Q. As for today, Dr. Nagi we would like to paraphrase Words of John 1:1, which
says ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God’. Which beginning is being referred to in the Holy Bible?
A.
Before I answer this question, I would like to direct your attention to the
fact that this is one of the most important verses in Christian teaching. It reflects the nature of God Almighty. It is indeed a corner stone of Christian
faith. ‘The beginning’ of which the Gospel speaks in John 1:1 is what is known
as the ageless, before all time, eternity. This goes back to the time when God
Almighty existed. It is also known that God Almighty is ever eternal and
ageless. The word ‘beginning’ here means
before time ever existed.
Q. Genesis, the first Book of the Holy Scripture starts with the
same words, ‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.’ Genesis
1:1. Is there a difference between both
beginnings?
A.
The beginning in the Book of Genesis refers to a specific time, that of
creation of heavens and earth, regardless of how far this time frame is from
today – be it thousands or millions of years.
The point is that on a specific time and day creation started. But as of
Q. John 1:1 says ‘In the
beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God’. What does ‘the Word’ mean and why did God Almighty
use the term ‘Word’ in particular?
A. Reference here is made to the Lord Jesus
Christ, the Word of God, and His essence.
Q. Before you resume, what is your proof it is
that the Lord Jesus whom the Gospel is referring to by the term ‘Word’, and that
it is not meant for anybody else?
A. The verse refers to the ‘Word’ by ‘He’. Had
it meant the spoken word, the Holy Scripture would have referred to the ‘Word’
by ‘it’ not ‘He’. The revelation here is
referring to a living person eternally being with God Almighty.
Q. Why then did God Almighty use this expression
in particular ‘Word’? Why not use Christ saying, ‘and Christ was with God’
instead of the term ’Word’ with all the ambiguity that it carries?
A. As I said in a previous episode, the Gospel according
to
Q. Is it possible
to further explain the power of the word from the Jewish prospective?
A. It is very much like what a Jewish poet said,
‘If you are cautious in dealing with fire, you need to be hundred times
cautious when dealing with words’. For
example the words of Prophet Isaac, while blessing his son Jacob, had the power
to bless him to the extent that no other power could stop the blessing. God
Almighty created the Universe only by His Word.
He said let there be light and there was light? He is the one who says
let there be, and things just happens.
The Almighty says of Himself, ‘Is not my word like a fire? And like a
hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?’ Jeremiah 23:29. When the Old Testament
was translated into the Aramaic language, translators used the term ‘Word’ in
lieu of the name of the Almighty in order that the Hebrews may understand
it. The term ‘Word of God’ was mentioned
about 320 times indicating the Name of the Almighty.
Q. What does the term ‘Word’ indicate in the
Greek language?
A. In the Greek culture, the term ‘Word’ meaning
(logos) is defined by a Greek philosopher called Hiracults as ‘the governor to
all that occurs in the universe’. This philosopher noticed that all that is in
the world is variable: The earth, stars and planets. Everything turn in its orbit - the succession
of day and night, the motion of waters in oceans and seas, and all that goes on
in this spacious universe - nothing is constant. The Greek believed that what governs this
boiling variation is the ‘logos’, the Word of God Almighty which they called
‘the Divine mind’. Even what takes place
within Man: whether it is thinking or differentiating between what is right and
what is wrong, evil and good, all human behavior in general, is governed by the
authority of the ‘logos’. The Jewish philosopher Phylos,
who searched deeply into the Greek philosophy, combined both philosophies and
beliefs, and concluded that Logos existed ever eternally, that through the
Logos the universe was created. He said
that Logos is the mind of God imprinted all over the world. He is God’s means
of creation.
Q. Well you
haven’t yet explained why did the Almighty use this term, ‘Word’, in particular
to refer to the Lord Jesus Christ?
