Invisible God Made Visible Through Jesus' Grace
Daily Scripture
John 1:15-18
15 John testified about him, crying out, “This is the one of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is greater than me because he existed before me.’”
16 From his fullness we have all received grace upon grace;
17 as the Law was given through Moses,
so grace and truth came into being through Jesus Christ.
18 No one has ever seen God.
God the only Son,
who is at the Father’s side,
has made God known.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
John’s gospel crystallized what the first Christians believed about Jesus. The letter to the Hebrews, likely written before John’s gospel, began, “In the past, God spoke through the prophets to our ancestors in many times and many ways. In these final days, though, he spoke to us through a Son. God made his Son the heir of everything and created the world through him. The Son is the light of God’s glory and the imprint of God’s being. He maintains everything with his powerful message” (Hebrews 1:1-3). Scholar William Barclay wrote, “When John said that no man has ever seen God, everyone in the ancient world would fully agree with him…. But John does not stop there; he goes on to make the startling and tremendous statement that Jesus has fully revealed to men what God is like…. Here again the keynote of John’s gospel sounds: ‘If you want to see what God is like, look at Jesus.’” *
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In recent decades, some Christians have waged too many hurtful, fruitless arguments over the Bible. As someone said, at times they fling Bible verses at one another like hand grenades! Those “battles” sadly miss the point. The person of Jesus, not a book, was the ultimate revelation of God. As Pastor Hamilton wrote, “I’m proposing that we hear, examine, and interpret all scripture through the lens and filter of the definitive and unmitigated Word of God, Jesus Christ…. What is the heart, character, and will of God that Jesus reveals?… We must not set aside what is inconvenient or challenging to us simply because it is difficult. We will, however, read scripture in the light of the life, ministry, teaching, death, and resurrection of Jesus…. it is Jesus who serves as the final Word by which other words of scripture are to be judged.” ** How, during 2025, will you deepen your knowledge of what Jesus revealed about God’s heart, character and will?
Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank you that your love is a fixed point I can depend on in an ever-changing world. Keep me steady, stable and loving with your love every day of 2025. Amen.
GPS Insights
Jaime Kernaghan
Jaime Kernaghan serves as the Small Group Program Director at Resurrection Leawood. Jaime has an undergraduate degree from the University of Kansas in Sociology, with a minor in Psychology, and an M.S. Degree from Friends University; she is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. Jaime is passionate about her work in connecting people. Outside work she enjoys time with family, friends and her foster son, as well as her two dogs, and her cat-dog. Jaime loves yoga, reading, writing, hammocking and time at the lake.
I have been reading Bob Goff’s Catching Whimsy: 365 Days of Possibility. He reminds us that in John 1, the Scriptures say Jesus Christ came filled with “grace and truth,” and that grace came first. It has been so eye-opening for me and given me daily reminders of the grace of God. As I read one of his excerpts entitled, “Choose grace and you will always be right,” it reminds me we have a daily opportunity to reset, and choose grace again, and again. Even if we didn’t choose grace yesterday, we can choose it today. Bob shares, “We are all called to operate out of both gentleness and respect, or put another way, with grace.” In times when we may struggle with the desire to be right, it is important to remember we can still show grace.
When I think of grace, I think of Jesus. How he just offers it, no questions asked, and offers it continually. It is amazing to think God sent Jesus to us to show us his human self, to teach us what he is like, and to set example after example of how to demonstrate and live into a grace-filled life.
My dear friend of 25+ years and I have had many meaningful discussions over the years about the grace of God. She is currently battling cancer, and experiencing the effects of immunotherapy, along with other recent diagnoses. As I watch her, I see nothing but grace. I see her continue to show up for her people with gentleness and respect, to love unconditionally, and to be the strong, brave person I have always known. What a testimony to grace. To show up when we are going through difficult things, to spread the love of Jesus, and to continue to shine our light to others, even in the face of the unknown. May you be blessed to know someone who shows you a daily example of Christ’s grace, love and mercy. And may you be forever changed for it.
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Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
References
* William Barclay, Daily Study Bible Series: The Gospel of John—Volume 1 Chapters 1–7 (Revised Edition). Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1975, pp. 73-74.
** Hamilton, Adam, Making Sense of the Bible: Rediscovering the Power of Scripture Today (pp. 175-177). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition.
