The Gift of Grace Upon Grace

Happy Sunday, and Merry Christmas! Do you have a favorite version of the Christmas story from the Bible? Did you know that it's only told in the books of Matthew and Luke? Mark begins with a grown Jesus, and the Book of John tells the Christmas story, kind of, but it's without Joseph and without without Mary and without the stable and the wise men and the manger and the Shepherds and the star and without the angels and without all the details that Matthew and Luke give us.

John really gives us a theological look at Christmas rather than the historical facts that we find from Matthew and Luke. Do you recall how the Book of John begins? It's beautiful words: "In the beginning was the word, and the Word was with God, the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being."

I'm thankful that Matthew and Mark gave us so many details about the birth of Jesus, yet in John I find a truth that truly helps me understand the gift of Jesus is coming. Today I'll read from John chapter 1: 14, 15, and 16. These are probably familiar to you, talking about the word; that's Jesus. "And the word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth. John testified," John the Baptist, "testified to him and cried out, 'This was he of whom I said, He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was born, because he was before me.' From his fullness we have all received Grace upon Grace."

I absolutely love what John 1:16 tells us about Jesus: "From his fullness we have all received Grace upon Grace." What is Grace upon Grace? It's never ending. In the original Greek, it's literally Grace in the place of Grace. About once a year I have the opportunity to sit in a chair on the beach and watch the waves come in. They just keep coming. It's mesmerizing, a never-ending Supply.

That's what Jesus has brought to those who follow him: a NeverEnding wave after wave after wave of Grace. We try and use our finite Minds to grasp this great Truth, never- ending Grace, and we think about our love for our families, and we think that we could offer never-ending Grace to them. Yet all of us know of families that are distant, marriages that are have failed, children who are not welcome in their parents home, and parents who have been shunned by their children. Grace upon Grace is only a God thing. Our love pales in comparison.

I once read that there's nothing that you can do to get God to love you anymore, and there's nothing that you can do to get God to love you any less. He is love. He loves you. Grace upon Grace he gives you.

Now, we live in a society that loves loopholes. Some immature new believer or a Critic looking for Flaws in Christianity could think, "Well, if God's grace is never ending, I can live any old way I want to. I can sin and sin and just keep on sinning, and he'll always forgive me because of his unending Grace." Knowing that we could think that way, and this would be a problem, God addressed this in Romans chapter 6 through his messenger Paul. Let me read the first four verses of Romans 6.

Paul says, "What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order to that Grace may increase?" That's verse one. It's a valid question. Since God loves to show us Grace, should we just keep on sinning? We find the answer in verse Two: "By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it?"

Now, that's a great answer. It's also a great description of True Believers: we who have died to sin. Paul continues in verses three and four: "Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? And therefore we were buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the father, so we also might walk in newness of life."

That that's why Jesus came. He wants all of us to walk in the newness of life. We need to know that Jesus came to save us from our sins, to give us a great new beginning when we come to know him. What a great Christmas present: Grace upon Grace, wave after wave, change because of that love. What a great gift. Merry Christmas!

God, thank you for your never-ending supply of love and grace, but we should respond to it, never take it for granted. Because we are loved so much, we ought to love you back and live accordingly. Thank you for your pres of Grace upon Grace for us, and help our lives to be present to you, living sacrifices, scripture calls it. Help us to live the way you want us as our gift to you. In Jesus name we pray, amen.

I want to thank so many of have you. A couple of times a year I mentioned that this ministry is a 501c3, and you can give to it, and it's tax deductible. Many of you do that as a yearend gift in December, and it really helps, and I truly appreciate it. God bless you for doing that. Thanks so much. Merry Christmas!