Question: In the first few verses of John, it seems “the Word” may be talking about Jesus or is the author talking about the Holy Spirit?
Answer: To the readers of John’s gospel, the meaning of his opening statement could hardly be missed, “In the beginning was the Word,” is essentially the same as how Moses opened the book of Genesis, “In the beginning, God created,” and the meaning of both was that “all things came into existence through Him.”
“The Word” is used four times within the first chapter and each time it communicates a vital truth about the person and work of Jesus Christ.
1) “In the beginning was the Word,” clearly denotes the eternality of Jesus. That He has always existed.
2) “And the Word was with God,” describes the distinction between the persons within the unity of the Trinity.
3) “And the Word was God,” affirms the deity of Jesus. That He was, in fact, God, the second person of the Trinity.
4) “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,” describes the incarnation. That the Word, “Jesus” took on a human body. He was the God/man.
John continues to tell the readers about the Word being our Creator. He states, “All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made” (John 1:3). The Apostle Paul reminds us of this great truth in Colossians 1:15-16, “He is the image of the invisible God, the first born of all creation. For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him.” The Holy Spirit communicated a similar truth through the writer of Hebrews, “But in these last days He, (God) has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world” (Hebrews 1:2).
The purpose of John’s gospel should be obvious to the reader before they finish reading chapter 1, but John makes it abundantly clear what he is trying to communicate before he concludes the book. In chapter 20:31, he states, “But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and by believing you may have life in His name.”
John has declared the mystery of the Trinity in what seems to be the fewest words possible. We are invited to meditate upon these statements and respond to them by worshiping our awesome God. The Word clearly refers to God the Son, the second Person of the Trinity, the God/man who was fully God and fully man.