John 1 | Grace

Each day of December, leading up to Christmas, I will be reading one chapter of the Gospel of John and posting a small reflection. If you are looking for a way to prepare your heart for Christmas, I invite you onto this journey with me.

Today, we read John one.

My reflection:

There is so much we could discuss, but I will take note of one verse. Notice verse 16: “From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.”

From his fullness we have received.

In the verse after this, John will say that no one has ever seen God, but Christ has come to make Him known. Have you ever said in your christian life: “It would be easier if I just knew what God was thinking. Or what He was like. Or how He would respond to me…” Well, here in the first chapter of John, you have a key that unlocks deep treasures of the Gospel.

Do you want to know God’s heart? How He is wired, How he responds to people and situations? Watch Jesus, for “He makes him known”. And what is it that John points our attention to? From his fullness we have received.

It is as if the heart of Christ is an overflowing cup that we can receive from.

Grace upon grace. The word often translated from greek to the english “and” is right before this phrase "grace upon grace”. Many translators actually render it “namely”. As if to say, from the overflowing heart of Christ, what we most fully receive is overflowing grace.

He could have put anything here. Authority. Structure. Rules. Peace. But the insight into the very heart of God, John wrote “grace”.

Reflection question:

How might your thoughts of God change when you see that his heart overflows with grace towards you?

Resources for further study:

https://www.crossway.org/articles/what-did-john-mean-when-he-called-jesus-the-word-john-1/

Thankful for Grace,

Josh.