THE GIFT OF GRACE - JOHN 1:14-18

Christian Standard Bible (Chapter 1)

14 The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John testified concerning him and exclaimed, “This was the one of whom I said, ‘The one coming after me ranks ahead of me, because he existed before me.’ ”) 16 Indeed, we have all received grace upon grace from his fullness, 17 for the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God. The one and only Son, who is himself God and is at the Father’s side—he has revealed him.

BIG IDEA: CELEBRATE THE TRUE GIFT OF CHRISTMAS

AS WE EMBARK UPON THIS NEW SERIES AND SEASON, I FELT DRAWN TO THE BEGINNING...

YOU SEE, IN ORDER FOR US TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE MEANING OF THIS SEASON, WE NEED TO LOOK PAST THE CULTURE OF CHRISTMAS (THE TRAPPINGS OF TENSEL, TOYS AND TREASURES), TO ENSURE THAT WE FULLY EMBRACE THE TRUE MESSIAH OF CHRISTMAS, AS DR. MARK YARBROUGH STATES...

BELOVED, EMBRACING CHRISTMAS’ TRUE MEANING WILL, IN FACT, BRING YOU TIDINGS OF COMFORT AND JOY...

BELOVED, IF YOU TRULY WANT TO OVERFLOW IN JOY THIS CHRISTMAS SEASON - WALK IN THE TRUTH OF WHO JESUS IS...

CELEBRATE HIM.

GLORIFY HIM.

WORSHIP HIM…CHRIST OUR KING!!!

JOHN, IN HIS MOST PROFOUND AND THEOLOGICAL WAY INFORMS US THAT IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD…, AND THE WORD WAS WITH GOD, AND THE WORD WAS GOD. HE (THE WORD) WAS WITH GOD IN THE BEGINNING. ALL THINGS WERE CREATED THROUGH HIM, AND APART FROM HIM NOT ONE THING WAS CREATED THAT HAS BEEN CREATED. IN HIM WAS LIFE, AND THAT LIFE WAS THE LIGHT OF MEN. THAT LIGHT SHINES IN THE DARKNESS, AND YET THE DARKNESS DID NOT OVERCOME IT.

IF YOU PERMIT ME TO WALK EVER SO HEAVILY, I NEED YOU TO SEE THAT JOHN IS HELPING US SEE THE

DEITY (THE GOD-NESS) AND THE ETERNALITY (THE ALWAYS-WAS-NESS) OF JESUS CHRIST, KNOWN AS THE WORD!

JOHN REFERS TO JESUS AS THE WORD, BECAUSE HE IS SUGGESTING THAT JESUS CHRIST IS THE PERFECT AND ULTIMATE ((EXPRESSION / WORD)) OF GOD TOWARDS MANKIND...

JESUS PUT A FACE ON GOD!

COLOSSIANS 1:15 - HE IS THE IMAGE OF THE INVISIBLE GOD...

JESUS - THE WORD.

THE ETERNAL ONE.

THE PROMISED MESSIAH.

WATCH THIS:

HE ALWAYS WAS…THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A TIME IN TIME OR ETERNITY WHEN JESUS CHRIST DID NOT EXIST. IN FACT, WHEN THE BEGINNING SHOWED UP, JESUS WAS ALREADY THERE! WHEN MATTER WAS FORMED, IT TURNED AROUND TO SEE JESUS! WHEN THE CLOCK BEGAN TO TICK, IT RECOGNIZED THAT JESUS WOUND IT UP! HE ALWAYS WAS...

HE’S ALWAYS BEEN WITH…JOHN HELPS US UNDERSTAND THE FULLNESS OF THE TRIUNE (THREE-NATURE) GODHEAD: FATHER, SON AND HOLY SPIRIT. JESUS (THE WORD) IS DISTINCT IN ESSENCE WHILE BEING EQUAL TO IN FUNCTION…JESUS (THE WORD) WITH GOD, SEATED AT THE RIGHT HAND WITH AUTHORITY...

