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to John's gospel, John chapter 
1. Remember, we're looking at the 
prologue, that's verses 1 to 18. Basically, John is introducing 
the word that will be seen to be the Savior of men. It's already 
indicated within the prologue itself, but it's sort of an overarching 
description of the word in terms of his relationship to the Father. 
So what John is doing in verses 1 to 18 is what we would call 
theologia, or the doctrine of God proper, the relations between 
the persons of the Godhead, and then beginning in verse 19 and 
following, he will introduce the economy, or what God does 
relative to his creatures in terms of their salvation. So 
our focus this morning will be on verses 15 to 17. We'll take up verse 18, God willing, 
in two weeks and then get into the actual book of John's gospel. So I'll just read beginning in 
verse 1 at verse 1. In the beginning was the Word, 
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the 
beginning with God. All things were made through 
Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him 
was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines 
in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There 
was a man sent from God whose name was John. This man came 
for a witness, to bear witness of the light that all through 
him might believe. He was not that light, but was 
sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light 
which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was 
in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world 
did not know him. He came to his own, and his own 
did not receive him. But as many as received him, 
to them he gave the right to become children of God. to those 
who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood, nor 
of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld 
His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, 
full of grace and truth. John bore witness of him and 
cried out, saying, This was he of whom I said, He who comes 
after me is preferred before me, for he was before me. And 
of his fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the 
law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through 
Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time. 
The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He 
has declared Him. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, 
again, we thank you for the written Word of the living and true God, 
and we thank you for John's presentation of the Word of God in this section 
called the Prologue. We ask now for the ministry of 
the Holy Spirit, that He would shine clearly the light upon 
this passage of Scripture and the one upon whom this Scripture 
speaks. We thank you for the Lord Jesus 
Christ, and we thank you for what He undertook on behalf of 
us men and for our salvation. Do forgive us again for all sin 
and everything that darkens our understanding, and we ask in 
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Well, this is a wonderful 
presentation of who Jesus is, and as we looked at the chapter, 
as we looked at the section, we noticed first the divinity 
of the Word in verses 1 to 5. Secondly, we've seen the mission 
of the Word in verses 6 to 13, and we're in the section now 
on the incarnation of the Word. So last time, we looked specifically 
at verse 14, but now it is, as it were, the benefits that accrue 
from that incarnation of our Lord. So verses 15 to 18, the 
emphasis lies first on the preeminence of the Word, verse 15, and then 
secondly, the revelation of God by the Word, in verses 16 to 
18. But as I said, we'll just take 
up verses 16 and 17 this morning. So let's look first at the preeminence 
of the Word in verse 15. And John the Apostle again points 
us to the testimony of John the Baptist. He's already mentioned 
John the Baptist in verse 6. There was a man sent from God 
whose name was John. This man came for a witness to 
bear witness of the light that all through him might believe. 
He was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that 
light. And then when he introduces the actual historical outworking 
of this in terms of the ministry of John the Baptist, beginning 
in chapter 1 at verse 19, we see the same sort of thing. John 
the Baptist has to indicate or has to insist that he's not the 
light, he's not the Messiah. He's not the Christ. He's not 
the one that was promised in terms of the prophets that would 
save his people from their sins. Now, John was prophesied. He 
was the voice of one crying in the wilderness that Isaiah pointed 
to in chapter 40 at verse 3, but he himself was not the Christ. 