A. This was the term
understood by the Jewish, the Greek and the entire world then. It is out of the graciousness of the Almighty
that He uses analogies and similarities that are perceivable by
Q. Dr. Nagi I know that the Glorious Quoran
described the Lord Jesus Christ using the same term the ‘word of God’; does the
Islamic belief conform in this sense with the Jewish, Greek and Christian
belief? Or do they differ?
A. In this sense, the
Islamic belief differs completely from the other two beliefs. The ‘word’ in the
Quoran means the utterance of God Almighty as He
says: Let there be, and it was. Islam
does not believe that the Lord Jesus Christ existed before all time. Nor does it believe that the Lord Jesus
Christ is related to the process of creation, or the order of the
universe. Moslems believe that Essa is similar to Adam in that both were created out of
dust, and that God Almighty said to both: exist, and it was so.
Q. Dr. Nagi, wouldn’t it be more logic, and more acceptable to the
human mind, to say that Christ – Essa Bin Mariam (Essa son of Mary) is a
Prophet and Messenger of God? That he is
similar to other prophets and messengers; and similar to Adam, created from
dust, where God Almighty said let there be, and they were?
A. This may be true and convincing on a first
whim, but on a second thought, with consideration and thorough studying of
divine facts revealed in the Holy Scripture, the situation is different. It could very well be more acceptable to the
human mind to believe that Christ was created out of dust, similar to Adam. But
what counts is not what is more convincing or conceivable to Man, it is what
God Almighty has revealed in the Holy Scripture: of which no deception has ever
approached. It is that which is revealed
about the nature of the Lord Jesus Christ that counts. Had the Lord Jesus
Christ been created of dust, why didn’t He come of natural parents, why then
did the Glorious Quoran state that He existed by the
Word of God, or even more that He was the very Word of God? I would like to add
that there are so many incidents revealed in the Holy Scripture that are not
perceivable to the human mind, yet we have to accept them no matter how
illogic.
Q. Could you
please give us an example of such incidents in the Holy Scripture?
A. The fall of Man, Adam
and Eve, for instance. This was the very first story that God Almighty ever
revealed to us in Genesis. This story cannot possibly be accepted without
intriguing many questions that have so often confused many. God Almighty had created Man to live and
enjoy the Garden of Eden. And being all
knowledgeable, He knew of Man’s weakness and the evil of the slinking whisperer
inciting them into eating from the
forbidden tree. Why couldn’t He stop
them, knowing Man would be expelled from the Garden as a result of His sin, and
would eat his bread by hard labor and suffering. Why did this story have to happen altogether?
Why did God Almighty create Man from the start?
Why did He create the forbidden tree?
Why couldn’t He stop Man from eating the doomed fruit? Why didn’t He
warn Man, being the Almighty and capable of all things? Why did He allow Satan to tempt them? What use
is it for Men to be created for pleasure and enjoyment, and it all turns out
against him? Many questions arise from this
story that has no answer. Haven’t you
wondered occasionally about all this?
Q. Of course I
did. I believe every body wondered about such questions one time or the other.
A. Have you found a
convincing answer perceivable to human logic?
Q. In fact, I did
not.
A. Did this ever stop you from accepting those
facts, believing that they actually happened? Haven’t you considered them to be
convincing knowing they happened according to God Almighty’s perception of
things? We are convinced knowing that
the Almighty is full of wisdom and that as humans it is not possible to
perceive His absolute wisdom. We are just thankful to him for all that He does
and says.
Q. I do accept
those facts much like all Mankind.
A. It
is similar with all that God reveals particularly those facts related to the
Lord Jesus Christ who is the Word of God, not the uttered Word as is believed
by the Glorious Quoran. But the Lord Jesus is the essence of God, the
mediator, and sustainer of all that is in the Universe. In other words, He is
simply God revealed in human flesh declaring the power of the Almighty, and His
authority over all that happens in the universe and revealing His very
characters and perfection to the human race. The Lord Jesus Christ declares to
us that there is no other God but Allah, and that He is His own Word, essence,
authority, power and person all personalized together and revealed to us in
human form.
