Wise New Year's Resolutions Inspired by John Chapter 1

 

Wise New Year’s Resolutions

The Gospel of John Chapter One provides wisdom for the new year.

Do you have any New Year’s Resolutions yet?  Someone has said that New Year’s Resolutions tend to go in one year and out the other.  And there are several that are common ones that many people make each year such as losing weight or quitting smoking.

Here are a few unique New Year’s Resolutions I found on the internet, perhaps you’d like to give one of these a try this year:  *Spend less than $1825 for coffee at Starbucks this year.  Someone’s New Year’s Resolution was: *1080 dots per inch.  Another one was one word:  *“Sleep”.  *One person said that they resolved to read more – so they got started right away by turning on closed captioning on their TV.  And one ingenious person wrote this one:  *”Protect my internet accounts by outsmarting hackers – change my username to ‘password’ and my password to ‘username’”. 

Then there is the Reader’s Digest cartoon that depicts a homeless man on the street.  He is wearing a disheveled white shirt and ragged tie begging for money.  His sign says, “I hit reply all.”  The New Year’s resolution that went with this was “double check all emails before I send them.”

Actually a few years ago, I found the following to be the most humorous website of all about New Year’s Resolutions, though it is not intended to be funny.  At the top of the webpage it said, “These New Year’s Resolutions are popular year after year.  Find resources to help you achieve your goals.”  And then below, it listed typical resolutions, such as lose weight, drink less alcohol and manage debt.  And you can click on these to get helpful advice and tips from the experts that maintain this sight to help you actually do what you intend and keep your New Year’s Resolution.

I clicked on the link that said “Manage Debt”.  Under that heading it begins by saying the following: “The first step toward taking control of your financial situation is to do a realistic assessment of how much money you take in and how much money you spend.”  What had me dumbfounded however was to consider the source for this site from which such advice was being given.  I found that at: www.usa.gov and it is run by our federal government.   I am not sure if they still have this post up or not.  As I write this the debt clock stands at over 36 Trillion dollars, with annual Tax Revenues at 5.1 Trillion per year.  The national debt comes to over $271,00 per taxpayer.  I find myself wishing our government could follow their own advice!  And I wondered if they had done so, if they might have considered spending tax dollars to run such a webpage a necessary expenditure.

Well, we find ourselves in a culture that is quick to move on from Christmas now, to New Year’s Resolutions and there are Valentine’s Day items in the stores already.  But the church savors the celebration of Christ’s Incarnation for 12 days, until Epiphany on January 6.  And so it is appropriate to explore the wonders of the incarnation as John describes it in the first chapter of his gospel -- though we will find in these profound words of Scripture, relevant help in considering our New Year’s resolutions for the year to come.

John in this passage refers to Jesus Christ as the Word of God.  And much is usually made of how this Greek word, logos was understood in the Greek philosophy.  It refers to a Divine Universal Reason.  But what I want to consider here is the Hebrew understanding of this word.  For there were, at the time of John’s writing this gospel, Greek-speaking Jews.  And John begins his gospel in such a way to command their attention.  “In the beginning…”  This is of course how the first book of the Bible begins in Genesis as God creates the world.

Logos in the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, our Old Testament, has a very interesting usage.  In our modern English speaking world, we tend to think of a “word” as something that communicates meaning, an idea.  We hear it as a noun, as information, as a concept.  But for the Jews, the term word meant more – it was active.  It conveyed a sense of movement and action.  For God’s word spoken in Genesis did more than communicate information, God’s word spoken created.  “And God said, let there be light…and it was so.”

At several points in the Scriptures the logos of God was used to speak of God’s wisdom.  God’s logos, was not just a term that meant communicating information, it was a term that spoke about how to use information wisely, to live a good life.

In the Bible, the Logos of God not only accomplished the acts of creation, the Logos of God delivered His people at many points in their history, and the Logos of God brought righteous judgment.  The Logos of God came upon the prophets such as Ezekiel, Jeremiah and Isaiah giving them understanding.  The Logos of God brought wisdom.  In Proverbs chapter 8 wisdom is personified in a way very reminiscent of John 1, saying, “The Lord brought me forth…I was appointed from eternity, from the beginning, before the world began….I at his side….rejoicing in his whole world and delighting in humanity.”

