John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God,” and 6:63 says, “The words which I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” Both verses speak of the word. Chapter 1 speaks of the Word that was in the beginning, and chapter 6 speaks of the words which the Lord has spoken to us. What is the difference between the two? How does the Word in chapter 1 become words in chapter 6? Is there a difference in their function? This matter surely requires much study.
John 1 starts with “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Then chapter 6 says that the words the Lord speaks are spirit and life. In chapter 1 the Word is God Himself, and in chapter 6 the words are something that comes out from God. The Word in chapter 1 is a complete entity; however, the words in chapter 6 are in smaller parts. We can say that Word, logos, in chapter 1 denotes “great words,” like an entire lamb, but words, rhema, in chapter 6 denotes “small words,” like many pieces of meat cut from the lamb. This illustration is very expressive. It shows that the Word in chapter 1 is the Lord Himself and that the words in chapter 6 are something that comes out from the Lord. This is the difference between the two.
John 1:1 says, “The Word was God,” and verse 14 says, “The Word became flesh”; flesh refers to Christ. This means that the “great words” in chapter 1 refer to God who became flesh, that is, God in Christ. On the one hand, the Word is God; on the other hand, it is Christ. In chapter 6 Christ became the Spirit through death and resurrection to be “small words” for us to receive. Hence, the words in chapter 6 are Christ who has become the Spirit; they are Christ on the one hand and the Spirit on the other.
The great Word in chapter 1 is God manifested among us as life, but He still cannot enter into us to be our life. When He becomes the small words in chapter 6, He enters into us as life. Here we see the function of the Word and the words: the former manifests Him among us as life, and the latter enters into us as life. A whole lamb can only be displayed among us, but it cannot be eaten. Only when a lamb is slaughtered and processed can it be cut into many pieces to eat. In chapter 6 this “meat” is placed before us for our enjoyment. The “great Word” is displayed for us to see in chapter 1, but the “small words” are for us to eat and enjoy in chapter 6.
The Lamb we see on display outside of us has become “meat” on the table for our enjoyment; these are the different functions of the word. The Word in chapter 1, through the Lord’s death and resurrection, has entered into resurrection to become words in chapter 6 which can be eaten and received by us and can enter into us to be our life and supply.
How do we know that the words spoken of in chapter 6 have passed through death and resurrection? According to 6:55, the Lord said, “My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink.” The separation of blood and flesh indicates death. In verse 63 the Lord also said, “The words which I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” The Lord becoming the Spirit indicates resurrection. Instead of merely reading the black and white letters in the Bible, we need to find their spiritual significance. The Lord can enter into us to be our enjoyment and life because He has passed through death and resurrection, experiencing the separation of blood and flesh. He not only has been manifested among us as life; now He can be eaten, received, and digested by us to become life in us.
In the Gospel of John there are two great turns. The first great turn is the Word becoming flesh, and the second is the Lord becoming the Spirit through death and resurrection; hence, death and resurrection is a great turn. John 14 speaks of the Lord’s going and coming. The Lord’s going is His death, and His coming is His resurrection. The Lord’s coming after His resurrection is His coming as the Spirit into us. In His death He was crucified in the flesh, and in His resurrection He became the Spirit. As the Spirit, the Lord can come into us.
In 14:18 the Lord said, “I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you.” The preceding verse says, “The Spirit of reality...abides with you and shall be in you.” This shows that the Lord comes as the Spirit to be in us. Then verse 20 continues, “In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.” We know that the two references to in refer to the Lord’s resurrection since He also said, “Because I live, you also shall live” (v. 19). Both instances of live refer to His resurrection.
The Lord was referring to His resurrection when He spoke these words in 14:19-20; in particular, the phrase in that day in verse 20 refers to the day of resurrection. In verse 19 He said, “Because I live [implying resurrection], you also shall live.” He spoke of us living because as the “I,” He is living in us. The Lord lives in us so that we may live; therefore, because I live, you also shall live is a matter of resurrection. Verse 20 continues, “You will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.” After resurrection, He can come into us instantly. Verses 16 and 17 show that in His resurrection He became the Spirit to enter into us. This is the reason we say that the Lord as the Word in chapter 1 became flesh and was manifested among us but that He had not yet entered into us. It is not until chapter 14, when He spoke of passing through death and resurrection and becoming the Spirit, that we can see how He can enter into us.
When the Lord was manifested, He was shown and displayed, but He could not be enjoyed by us because He had not yet become our life. It is only after He enters into us that He can become our life. Then it is possible to say that because He lives, we also shall live. He has made it possible for us to also live with Him. It is because He lives in us that we also can live with Him.