HE’S ALWAYS BEEN…AGAIN, JOHN WANTS TO ENSURE THAT WE GET IT - JESUS (THE WORD) IS GOD! HE’S ALWAYS BEEN GOD! YES, GOD THE FATHER - GOD THE SON - GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT. HE’S ALWAYS BEEN GOD! JESUS WAS NOT MADE OR CREATED GOD, HE IS GOD…JESUS IS NOT A GOD - BELOVED HE IS GOD!

CONSTABLE HELPS WITH A SIMPLE ILLUSTRATION ABOUT THE TRIUNE GODHEAD OR THE TRINITY: There is probably no fully adequate illustration of the Trinity in the natural world. Perhaps the egg is one of the best. An egg consists of three parts: shell, yolk, and white. Each part is fully egg yet each has its own identity that distinguishes it from the other parts.

HE’S ALWAYS BEEN WORKING…JOHN STATES JESUS (THE WORD) IS BOTH CREATOR & SAVIOR! HE’S ALWAYS BEEN WORKING...

NOT ONE THING WAS CREATED WITHOUT HIS WORD…((CREATION))

NOT ONE PERSON WILL BE SAVED APART FROM HIS WORK…((LIGHT OF SALVATION))

NOW FRIENDS, WHEN YOU STACK ALL OF THIS UP (VS. 1-5), YOU ARE GIVEN A GLIMPSE INTO WHO THE WORD - JESUS IS!

SO BY THE TIME WE MEET HIM ON EARTH, WE CAN SEE JESUS CHRIST DIDN’T JUST SHOW UP ON THE SCENE, HE’S BEEN BEHIND THE SCENES SINCE BEFORE THE BEGINNING...

WHICH ADDS EVEN MORE MEANING TO VERSE 14: THE WORD BECAME FLESH AND DWELT AMONG US. WE OBSERVED HIS GLORY, THE GLORY AS THE ONE AND ONLY SON FROM THE FATHER, FULL OF GRACE AND TRUTH.

DO YOU SEE IT?

THE WORD BECAME FLESH...

HERE IT IS:

GOD CAME TO US!

THE FULL-GODNESS OF JESUS (THE WORD) BECAME FLESH AND WALKED WITH US...

YOU TALKING ABOUT LOVE...

5 Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus,

6 who, existing in the form of God,

did not consider equality with God

as something to be exploited.

7 Instead he emptied himself

by assuming the form of a servant,

taking on the likeness of humanity.

And when he had come as a man,

8 he humbled himself by becoming obedient

to the point of death—

even to death on a cross.

9 For this reason God highly exalted him

and gave him the name

that is above every name,

10 so that at the name of Jesus

every knee will bow—

in heaven and on earth

and under the earth—

11 and every tongue will confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

GOD CAME TO US!

THIS IS CHRISTMAS! THIS IS THE GIFT OF GRACE. THAT GOD CAME TO US...

AS WE GROW TO UNDERSTAND SEASONS, EVEN DISPENSATIONS, WE CAN EMBRACE THAT GOD’S LOVE PROMPTED HIM TO SEEK OUT OUR BEST INTEREST BY SENDING THE ULTIMATE EXPRESSION - HIS SON, FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS.

Christian Standard Bible (Chapter 4)

4 When the time came to completion, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

AND EVEN GREATER, JESUS DIDN’T COME TO BE OUR HOMEBOY, BUT OUR SAVIOR.

HE DIDN’T COME TO JUST MAKE US FEEL GOOD, BUT TO FORGIVE US OF OUR SINS.

GOD CAME TO US TO SAVE US...

JESUS DRESSED-DOWN TO DWELL AMONG…AND FOLKS SAW HIM! (WE OBSERVED HIS GLORY)...

I read of a story from the famous Danish philosopher from the mid 1800s, a Christian theologian named Soren Kierkegaard. It is a familiar story, a story rewritten by many over the ages in many different forms, yet it is still relevant today. Here’s what he wrote:

A prince wanted to find a maiden suitable to be his queen. One day while running an errand in the local village for his father, he passed through a poor section. As he glanced out the windows of the carriage, his eyes fell upon a beautiful peasant maiden. During the ensuing days he often passed by the young lady and soon fell in love.

