The rural farmlands of southern Indiana were the humble beginnings of life for me and my eight siblings. A quiet country life meant most of our time was spent at home. The typical routine for an evening was to finish chores and homework and then have a free hour or two before bedtime. We had a television set, but it wasn’t on all that often. Many evenings our father would grab a book off the shelf and read to the family. Sometimes it would be chapters from one of his favorite Zane Grey novels or poems from American literature. Sometimes it would be a book of the Bible or printed sermons from the great English “prince of preachers” Charles Spurgeon. No matter the content, our father loved reading to us. And, although many times as a youngster I didn’t appreciate the depth of his desire to share the knowledge and adventure found on the printed page, I now realize how much his insatiable appetite for reading impacted our lives. I find myself longing for those simple evenings when he took us to another place and time, all the while teaching us something about life.
My father has long since passed away, but I can hear him reading as though it were only yesterday. I can vividly recall his voice making its journey line by line and page by page as he would be caught up in his love for the story. Even now, thinking about it comforts me. Recalling his voice reminds me of the story of his life; his likes and dislikes, his dreams and desires. As with all of us, my father’s voice was an audible door through which he revealed his innermost self.
As the Apostle John begins his story of the life of Jesus, he desires to communicate that Jesus is the door through which our heavenly Father reveals Himself to us. So, John uses the imagery of voice to communicate this truth.
“In the beginning was the Word (or Speech)” (John 1:1). “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
Like an artist, John paints Jesus from the specific paradigm of being the “logos” of God; God’s word or speech to mankind. John’s gospel differs in this respect from the other three gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke). John highlights Jesus as the “Voice” of the Trinity. From this unique foundation, John frames the message of his gospel, keeping this motif throughout the book. Notice the way he uses the imagery of voice as he walks through the life of Jesus. He tells us that “the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live” (John 5:25). He also says “all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out” (John 5:28).
As Jesus speaks of being the Good Shepherd, He says His sheep “Hear His voice, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice” (John 10:4–5). As Jesus confronts those who reject Him, He says, “Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot hear My word . . . Whoever is of God hears the words of God” (John 8:43 & 47). These are only a few instances where John uses the imagery of voice to help us understand the unique position Jesus holds: He is the transcendent God who became a man so that God might speak to man (Hebrews 1:1–2).
Jesus is truly a man, yet He is God. As explained in one of the early creeds of the Christian church, the Athanasian Creed, Jesus is co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and the Spirit. We see John emphasizing this truth in his opening three verses.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.
John equates the one he calls the Word (Jesus) with God. He assigns Jesus the attributes of being eternal and self-existent. And goes as far as to say Jesus is the Creator of all that is. But John’s point is not simply to defend the deity of Jesus. He wants us to understand Jesus is the divine Creator revealing Himself to us. The Son makes the otherwise transcendent God knowable and approachable.
Apart from Jesus, the holiness of God prohibits such an intimate communion with man. When Moses asked God to reveal Himself so that Moses might see the fullness of God’s glory, God responded to Him:
“You cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live . . . Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen” (Exodus 33:20-23).
The transcendent face of God, or the fullness of His glory and holiness is unapproachable. Jesus, who is the eternal Creator, took on flesh and became the face of God for us, or as John puts it, the voice of God, so that we might behold God’s glory in Him.
“and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
The Word became flesh, and in becoming flesh, erected a bridge between the Divine and the human. Jesus speaks the Divine into humanity.
What are the implications of Jesus being this “Voice” of the Trinity? First, it enables us to see that God is not silent. We tend to be skeptical. We want to hear a word from God. To know that He is there. We want to be able to grab hold of something tangible if we are going to make such a leap of faith as believing there is a God. But God has spoken to us. He has made Himself fully known in Christ (Colossians 1:19). We need not ask for a small token of something God has already given us the fullness of. He cannot make Himself more visible, He cannot speak more loudly than He already has in Christ. Listen to Him. Hear His voice. It is the voice of the Father.
The second implication is it enables us to see the power and authority of Jesus. There seems to be little doubt in most people’s mind that Jesus is a great religious leader. But many view Him as a great religious leader among other great religious leaders. John would stop us at this point and say, you cannot look at Jesus in this way. He does not belong to any such group because He is unique. Jesus is not simply a man who achieved a level of holiness and love which elevated Him to a divine status. His road traveled the opposite direction. He is eternally God who humbled Himself by taking on humanity, all the while never ceasing to be God. No other person is God who condescended to become man.
The power and authority of Jesus is the power and authority of God. I said earlier that Jesus became a man so that God might speak to man. But He became a man to do far more than just communicate the words of God to man. He came to communicate the life of God to man. As Jesus speaks, His voice brings life. Jesus says in the fifth chapter of John, “an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live” (John 5:25).
Finally, John uses the imagery of Jesus as the Voice of God because that Voice communicates the heart of the Father. If we wish to know God’s heart, we need look no further than Jesus. I grew to know my earthly father’s heart by what he communicated to me through his voice; so is the Heavenly Father communicating His love through the Son. Jesus tells us in the tenth chapter of John that He is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep. His sheep know His voice. It is the voice of the Father. When my earthly father would call me from the back door I would hear his voice and immediately recognize him. His call carried a significance no other man’s call could. It was the voice of my father.
Do you hear Jesus calling you? Do you recognize that voice as your Creator and Redeemer? Do you recognize the power and authority of His call? Do you hear the heart of the one who is speaking life to you?
John 10:27-30 – 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.
