Grace Upon Grace
Read this amazing passage this morning that I wanted to share with you.
John 1: 14-18
14And 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.’”)
16And from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17For 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.
What a powerful verse reminding us of the beautiful miracle of Christmas. We have received “grace upon grace.” So powerful.
Reminds me of this quote from Fredrich Beuchner in Secrets in the Dark
Those who believe in God can never in a way be sure of Him again. Once they have seen him in a stable, they can never be sure where he will appear or to what lengths he will go or to what ludicrous depths of self-humiliation he will descend in his wild pursuit of man. If the holiness and awful power and majesty of God were present in this even, this birth of a peasant’s child, then there is no place or time so lowly and earthbound but that holiness can be present there also. And, this means that we are not safe, that there is no place where we can hide from God, no place where we are safe from his power to break in to and recreate the human heart because it is where he seems most helpless that He is most strong and just where we least expect Him that he comes most fully.
Part of the Christmas message is God telling his people, “You can’t predict me. I’ll show up anytime and anywhere. I’ll show up in the midst of the most unlikely circumstances and through the most unlikely people.”
Why?
Because I’m God and you’re not.
Have you seen God show up in any unlikely circumstances or through any unlikely people?
WOW! this literally gave me chills this morning. I love being reminded of God’s awesomeness and my inability to know how he works! thank you so much Pete for your faithfulness
You bet Pam.
“no place where we are safe from his power to break in to and recreate the human heart”
I LOVE this quote by Buechner… beautiful reminder Pete – thank you
He’s got some cool things to say.
I’ve been going through a very tough couple of months. My faith has been challenged. I’ve battled anger and distrust with God.
In the midst of all of this we received a letter from our Compassion sponsor daughter in India. In the letter she included an anniversary card to my husband and I for our 10th anniversary, but most dear and most moving she included a Bible verse, Psalm 34:18. I cried as I read it. Big sloppy wet tears. Here, I experienced God’s grace for me through an 11 year old girl over 8000 miles away. It completely, still, blows me away.
Wow! What an amazing story.
what a wonderful reminder especially with what is happening to the Philippines right now. many people are devastated from the floods and some seem hopeless. But God can, and will show up when and where we least expect Him. He always surprises His children, ALWAYS. Goodnight Pastor Pete, from the Philippines.
Praying for you guys!
He showed up when my husband had cancer and my mom had heart surgery. Not fun times, to say the least, but He *was* there.
So true.
I like to think the Lord has a special relationship with our family hound. She was rescued, loved and now is committed to the same. She is a wonderful actress, often mirroring my feelings and postures…and cracks me up!
She loves children and babies and if it were up to me I’d pop her right into the stable in the nativity scene. The shepherds would be okay with it. She’s a border collie cross. A sheepdog. And I personally have never had any allergies.
Of course I do like people too
It’s amazing how far small gestures can carry at Christmas. For all we know the stable the innkeeper offered the holy family could have been the greatest gift.
Wow. I have read those verses lots of times, but I have never caught those verses like that. Thanks!
God has shown up lots… but the times I think about have been lately when our family has been in severe financial distress. In all honesty, we weren’t sure how we were going to give our families Christmas presents. Even doing it yourself, things still cost money. (And, yes, I realize Christmas is not about gifts, but my love language is giving and it KILLED me to think about not giving.) Anyway, long story short, one of the associate pastors at the church where I work gave me a gift card from an unknown (to me) source for $250 so we could get our boys and families presents. I was so thrilled!
I was so thankful that God cared about the little things, even buying presents. Yay for a God who REALLY does care about the little details.
I have opened the door for God to show up in a crazy situation. I’m getting married in March.
We are each selling our homes and buying a 3rd.
It’s enough to make me crazy but I know that God is in control and I’m not!
That’s awesome Craig.
I’ve seen God showing up in all kinds of little ways this year. It usually is in times where He’ll put someone in need in front of me and I’ll have just what they need at that moment. It’s so cool to realize God’s using us despite all our human frailty.
God has really showed Himself to my husband & me in the last few months. We’re doing big-time spiritual battle in our post-adoption life. I’ve been so discouraged, and on the point of despair & giving up. Getting mad at God for putting us on this path. And He said to me while I was driving home one day, so very clearly, ‘You are her best chance at knowing ME and making a choice for ME. YOU are the best shot she has at coming to ME. So suck it up, sister. You can do it all in ME.’ And you know, we can. We’re working it out. And wouldn’t you know, Satan starts in soon after. Stupid stuff. Little stuff. But all real. Example. In one day: flat tire – no hole in the tire. Just flat. Same day, yard lights go kaput. Weird. Bugged me big time. I hate that kind of trouble, seeing as how neither of us are handy. But the next morning, I prayed a covering prayer, and cried out to Him who always hears. And left it there. When I got home, the yard lights were on, and I went in & asked my husband what he did to fix it. He looked at me really blankly, and said ‘I didn’t do anything’, and went back to work. I told him that I had prayed a covering prayer, and asked God to protect us & our home. And that I KNEW that God turned on our lights. Coming from me, the least ‘woo-woo’ person I know, it sounds crazy. But it’s not. God turned on our lights. They’re still going. And He’s there at every turn. It’s still not easy, but now both of us really get – and live – the whole ‘peace that passes all understanding’ part.
Thanks so much for your honesty and your willingness to share with us.
*okay she may not be a hound if she’s a sheepdog. It didn’t occur to me the descriptor was breed specific to the hunting animal. In my defense ours’ is not a working sheepdog and is cross bread, we think from two different types of herding dog, a border and rough collie. Now you know too much about my dog who is all fluffy with long feathers and would look lovely by the manger. It’s almost Christmas. My brain is mush.
Well, God has been showing up and teaching me more about things like grace and mercy and love the most consistently this year through my ex husband and my atheist son. The church with all of its three point sermons and carefully ordered lessons and plans ended up making me feel like a child whose siblings keep taunting, “You are so weird.” And then with a wicked grin, “You HAVE to be adopted. There’s no way we’re really related.”
But these two people (one who has hurt me more than anyone on Earth and who I now stand amazed to once again call friend) and the other (who has encouraged me to question all things theological even more than my innate skeptic already did), they have loved me despite our differences. Their acknowledgement of who I am sustains me. Their vision of who I can be challenges me. Their hugs and kindnesses make that next step and the next and the next a little less of a trudge and more of a skip.
And all of those things, combined with the facts that our beliefs don’t match and our individual stories within a joint history contain so much pain, prove to me that God can use and redeem anything for good. And that simply blows my mind…
I big heart amen Brother. Let us share the radical grace given to all.