SUMMARY
JesusJesus is the Messiah whose life, death, and resurrection are God's saving act for humanity. is the source of God’s abundant graceGrace is the unmerited gift of God's love and acceptance. In Martin Luther's favorite expression from the Apostle Paul, we are saved by grace through faith, which means that God showers grace upon us even though we do not deserve it..
ANALYSIS
Jesus as the Word made flesh is God’s abundant grace in the world. After the Prologue to John (1:1-18) the word “grace” never again appears in John’s story of Jesus. Instead, Jesus’ very presence in the world is abundant grace for all. Encounters with Jesus are experiences of grace. The signs especially are experiences of grace upon grace as they narrate abundance. The wedding at Cana tells of 6 jars, 20-30 gallons each, filled to the brim of the best wine when no one expects it. The man healed in John 5 has been unable to walk for 38 years, which would have been the average lifespan of a male in first century Palestine. The blind man healed in John 9 has been blind since birth. And, Jesus’ last sign, the raising of Lazarus, is also a sign of abundance as Lazarus has been in the tomb for 4 days. Jewish belief had the soul leave the body after 3 days. Each of the signs narrate abundance. As no one has ever seen God, Jesus’ coming into the world and making God known (1:18) means that all can experience God’s grace, an abiding relationship with Jesus and God.