Thus, for the Greek speaking Jews the Word of God, the Logos of God, had the connotation of God’s wisdom, personified and active among His people.  In John 1:1-18 this term Logos or Word is applied to the eternal Son of God, the Word was with God – thus the Word was separate and distinct from God.  Yet, at the same time, the Word was God.  Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Word of God, becomes flesh and most certainly reveals to us Who God is – what His nature is – the Word becoming flesh does convey information.  But also, the concept of Word conveys action, meaning that the Word of God came not only so that we would know information about God, but that we could know God, even experience God.  The Word of God came not merely to give us information but to lead us and give us the wisdom to live life to the fullest with the information we have.  The Word came not merely to inform but to transform. 

And this challenges us, doesn’t it?  It is so easy for us to fall into the habit of our culture to focus on information.  Our educational system is built around conveying information to students who are expected to memorize the information.  There is so little emphasis given in our schools or in our culture about how to use the information wisely.

I think of the glaring example of this described in the book, Finding God at Harvard, by Kelly Monroe.  It describes a student making straight “A’s” in his ethics class at Harvard, who then precedes to treat the woman who cleaned his dorm room inhumanely, eventually raping her.  He knew the information about ethics, but he had not used that information to live an ethical life.  He lacked wisdom.  You can get straight “A’s” in school and flunk life.  The church should be the place to help parents teach godly wisdom and character to the youth and children.

And yet how easy it is for us to focus only on the information conveyed in the Incarnation.  We can easily focus only on how Jesus shows us who God is.  But the Word of God came not merely to inform but also to transform and impact our lives.

He came to be at our side – to accompany us upon life’s journey – to celebrate our joys with us, and comfort us in times of difficulty.  The incarnation happening as it did in a smelly barn with animals all around means that our God is not off in a remote ivory tower, but instead is willing to get dirty and come down into the mess with us and walk through whatever we face at our side.

We will never fully comprehend the co-eternal, Living and Active Word of God – but it is not an understanding of the incarnation that we need, we need to receive the Word of God, welcome Him into our lives.   John tells us that to all Who receive Him, He gave power to become children of God.  What a promise!  To be adopted into God’s family, as His children.  What a blessing to focus on in the coming new year.  Might we find in this scripture from John 1 some wonderful inspiration for our New Year’s Resolutions for 2025?

I offer you two great examples:  Matthew Henry is known for his massive multi-volume commentary on the entire Bible.  And he was pondering once, the significance of the New Year, and wrote this in his journal on January 1^st, 1705: “Not renouncing, but repeating and ratifying all my former covenants with God, and lamenting it, that I have not lived up more closely to them; I do in the beginning of this New Year solemnly make a fresh surrender of myself, my whole self, body, soul, and spirit, to God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, my Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier, covenanting and promising, not in any strength of my own, for I am very weak, but in the strength of the grace of Jesus Christ, that I will endeavor this year to stand complete in all the Will of God.”

A fresh surrender of the self to God is a great New Year’s Resolution – a great way to seek to know and follow the Living and Active Word of God at your side.

And the second example comes from the writings of 20^th century pastor and theologian, A.W. Tozer, 20^th who said this:  “If you ask God to give you a special message for the opening year, one that will be made seasonable and real in every exigency of unknown future, you will be surprised how faithfully He will fulfill His Word, and how fittingly the Holy Spirit will speak to you of things to come, and anticipate the real needs and exigencies of your life.”

Tozer encourages us to ask God for a special message – something that is unique to your needs and situation.  What would God say to you about your life in the coming year as we are about to launch into 2025?   What word does the Living and Active Word have for you?

I encourage you to pause now for a few moments now, and in the quietness of your heart, pray and ask God for just such a special message for your life.  I remind you that the Holy Spirit is within you.   He is with you.  Ask Him what He wants to say to you about your life in 2025 and then listen, and in the stillness notice what comes to your mind.  Come Holy Spirit.

* * * * * *

The Living and Active Word of God became flesh, coming down to earth, bringing us the wisdom of heaven to enlighten our lives and allow us to experience the Presence of God with us on life’s journey.  It is an incomprehensible mystery – and yet offers practical application for our lives.

Through the ages the words of the Scripture, of John the Apostle, come down to us this day inviting us to receive into our lives the incarnate Word of God.  Will you receive Him by offering a fresh surrender of your life, as you seek His Active wisdom in your life listening for His word for you for 2025?  For nothing less than the blessing of knowing that you are a child of God, knowing that you have Word-Who-became-flesh at your side awaits you!  May the wonder of that truth fill us with thankfulness and joy at the beginning of 2025 and the whole year through.

To Him be the Honor Glory Power and Praise Now and Forever.  AMEN.

This post was adapted from a sermon preached at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Gladstone, NJ, on December 29, 2024.  You can watch the video on St. Luke’s Gladstone’s YouTube channel.