And so John the Apostle, again, wants us to understand what John 
the Baptist's testimony consisted in with reference to our Lord 
Jesus. Notice in the first place, under 
the preeminence of the Word, the function of John the Baptist. Verse 15a, John bore witness 
of him and cried out saying, and the emphasis is that he bore 
continuous witness. He bore continuous testimony. John the Baptist was not in the 
ministry in order to prop himself up. John the Baptist wasn't in 
the ministry so persons would worship him. The Baptist wasn't 
in the ministry so that he could be the celebrity preacher of 
his time, but the function of John was to prop up. The function 
of John was to shine the light upon. The function of John was 
to bear witness. And notice how he bears witness 
according to verse 15. He cried out. He didn't mumble 
it. He didn't simply murmur it. He 
didn't say it to a handful of people in a back alley, but he 
cried out. And the crying out there isn't 
emotional language. It's not the idea that he was 
sitting in a corner and weeping profusely. One commentator says, 
the Baptist is said to have cried out, which is not used for emotional 
or rational cries, but with a special sense for inspired speech, as 
for the speech of Jesus, the cries of the Spirit, or the cries 
of the prophet. So John's purpose in terms of 
testimony, or John's function in terms of testimony, was to 
testify in terms of preaching, proclamation, declaration, setting 
forth the glory of Jesus Christ. When you survey the New Testament, 
you will see a heavy emphasis on that as a means of grace. 
In fact, Paul's parting command to the church via Timothy is 
to preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, 
convince, rebuke, and exhort with all longsuffering and teaching. 
Now they had other media available to them at that particular time. 
They had theater, they had mime, they had skit, they had play, 
they had dramatization. They had all that convention 
in the first century. But as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 
1.21, since in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom 
did not know God, it pleased God through what? Through the 
foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. The 
idea being is that when a man preaches the glory of Christ 
and when a sinner believes on Christ, the excellence of the 
power is Christ and not upon the man. It's not upon the means. It's not upon the media. It's 
not upon the big budget movie that led a whole multitude to 
Jesus. No, John the Baptist was a preacher, 
and John the Baptist testified through preaching. His father, 
Zacharias, in his song declaring the preeminence of Christ and 
the role of the Baptist relative to him says this, And you, child, 
will be called the prophet of the highest, for you will go 
before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways. And then of 
course, Isaiah 40, verse three, the voice of one crying in the 
wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the 
desert a highway for our God. The church needs to recover a 
robust vision of the means that God has ordained for the benefit 
of great multitudes in the history of the church. It isn't drama. It isn't skit. It isn't mime. It isn't Facebook. It isn't Twitter. It is the foolishness of the 
message preached that God is pleased to crown with His blessing 
in terms of the salvation of sinners. As well, 2 Peter 3 ends 
on the high note of the people of God growing in the grace and 
in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Yes, 
they can do that through a Facebook live group, but it comes in the 
form of the public means of preaching that God is pleased to bless 
and strengthen. Now notice, secondly, under the 
preeminence of the Word, the testimony of the Baptist. So 
not only was his function to testify, and he does that through 
crying out and preaching, but notice the specific testimony 
of the Baptist according to the middle of verse 15. He says, 
this was he of whom I said, he who comes after me is preferred 
before me for he was before me. He declares his preeminence. He declares his superiority. Notice that the Baptist says 
that Jesus comes after me. As far as chronology, John the 
Baptist was six months older than our Lord Jesus Christ. You 
can see that in Luke's Gospel, specifically at chapter 1, verses 
26 and then 35 and 36. As well, John the Baptist understood 
his role in terms of Isaiah 40 and Malachi 3. He was a forerunner. The forerunner necessarily comes 
before the one that he is announcing. So he acknowledges the reality 
that Christ came after him in terms, again, of age, and in 
terms of redemptive history. John's ministry began first. Jesus comes after saying the 
same thing, repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand, and then 
he presents himself to the Baptist in order to be baptized by him. 
So John makes that statement concerning the fact that Jesus 
came after him, but then notice what he goes on to say. This 
was he of whom I said, he who comes after me is preferred before 
me. Again, John is not a narcissist. John is not a man who wants celebrity. John is not the sort of fellow 
that gets his nose bent out of shape when someone comes after 
him and has more notoriety or more prestige. John the Baptist 
understands that in the redemptive plan of God, it was purposed 
to be this way. But notice when he says, he is 
preferred before me. Some of the other translations 
might help us to understand a bit more. The ESV has ranks before 
me. The NASB has proved to be my 
superior and the NIV has surpassed me. Again, John the Baptist isn't 
whining about this. He's not sniveling about this. 
