God the Father and the Holy Spirit are both named in Creation, but I want to know where Jesus' involvement was. I have been comparing Genesis 1:1-3 with John 1:1. If Jesus is the Word, and if God spoke words to bring forth creation, then are the words He spoke the name of Jesus?
In your study of Genesis 1 and John 1, you are moving in the right direction, though you have not come to the right conclusion. John constructed his Gospel to demonstrate Jesus as the fulfillment of various Old Testament pictures. Most of the chapters in his Gospel mirror an Old Testament story to show Jesus as the fulfillment of that Old Testament account.
In Chapter 1, John shows Jesus to be the fulfillment of the Creation account in Genesis 1. Notice John begins his Gospel echoing the words of Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning…” Next, John compares Jesus to light entering darkness, just as the Creation account begins with light and darkness.
Furthermore, John begins calling Jesus “the Word,” which further connects us to Creation in Genesis 1. In the Creation account we’re told that God speaks everything into existence, which is to say the Creation was brought into existence by God’s word.
From these details, a pattern emerges which Paul confirms in Colossians 1:
Col. 1:13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,
Col. 1:14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Col. 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
Col. 1:16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things have been created through Him and for Him.
Paul tells us that Jesus was creator of all things, the Person of the Godhead Who did the work of creation. This is the final piece in our puzzle. Let’s review the details again:
- Jesus is the fulfillment of Genesis 1 (i.e., the details of Genesis 1 point to Jesus)
- Genesis 1 says God the Father and Spirit were both present at Creation.
- And John 1 says Jesus was also present at Creation, calling Jesus “the Word” to mean the One Who spoke Creation into existence
- Paul also says Jesus was the One Who created all things
Therefore, John 1 was written to explain that Jesus was the One Who spoke at Creation. It was Jesus Who said “Let there be light…” and so John calls Jesus the Word to make clear that Jesus was the Creator. Even though Jesus is not mentioned by name in Genesis 1, John’s Gospel tells us that Jesus was present at that moment. In fact, He was the One speaking!
