I believe Jesus to be God's Son. When he was on earth he was himself in human form. I wanna break down what I get from John 1:1. I'm gonna use quotes from the KJV.
John 1:1 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
Besides Jesus always refering to God as the father and him as the son Take a look at this scripture.
Psalms 90:2 "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God."
Basically what I get here is that God had no beginning and he will have no end. You can substitute everlasting to a infident amount of time. It's hard to grasp that as a human cause we all have a beginning. I don't know if you've ever been told or thought that God had no beginning but I'd like to know.
When it says" in the beginning was the word", It's talking about Jesus christ but he couldn't be God because he had a beginning.
This is a reach at best you are reading more into the verse than is there. The verse means He (Jesus the Word) was always there with God and HE (Jesus the Word) is God. I have never heard any other interpretation except for those non-trinitarian groups who are so vexed by it that they intentionally mis-translate the verse. Verse 2 says He (Jesus the Word) He was in the beginning with God, again as you said a finite human mind cannot comprehend the infinite nature of God so John worded it the way he did. John wrote the first 5 verses of his gospel as a direct refutation of this line of thinking.
Col 1:15 "Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature"
Then we go back to John 1:2 and 3. I'm gonna quote from the NKJV because it may be easier to understand.
2 "He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made."
This goes along with Colossians because it shows that he was the firstborn of all creation. God's first creation.
So based on these two points It's impossible to say that the word as described as Jesus Christ is god almighty.
FRomThe Watchman Expositor:
Linguistic Context
The argument that "firstborn" means "firstcreated" in Col. 1:15 can seem true when one considers the pool of meaning for the word (although "first offspring" would better reflect the meaning of the Greek word used here: prototokos). "First created" is one of the many, and even more literal meanings of the word. The problem is that the context clearly shows that "first created" was not Paul's intended meaning in Colossians.
Paul uses the same basic word for "all things" in vv.16-17 as he used in his expression "every creature" (all creation) in v.15. Syntactically then, Paul says Jesus existed before (v. 17), created (v.16) and sustains (v.17) that set of things of which he is the "first born" (v.15), i.e., the set of "all creation." This agrees with John, who says, "In the beginning was the Word (literal Greek "...was existing the Word." John's use of the imperfect tense shows continuous duration of existence in the past).... All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made" (John 1:1,3).
If Paul had meant "first created" when he wrote prototokos, at Col. 1:15, then his following statements make Christ Himself a part of those very things which Paul says Christ created and sustains, and before which He existed
After research I found this this book
The Four Gospels Harmonized and Translated, by Count Leo Tolstoy. It was published in 1895. I have a quote from it.
"If it says that in the beginning was the comprehension, or word, and that the word was to God, or with God, or for God, it is impossible to go on and say that it was God. If it was God, it could stand in no relation to God."
So maybe the translation is saying the word is a kind of God or is of God. It is confusing and I always have more reading to do but Like I said based on the other points I believe it makes it impossible to say Jesus is God.
I don't think the apostle John would say that someone "the word" was with some other individual "god" and at the same time was that other individual. You know what I'm saying?
I have a 10 volume set of books called the Ante Nicene Fathers which compiles all the writings of the early church writers I will post a few of their opinions on the subject of Jesus deity. There are literally thousands of lines of their writings that I can quote but time won't permit it. I am fully aware that these are not scripture but seeing as how these men are so close to the Apostolic fathers, Iranaeus for example was a disciple of Polycarp who was a disciple of the Apostle John, it stands to reason they were taught the Apostles teachings. So with apology to the good Count the Early fathers disagree with him, so who am I to believe?
The Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus
I do not speak of things strange to me, nor do I aim at anything inconsistent with right reason; but having been a disciple of the Apostles, I am become a teacher of the Gentiles. I minister the things delivered to me to those that are disciples worthy of the truth. For who that is rightly taught and begotten by the loving Word, would not seek to learn accurately the things which have been clearly shown by the Word to His disciples, to whom the Word being manifested has revealed them, speaking plainly [to them], not understood indeed by the unbelieving, but conversing with the disciples, who, being esteemed faithful by Him, acquired a knowledge of the mysteries of the Father? For which reason He sent the Word, that He might be manifested to the world; and He, being despised by the people [of the Jews], was, when preached by the Apostles, believed on by the Gentiles. This is He who was from the beginning, who appeared as if new, and was found old, and yet who is ever born afresh in the hearts of the saints. This is He who, being from everlasting, is today called the Son
150 AD Justin Martyr "Christ is called both God and Lord of hosts." (Dialogue with Trypho, ch, 36)
150 AD Justin Martyr: Therefore these words testify explicitly that He [Christ] is witnessed to by Him who established these things, as deserving to be worshipped, as God and as Christ (Dialogue with Trypho, ch. 63)
170s AD Athenagoras: That we are not atheists, therefore, seeing that we acknowledge one God, uncreated, eternal, invisible, impassible, incomprehensible, illimitable, who is apprehended by the understanding only and the reason, who is encompassed by light, and beauty, and spirit, and power ineffable, by whom the universe has been created through His Logos, and set in order, and is kept in being--I have sufficiently demonstrated. [I say "His Logos"], for we acknowledge also a Son of God. Nor let any one think it ridiculous that God should have a Son. For though the poets, in their fictions, represent the gods as no better than men, our mode of thinking is not the same as theirs, concerning either God the Father or the Son. But the Son of God is the Logos of the Father, in idea and in operation; for after the pattern of Him and by Him were all things made, the Father and the Son being one. And, the Son being in the Father and the Father in the Son, in oneness and power of spirit, the understanding and reason (nous kai logos) of the Father is the Son of God. But if, in your surpassing intelligence, it occurs to you to inquire what is meant by the Son, I will state briefly that He is the first product of the Father, not as having been brought into existence (for from the beginning, God, who is the eternal mind [nous], had the Logos in Himself, being from eternity instinct with Logos [logikos];
180 AD Irenaeus (Quoting John 1:1) "’...and the Word was God,’ of course, for that which is begotten of God is God." - Against Heresies, Book I, ch. 8, section 5
180 AD Irenaeus "Christ Jesus is our Lord, and God, and Savior, and King." (Against Heresies, Book I, ch. 10, section 1)
180 AD Irenaeus Christ Jesus, the Son of God, because of His surpassing love for His creation, condescended to be born of the virgin." - Against Heresies, Book III, ch. 4, section 2
190 AD Clement Of Alexandria "This Word, then, the Christ, the cause of both our being at first (for He was in God) and of our well-being, this very Word has now appeared as man, He alone being both, both God and man" (Exhortation To The Heathen, ch 2)
Hippolytus "He who is over all, God blessed, has been born, and having been made man. He is God forever. For to this effect John also has said, 'Which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.' And well has he named Christ the Almighty." - Against Noetus, Part 6
"The Logos is God, being the substance of God." - Refutation of all Heresies, Book X, ch. 29.
"For Christ is the God above all..." - Refutation of all Heresies, Book X, ch 30.