He's not crying about this. In fact, the recorded end of 
his ministry, in terms of what he says, is found in John 3. 
And he says concerning Jesus, he must increase, but I must 
decrease. A curious statement. He doesn't 
say that Jesus must increase, all the while I continue to increase, 
but not as much. He doesn't say that he must increase 
all the while I stay with the same amount of prestige that 
I've had. No, he says that Christ must increase while I must decrease. So John the Baptist tells us 
that Christ is in fact the preeminent one. The one whom he had announced, 
the forerunner of the covenant, tells us to look to this one 
who has surpassed him, who is superior to him. Now notice the 
reason for this particular testimony. He says, because he was before 
me, or for he was before me. Now remember, brothers and sisters, 
John knew that he was older by six months. John knew that in 
the scheme of redemptive history, the forerunner had to precede 
the one that he was announcing. John the Baptist understands 
that all too well. John the Baptist is testifying 
what John the Apostle does in John 1, verses 1 to 3. He confesses 
along with the apostle that Jesus is co-eternal with the Father, 
that Jesus is distinct from the Father, and that Jesus is consubstantial 
or of the same substance with the Father. In other words, John 
the Baptist declares the preeminence of Christ at the point of the 
divinity of Christ. John the Baptist understood that 
Jesus was unique, and that he wasn't just unique as Israel's 
Messiah, but he was, in fact, the Son of God. In fact, look 
at John 1 at verse 34 to hear this declaration from the lips 
of John the Baptist. And I have seen and testified 
that this is the Son of God. Cyril of Alexandria said, after 
he had said, he has come before me, he necessarily adds, because 
he was before me. Ascribing the most ancient glory 
to Christ and maintaining that his superiority over all things 
did not accrue to him in time, but it is in him from the beginning 
since he is God by nature. So the Baptist in his ministry, 
the Baptist as a voice of one crying in the wilderness, knew 
that he was proclaiming, in a special sense, the glory of Christ as 
the Son of God himself. Again, co-eternal with, distinct 
from, and consubstantial with the Father. John the Baptist 
is in accord with what we would later confess in the church called 
the Nicene Creed. The Nicene Creed and the consistent 
testimony of the church has said that very thing. Jesus is co-eternal 
with the Father. There never was a time when the 
Son was not. There never was a time when the 
Father was not. The church has always confessed 
that the Son is distinct from the Father and from the Spirit. And the church has always confessed 
that the Son is of the same substance as the Father. So John the Baptist 
and John the Apostle are the foundation upon which the Nicene 
Creed came. They are the foundation, the 
men of the New Testament and the Old Testament as well. They're 
the foundation for the great creeds and confessions that have 
come to the church, that have been codified, that have been 
confessed, and that have been celebrated. As well, they have 
been used to distinguish the true from the false. If a man 
stands up and preaches that there was a time when the Son was not, 
that man is a heretic. Do not listen to him. Jehovah's 
Witnesses are engaged in heresy. They're not just some misguided 
fools out there trying to build up their roles. They're denying 
the co-eternality and the consubstantiality of the Word with the Father. 
That is damnable heresy. Jesus says as much in John 8. 