But he had a problem. How would he seek her hand? He could order her to marry him. But even a prince wants his bride to marry him freely and voluntarily and not through coercion. He could put on his most splendid uniform and drive up to her front door in a carriage drawn by six horses. But if he did this he would never be certain that the maiden loved him or was simply overwhelmed with all of the splendor.

The prince came up with another solution. He would give up his kingly robe. He moved, into the village, entering not with a crown but in the garb of a peasant. He lived among the people, shared their interests and concerns, and talked their language. In time the maiden grew to love him, because of who he was and because he loved her first.

This very simple, almost childlike story is what John is describing here--God came and lived among us. He had to reveal Himself to us in an understandable way, and this is precisely what Jesus did--became flesh just like you and me. He made Himself understandable.

AREN’T YOU GLAD GOD CAME TO US....THAT HE STEPPED OUT OF THE ETERNAL INTO THE TEMPORAL - WRAPPED IN FLESH - MOTIVATED BY LOVE! AREN’T YOU GLAD THAT HE DIDN’T LEAVE US TO OURSELVES...

AND IN GOD COMING...

GRACE CAME TO US!

FULL OF GRACE AND TRUTH… 16) INDEED, WE HAVE ALL RECEIVED GRACE UPON GRACE FROM HIS FULLNESS...

CONSTABLE SAYS: The Incarnation was the greatest possible expression of God’s grace to humankind.

GRACE: THE TOTAL SUM OF ALL SPIRITUAL FAVORS FROM GOD TOWARDS US....GRACE - FAVOR! GOODNESS! BLESSINGS!

Tony Evans Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More Than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Grace)

SOME purchases come with extras that have to be purchased. A new car is a sizable investment in and of itself, but there is always a long list of additional purchases that can be added on to enhance the new car and increase its price. There is the base price and then there’s the price that includes all the extras. This is the case unless the car is considered “top of the line.”Many toys purchased for children during the Christmas season indicate on the box that batteries are not included and must be purchased separately. The toy is now accessible but doesn’t include power. What good is a toy that needs a battery?Grace is different. Grace comes with everything included. God says that everything He’s ever going to do for you He’s already done. Grace is also all-inclusive.

AND IN JESUS’ COMING FULL OF - OVERFLOWING IN GRACE - HE POURED IT OUT UPON US!!!

GRACE UPON GRACE.

GRACE, HISTORICALLY, IS THE KINDNESS OF GOD IN CHOOSING ISRAEL APART FROM THEIR DESERVING IT: COVENANT LOVE - MERCIFUL LOVE - LOVING KINDNESS. ADDITIONALLY, AND EVEN MORE SIMPLY, GRACE IS GOD’S COVENANT-KEEPING - UNDESERVED LOVE ON DISPLAY THROUGH JESUS CHRIST...

JESUS CAME - FULL OF GRACE!

JESUS SHARED - GRACE UPON GRACE!

NO TIME FOR VS. 17 TODAY - SEE ME WEDNESDAY...

BUT I WISH TO CLOSE WITH A REMINDER OF GOD’S DISPLAY OF GRACE THROUGH HIS ONE AND ONLY SON - JESUS...

JOHN PAINTS THE PICTURE OF THE ETERNAL GOD - ENVELOPING IN FLESH TO TOUCH HIS CREATION...

COMING TO SAVE...

Tony Evans Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More Than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Grace)

A FATHER took his boys to the fair. He went to the ticket booth and bought a roll of tickets and dispensed it to his sons. Then one of his sons saw a school friend and brought him over to introduce him to his father. The school friend went over to the father, introduced himself, and then asked for a ticket! The father held back the tickets and said, “I’m sorry, I can’t give you a ticket. I need to hang on to them to give rides to my sons today.” But his son said, “That’s OK, Dad, I don’t mind sharing. You can give it to him.” When the father heard the son give his okay, the father dispensed the ticket for the fair to the young man in the name of his son. When you come to God the Father, He looks at the Son for His OK. Why? Because the gift of the “ticket’ is dependent on the Son. This is what we call grace.420