Q. Dr. Nagi, if the Lord Christ is
eternal, has existed for as long as God Almighty existed, and He is the Word
and essence of God Almighty (being God’s ruling mind and sustainer of all
things by the might of His power) then we have two alternatives. It is either
that the Lord Jesus Christ is a different person, other than God - we’d
therefore be associating a partner with the Almighty, God forbid, or that the
Lord Jesus Christ is God Himself. In this
case would you please explain to us the words stated in John 1:1, ‘In the
beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.’ They
seem to refer to two people: One being with the other.
A.
First, I would like that we agree on a basic rule as we answer this question:
God Almighty is one; He has none comparable to Him, and none equal to Him in
awe and magnificence. Worshipping other
than Him, or even comparing Him to anyone or anything else is atheism – worthy
of being punished by the Almighty on the great Day of Judgment, where no
mediation or intercession can do any good. This is exactly what the Holy
Scripture asserts on numerous occasions: That our God is one God. ‘You shall
worship the Lord your God and Him only you shall serve,’ Matthew 4:10. There
are many other verses that deliver the same message, leaving no space for doubt
that no other God than the Almighty exists– nor is the Lord Jesus Christ is a
different God than the Almighty. The
three phrases, which seem to be contradictory in John 1:1, are in fact not. ‘In
the beginning’ means eternal, before history and the ‘Word’ is the person of
the Lord Jesus Christ. He said about
Himself, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM’, John 8:58. Then the Lord Christ is the one who actually
existed before all time; He is God almighty. As for the phrase, ‘the Word was
with God’, this does not mean of the Lord Christ is separated from God
Almighty. He is the essence and mind of the Almighty, the identity of God –
having been with God before He shared Himself with us on earth, revealing
Himself to us in human form in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Q. Dr. Nagi, thinking as such is
difficult for humans to understand.
A. But
you realize that it is not against logic and human perception, it is indeed beyond
the limited logic of the human mind; yet it is a solvable problem, should Man
wish to accept it.
Q. How can such a problem be solved? And how can the human mind
accept and comprehend it?
A. First:
a seeker of the truth has to accept the revelation of the Almighty. Receiving truth with predetermined rejection,
not even trying to accept it whether due to fear from researching through any
topic related to God Almighty, or fears of others, is indeed a hindering
factor. It could be that the searcher’s religion forbids approaching such
realms of searching. All this bans Man from understanding, realizing and
believing the truth that God almighty reveals.
Second: God is able to and willing to
list to
Third: A person has to believe whatever
God Almighty reveals in the Holy Scripture. If God Almighty says that His Word,
authority and influence in the universe has been revealed in the human body of
our Lord Jesus Christ on earth, we have no option but to believe Him. But to answer the claim that the Holy
Scripture has been distorted, or altered, I would like to ask a question, ‘Was
it Christians who distorted this portion of the Bible?’
Q. Why not? Now assuming that the Holy Bible has been
distorted, why couldn’t this portion be altered?
A.
Well, for a very simple reason; if someone wishes to distort a fact, he needs
to present it in an acceptable manner, presentable, and in conformity with
sound logic and human perception. But to
distort facts in a manner that causes nothing but confusion, as is the case
among Moslems, Christians, and Jews today, this is indeed absurd. The other reason is that whoever alters or
distorts facts expects to receive some sort of gain as a result, whether it is
material or moral. At least, he will not
take the trouble of distorting a truth knowing it would cause nothing but
trouble. Besides what is in it for
Q. Dr. Nagi, will you please summarize
this topic to us within few simple points?
A. To
sum it up, I would like to say that the Lord Jesus Christ is not merely a
spoken uttered Word of the Almighty. The
Word of God is the governing mind of God Almighty, the One who has the
authority to control the entire universe.
He has always existed before all time - He is God Himself, revealed to
us in human form. We believe that God is
one. He never begets and was never
begotten, and no one is comparable to Him.
We worship One God who is the Almighty, believing that those who claim
there are three Gods are Atheists.
‘In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God’.