John 1:14-18

The end of the prologue

John 1:1-18

The end of the prologue

Read all of the prologue

John prologue is such an amazing work that this 3 weeks that we have spent in it does not even scratch the surface

So what have we learned thus far in Johns introduction

brief summary

Today, in verses 14-18 we have 4 major thoughts or points

The word became flesh (V14)

The Witness (v15)

Fullness and Grace (v16 & 17(

God Revealed (18)

Also this morning we cover a of couple new things that we haven’t discussed thus far in the text

Those are Grace, Glory

And the name Jesus Christ

For up until this point in the prologue, Jesus has been referred to as the light, or the word

And today, this light and this word receives a name

While studying this week and reading about the grace we will get into later in the sermon

I ran across a man named John Newton

He is the author of the hymn, amazing grace

written for a New Years Day Service in 1773

Wow we have a lot of Johns

John Newton wrote this song for a good friend of his and member of his congregation. His friends name was William Cowper

See his friend, whom also helped him write hymns, struggled

He struggled with self doubt, depression, madness

And these thoughts of depression and self doubt even led him to believe that God had rejected him, despite his faith

So much so that Mr Cowper attempted suicide that very day that Newton wrote this song

Newton wrote this song for his friend

so that his friend may know that grace,

that Gods Amazing grace, can bring us out of any situation

And that is exactly what we will discuss this morning

as we conclude Johns Prologue, we are introduced to grace

So let us get into our first point of the morning

The Word Became Flesh

John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Verse 14 may be one of the most important sentence or verse in all of scripture

See here, the word, as we have already defined it, became flesh

here we have the culmination of everything we have discussed the past 2 weeks

all that we have discussed thus far was based on his coming, based on what was to happen

and in verse 14 it happens

The word became flesh

Much like all things became through Him, so, he became like that in which he created

And when we say flesh, we don’t simply mean he put on flesh as in some type of coat or jacket that just merely masked his fully divine nature

the terminator reference simply just put human skin over his mechanical body

no, he did not simply cloth himself in human flesh

no, it was nothing like this

it was so much more than just this

by becoming flesh he assumed human nature entirely

he had a human body, a human soul, and an human spirit

he probably even had human aches and pains

we know that Jesus got tired

Jesus got hungry

He became reality to all those around him

1 John 1 “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life...

If Jesus Did Not Become a Man, He Could Not Be Tempted

Carter, Matt, and Josh Wredberg. 2017. Exalting Jesus in John. Nashville, TN: Holman Reference.

If Jesus Did Not Become a Man, He Could Not Be an Example

Carter, Matt, and Josh Wredberg. 2017. Exalting Jesus in John. Nashville, TN: Holman Reference.

If Jesus Did Not Become a Man, He Could Not Die

Carter, Matt, and Josh Wredberg. 2017. Exalting Jesus in John. Nashville, TN: Holman Reference.

Dwelt among us “Tabernacled “

And this God man dwelt with us

the word dwelt here means tabernacled

bringing us back to the OT when God dwelled or lived or presided in the tabernacle

and this is extremely significant to the Hebrew of this time

The tabernacle is what they followed for lack of better words while wondering in the desert during the exodus

it is where the literal spirit of God resided among the people

that was then replaced by the temple

and now, instead of being a place they must go to be in Gods presence

Gods presence became flesh and came to them

And when Jesus put on his flesh and dwelt with them he did not lose his diety, he did not simply stop being God,

no he maintained his divine nature see he did not become a new being, he simply entered into a new mode of being

So God, became man, just like me and you

He dwelt among us, among us as in the most intimate personal way

God became so real that we can touch him, talk to him, laugh with him, cry with him

And it is because he dwelt with us...

Glory

That we have seen his glory!

Gods glory is defined as the

“Visible manifestation of the excellence of God’s Character”

Or

“the greatness of God seen visibly”

Again, I would like to refer to the tabernacle

See when the Jews would follow the tabernacle as it led them to the promise land

they would see what appeared as a cloud during the day and and pillar of fire at night. And this was the partial glorification of God

Jesus, in his flesh was the fulness of this Glory

Glory only bestowed to the Son from the Father

because the son deserves the same glory as the father

Full of Grace and Truth

John ends verse 14 with describing the glory of God from the father

as Grace and Truth

This is most likely

referring back to Exodus 33:19 “And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.”

The witness

John 1:15 “(John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’ ”)”

Yes another full circle review

we spoke quite a bit on this last week

so we wont dive into it too much

other than ...

Fullness & Grace

John 1:16–17 “For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”

grace was mentioned earlier in verse 14, but we didn't dwell on it too long there

Here, I would like to spend a little more time on grace

now notice, when we referred to it in verse 14, it was read grace and truth

here, it says grace upon grace

Then again later in 17 John says grace and truth

what beautiful word play am I right

This grace and this truth, came from Christs fullness

As seen there in V16

see the fullness of christ, is the fulfillment of the OT law

Because if we look in the very next verse, Christ and his grace and truth are compared to Moses and the Law

Matthew 5:17 ““Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”

Mark 1:15 “and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.””

Paul really developed this fullness of christ in letters by saying things such as

Romans 10:4 “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”

Galatians 5:14 “For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.””

