If you’ve been reading, you’ll soon notice that I’ve been putting “word” in quotations. There’s a good reason for this. The Greek word used here is “Logos.” It can be translated as “word,” but there is really much more meaning behind the word.
Think of how language works for a moment. When I say “grass,” I’m really just making a noise. Guh rah ess. The word technically exists (in form of lines and curves, or perhaps mouth shapes and air), but in comparison to the object it is associated with (in this case the green long stuff growing outside), it pales. A word is really symbollic for something bigger than itself. Get it? Grass is a word. But it represents the stuff we walk on.

So think about God for a moment. Can we really even begin to comprehend Him? Not really. The best we can do is the word “God.” So when the author writes about the “word,” think of it as a representation of God. Since the Jews have been the people of God for a long time, Jesus is really just a new aspect of the God they’ve known all along! They are familiar with the Word. It has existed from the beginning. But now it has flesh. They met him. And even more excitingly, the word has joined them! It has gone from the old rules of life, to the walking “word” Jesus, and finally a place deep inside us!

Think of Jesus as the “Word” of God. Get it?

Chris