Jesus embodies all of the grace God has for you and me. John the Beloved says within the Gospel of John, “Jesus represents the fullness of the Father’s grace and truth” (John 1:14).
Jesus is just not only a truth-teller but a grace-giver. Most of us struggle to present grace and tell others the reality concurrently, but not Jesus. He is most known for the phrase, “I let you know the reality…” and He is most seen as one who gives grace.
Every relationship that encountered Jesus was given equal opportunity to experience grace and accept the reality. However, many then, just as today, decide to waste the grace and ignore the reality.
Proverbs 19:3 says, “People destroy their lives by their very own foolishness after which are indignant on the Lord.”
That’s a convicting verse. How often have you ever and I ignored the reality of God, wasted the grace of God, and blamed God for the end result of a situation or circumstances that were provoked or triggered by our poor decisions? And yet, God continues to be a God of grace.
None of us will arrive at the ultimate destination of our lives having lived an ideal life within the eyes of God. We all fall wanting the glory of God.
The Gospel of John tells us in John 1:14 that Jesus is the One who is stuffed with God’s grace and truth. All of us are stuffed with something, Jesus is stuffed with grace and truth. He has enough grace to beat your sins and enough truth to free you from any deception you might have chosen to imagine about your life.
All of us have a sin that does so easily beset us, perhaps multiple, however the Gospel of John wants us to know that no matter what we’re stuffed with, God’s grace and truth in Jesus is fuller still. God wants us to experience His grace and His truth for a lifetime.
I even have been a follower of Jesus Christ now for nearly 45 years and sometimes I ponder if Jesus gets bored with me and my struggles with sin. I even have received Jesus because the grace for my sin. I feel Jesus is the reality to free me from the bonds of sin on this life, however the practicality of my life would often say otherwise. My decisions look more like Proverbs 19:3 sometimes and fewer like Romans 8. Even as a pastor, just hours after telling everyone else what God’s Word says about living for Him, I find myself falling right back into the familiar battles, false beliefs, and discouragement of my very own life, circumstances, and relationships.
Where is one to show as this Romans 7 battle rages in my heart and the practicality of my day-to-day faith walk with Jesus? Maybe you possibly can relate.
As a pastor, I watch so many surrender on their walk with the Lord because they change into discouraged by the battle that rages and the victories that appear to stay elusive of their private on a regular basis lives. Where is one to show in these moments of discouragement? Where is one to show if you wonder if God is rolling His eyes at you and saying to Himself about you, “Not you again!”
The Gospel of John gives us some hope within the trenches of our discouragement with personal sin. John 1:16 says, “For from his fullness we have now all received grace upon grace.” The verse is referring to Jesus, the sunshine of the world, the Word of God made flesh. From Jesus’ fullness we have now all received grace upon grace. The fullness John is referring to here is the fullness of grace and truth mentioned in John 1:14. God’s grace is bigger than your sin and God’s truth is more powerful than the deceptive lies Satan tells every one in all us.
There is hope to be present in this for our each day battle with sin. But what does it mean to receive grace upon grace? The Greek construct of this phrase (χάριν ἀντὶ χάριτος) could be translated “grace upon grace” but nowhere else within the New Testament does this phrase occur. It is understood in Greek as a hapax legomenon, which simply means, it doesn’t occur anywhere else.
One of my favourite things to do is go to the beach, plop down in my chair and skim a great book while I take heed to the waves. Wave after wave after wave crashes into the beach just a couple of feet away, and the rhythm of this sound over time brings incredible peace, hope, and joy to my soul.
This is what John was referring to in John 1:16. God’s grace with truth just keeps crashing the beach of our lives. He has grace after grace after grace. Like those waves on the beach shore, his grace never stops. Matter of fact, the author of Lamentations 3:22 says, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they’re latest every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Each day, each morning is mercy after mercy. The waves of grace are unending and unlimited!
This is the concept in John 1:16. It is like waves on the ocean. One incredible wave of God’s mercy and charm comes upon you and before you possibly can process that, here comes one other beautiful wave of God’s goodness and mercy into your life.
After 45 years of walking with Jesus in faith in Him, I’m learning to rest within the sound of the waves of God’s grace and accept the reality that washes over me to forgive me of my sin. I hope you discover a chair on the beach of your life too and learn to benefit from the sound of God’s waves of grace and the hope that comes from them, because similar to the waves on a beach, His grace just keeps coming, grace after grace!