Galatians 6:2 “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

See it was this fullness of deity and the fact that as the son he shared the same attributes as the father

it is within this fullness that he grants us grace

grace upon grace

to sum up the concept of grace we can think of it simply as

Gods Undeserved Favor

Grace was present in the Garden of eden when God very easily and justifiably could have left Adam and Eve up to their own devices and allowed them die for their disobedience.

But he didn't, instead he killed an animal,

actually this is the first time death is introduced into the narrative

and used the animal as a sacrifice for their sin

covering them both spiritually and physically

Grace has been present throughout the entire OT

So it is essentially since page 1 of your bibles that God has given us grace

and he will continue to give us grace until the end of time

I know I need it, I need grace just to get out of bed in the mornings

I need grace just to make it to the coffee pot

I need grace to stand in front of you this morning

We need grace

when we are feeling down, we need grace

when we are feeling on top of the world

we need grace

and it is because of His fullness

that we receive that grace

Ephesians 2:8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,”

God is the author and giver of grace

grace upon grace

undeserved favor upon undeserved favor

and this leads up to v17 where grace is brought in full fruition from the OT to the NT

V 17 For the law was given through Moses

Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ

Lets un pack that, because we almost a compare and contrast type of feel here

Moses gave the law, and what was the purpose of the law

this can be summed up in the 10 commandments where the first 4 are focused on our relationship with God

and the following 6 are how we are to focus our interpersonal relationships with others

But… there were also 613 laws as well as these 10 commandments

The law is often frowned upon or looked down upon due to the legalism it imposes

But, the law was put in place to show the Israelites the very thing we are talking about here today

The law was also about Gods grace

If we look a little closer we find the law did several things that we may not fully realize

for one it revealed the character of God to the nation of Israel

It set apart the nation of Israel

It revealed the sinfulness of men

it provided forgiveness through sacrifice and offerings

In fact Jesus summarized the law Matthew 22:37–39 “And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

In the sermon on the mount Jesus expounds on the law, taking it to a new level and applying it to our thought and the intentions of our hearts

But the law, it had its limitations

It was there as a guide but also was there to convict

to show everyone just how Holy God was and just how helpless we are

See the law set a standard of Holiness in order to show that we could never meet that standard

and yes, God provided atonement for our sins through the sacrifices

but none of those sacrifices was enough, the blood of animals, no matter how unblemished they were could never fully cleanse us of our sin

So what the law did, as delivered to Moses was set in motion a process of redemption for Gods creation

The first order of that process was to point out the sinfulness of mankind and condemn us for it,

and that it did well

But no matter how powerful that conviction was

it was powerless in the fact that it could never save, it could never justify, if could never glorify

See, what the law could not do, Jesus could

Hebrews 7:18–19“For on the one hand, a former commandment (the law) is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God.”

That better hope is Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior

The only way to fully take away the sin it revealed, was through the blood of the perfect, spotless, sinless, sacrifice.

one that walks though the same troubles, calamities, lusts, desires, greed, etc,

and does it without fault

And that is why Jesus became flesh. To accomplish this impossible feat of obtaining holiness while flesh and bone,

an accomplishment we could never obtain

Jesus became flesh in order to accomplish the perfect sacrifice

Once and for all..

See when we receive Gods forgiveness through our confession of faith in Jesus’ sacrificial death. Then and only then is the law fulfilled and there is no longer a need further sacrifice

God has always desired to have a relationship with us, to have fellowship with us, to tabernacle with us

yet, our sinfulness and rejection of him always prevented that

And if we think, that just by being a good person, or by being morally good by the worlds standard is enough

then we don’t have a grasp on the Holiness of God

See God is so Holy that sin is unable to occupy the same space as Him

And we are sin apart from God

And that is why Jesus had to come in grace, and in truth

to fulfill all the requirements of the law for us

and then take the punishment of that law for us

so that his holiness may cover our unholiness

and it is through the blood of Jesus that we are made Holy

and it is through that blood that we welcomed into the presence of the Father

One other thing about V17 is that this is the first time that the Word is given a name

And that name as we well know is Jesus Christ

our prologue ends with V-18

God Revealed

John 1:18 “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.”

This last verse of practically a mirror image of our opening verse, albeit different words, but the same meaning

It refers back to what we previously discussed with Moses and law, referring to Exodus 33:18-23 where Moses asks to see the glory of God pass by

while also essentially summarizing our entire prologue.

What this verse is saying is that

Prior to Jesus becoming flesh

No one had never fully seen God

They may have caught glimpses of him

maybe were given a small understanding of his attributes

but never before had God been revealed fully as he did through Jesus Christ

Conclusion

And this brings us to the end of this prologue

This prologue which gives us such an amazing summary of the Gospel

Such an amazing introduction to the Word, to Jesus

That Jesus Christ was, is, and always will be the savior of the world

See the gospel story is a rescue story, and Jesus is the rescuer.

• The gospel story is a promise, and Jesus is the fulfillment.

The gospel story is all about Jesus Christ and the grace he has made available to all.

Carter, Matt, and Josh Wredberg. 2017. Exalting Jesus in John. Nashville, TN: Holman Reference.

So as we sing Amazing Grace during this time of invitation

mediate on these words

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound

That saved a wretch like me

I once was lost, but now Im found

Was blind but now I see

Lets pray