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. 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.’”) 16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.
Having made this profound announcement about the Incarnation of God the Son in verse 14, John then gives a parenthetical comment in verse 15: "This is the one John the Baptist told you about, who was before himself not only in time, but in priority." In other words: "Keep your eyes on Jesus." John the writer then gives his own commentary and witness: "Jesus Christ has revealed to us what God is like." Here is a question to wrap up this quiet Christmas: Have I learned anything more this Christmas about what God is like? Has my celebration of Christ's coming drawn me closer to God or further away from Him? Secondly, have I received what Christ brought: grace and truth? When Christ came, he brought God's Grace: the God-given ability to do what we cannot do on our own. He came to bring salvation, which we cannot do. He came to make us generous, when we on our own tend to be selfish. He came to help us do something of value for God, which we are often to afraid or lazy to do. His grace changes us. And He came to bring truth. What lies has Christ brought you to realize, repent of, and reject? When Christ come, all lies are exposed, because He is truth. The new year is a great time to not take these lies with you into it.
We are going to continue on beginning tomorrow following after Jesus, walking through the Gospels with Him to see the cleansing, change, and newness He can bring. May the quietness of Christmas continue to dwell in you richly.
No comments:
Post a Comment