things and communicated with them.

Greek worldview in practicality - the LOGOS was thought of as a bridge between the transcendent God and the material universe.

Christians - identify LOGOS with God’s creative Word and His authoritative Word by which all things are held together

The Word of God as Speech by God

Decrees

Decree - a word of God that causes something to happen.

Genesis 1:3 NASB95

3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.

Genesis 1:24 NASB95

24 Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind”; and it was so.

Psalm 33:6 NASB95

6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, And by the breath of His mouth all their host.

Hebrews 1:3 NASB95

3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

Personal Address

Personal Address - God speaking directly to those on earth

Genesis 2:16–17 NASB95

16 The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; 17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”

Exodus 20:1–3 NASB95

1 Then God spoke all these words, saying, 2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.

Matthew 3:17 NASB95

17 and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”

Human Speech

Human Speech - the word of God spoken through inspired humans

Deuteronomy 18:18–19 NASB95

18 ‘I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. 19 ‘It shall come about that whoever will not listen to My words which he shall speak in My name, I Myself will require it of him.

Jeremiah 1:9 NASB95

9 Then the Lord stretched out His hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said to me, “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.

Numbers 22:38 NASB95

38 So Balaam said to Balak, “Behold, I have come now to you! Am I able to speak anything at all? The word that God puts in my mouth, that I shall speak.”

This is considered by those in scripture to hold the same weight as if God had spoken directly from heaven.

Written Form

Written Form - God’s word recorded in writing

Exodus 31:18 NASB95

18 When He had finished speaking with him upon Mount Sinai, He gave Moses the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written by the finger of God.

Deuteronomy 31:9 NASB95

9 So Moses wrote this law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel.

Joshua 24:26 NASB95

26 And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God; and he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the Lord.

1 Corinthians 14:37 NASB95

37 If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord’s commandment.

The Basis for Theology

Grudem p. 34-35

The written form of God's word is the form that is available for public inspection, for study, for repeated examination, and as a basis for mutual discussion. It tells us about and points us to the Word of God as a person, namely Jesus Christ...

Therefore the Bible is the basis of our study and our Christian living.

Psalm 1:1–2 NASB95

1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! 2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night.

Joshua 1:8 NASB95

8 “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

2 Timothy 3:16 NASB95

16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;

By using the written word of God as our standard, we are following the example of Jesus Himself.

See handout by Wilmington

NOTICE: The Written Word tells us and points us to the Word of God as a person, namely Jesus Christ.

Christological Hermeneutic

John 20:30–31 NASB95

30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.