Passage
No one has seen God at any time. The one and only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has declared him.
John 1:18 (WEB)
Nearby Context
John 1:16 From his fullness we all received grace upon grace.
John 1:17 For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.
John 1:18 No one has seen God at any time. The one and only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has declared him.
John 1:19 This is John’s testimony, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?”
John 1:20 He declared, and didn’t deny, but he declared, “I am not the Christ.”
Study Lenses
The verse centers on "seen", "time", "only", "bosom", "father", and "declared". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "seen" and "time", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The nearby context moves from verse 17's "For the law was given through Moses..." into verse 19's "This is John s testimony when the...", so "seen" and "time" belong inside that flow. In John context, the local focus is the identity of Jesus, new birth, eternal life, and belief and unbelief.
A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "seen" and "time" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.