Grace Upon Grace

"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..., and from His fullness we have all received grace upon grace." ~ John 1:14-16 ESV

As I read this I am struck by two thoughts. First, God's fullness. I have to admit, I have read through this passage probably hundreds of times without stopping to muse upon the fullness of God. You might ask as did I, "Full of what?" Well, two things mentioned specifically in John's gospel - grace and truth. The more I think of God's fullness the more I am aware of the implications of it. It is not that God merely has more than I have in the grace and truth department. He is not simply less empty than I am. No - He is FULL. He embodies all truth and all grace. Grace and truth do not exist without Him. That is a concept that I want to allow to grip me. The second thought that captivates me is this idea of God's giving and my receiving of grace upon grace. If grace belongs exclusively to God then why is He compelled to give even a little of it to me? A perplexing question. And the fact of the matter is that I have not received but a little! Rather, grace compounded - grace upon grace! God has chosen to pour His fullness into my emptiness that His matchless grace might be showcased before a world that is lost in its emptiness.

"Lord, may my life be to those around me a brilliant reflection of the fullness of your grace and truth. Amen!"