He says, if you do not believe that I am, you will die in your 
sins. And there it is reminiscent or 
what he is reminiscing on is Exodus 3, 14 and several statements 
in the prophet Isaiah, where Yahweh declares, I am. So the 
Lord Christ is who John the apostle says. He is the one that John 
the Baptist testifies concerning. And from that, we know and see 
that he is preferred among men. He is superior. He has surpassed. He is the preeminent one. In 
fact, turn to the book of Colossians, in Colossians chapter one, a 
passage in many ways parallel to John's prologue. But in Colossians 
chapter one, look at what the apostle Paul says at this level 
or at this point. Verse 15, he, Christ, is the 
image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 
For by him all things were created that are in heaven and that are 
on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions 
or principalities or powers. All things were created through 
him and for him. And he is before all things, 
and in him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, 
the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, 
that in all things he may have the preeminence. Now, brothers 
and sisters, I have said on several occasions from this pulpit that 
in many ways the church chokes on practical theology, not even 
theology. Practical principles, self-helpism, 
virtue signaling at many times, but churches are like, We don't 
want to get into all that doctrine and all that theology. Just tell 
us how to live in a good way Just just tell us how to have 
a better us a better life Tell me how I can relate and sort 
of coordinate with my spouse and in a healthier sort of way 
brethren understand the preeminence of Jesus Christ and Because if 
you do not, you will never relate to your spouse the way that you 
ought to. When you undervalue theology, 
you sort of strip out from the practicality the very basis and 
groundwork for the practicality. We need to stand in awe at the 
Redeemer of God's elect. And if that is the only practical 
application you get out of a sermon, that is a great one. We need 
to stand in awe at the only Redeemer of God's elect. Look at chapter 
1 in the book of Hebrews, another parallel to the prologue. Hebrews 
1, verse 1, God, who at various times and in various ways spoke 
in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last 
days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of 
all things, through whom also He made the worlds. who, being 
the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, 
and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had 
by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the 
Majesty on high, having become so much better than the angels, 
as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they." 
See, again, the New Testament writers get into the economy 
of salvation. but they don't do it at the sacrifice 
of the theology involved. In other words, consider or behold 
your God. That then gives us great encouragement 
when we move, for instance, to John 1.29. The Word who was in 
the beginning, the Word who was with God, the Word who was God, 
came down from heaven, assumed our humanity in the language 
of verse 14, He became flesh and dwelt among us. We beheld 
His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, 
full of grace and truth. And then in 129, the Baptist 
lays eyes on the Lord Jesus and he says, behold the Lamb of God 
who takes away the sin of the world. You see, brethren, the 
preeminence of Christ ought to melt our hardened hearts. It 
ought to promote in us praise and worship and adoration, that 
the darling of heaven, the very jewel of heaven, comes down into 
this cesspool, comes down into this sewage pit. Actually, it's 
worse than a cesspool and sewage pit. Cess and sewage do what 
they were made to do. Sinners actually reject and rebel 
against the living and true God. It is far worse for the Son of 
God to come and dwell among us than for us to be cast into a 
cesspit. And when we see this and the 
dignity of our Lord, again, praise, worship, adoration, and glory 
should be given unto Him. So John the Baptist testifies 
concerning the preeminence of Christ. Now, notice in verses 
16 to 18, I want to give you what I suspect is John's point. 
It is the revelation of God by the word. He reveals God, the 
father. by His coming in the flesh. Remember, we need to remember 
verse 14. The Word became flesh and dwelt 
among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten 
of the Father, full of grace and truth. Now dropping down 
to verse 16, he highlights in the first place the fullness 
of the Word for us. The fullness of the word for 
us. That word, or those two words, 
for us. The Latin is pro nobis. We say deus pro nobis, God for 
us. You perhaps have heard ora pro 
nobis, which means to pray for us. You see, verse 16 reminisces 
or highlights or underscores what John already said in verse 
14. Notice in verse 14 at the end, 
full of grace and truth. Verse 16, and of his fullness, 
we have all received and grace for grace. So the language reiterates 
that Christ has this fullness in him, but this fullness that 
is in him is bestowed upon us. In other words, he has great 
resources, he has great bounty, and he is pleased to pour it 
out on the likes of sinners. It is a most wonderful thing. 
We just sang, he is willing, he is willing, he is able, doubt 
no more. Imagine somebody who is willing 
to save you, but doesn't have the power. That would be a nice 
sentiment. We'd say, thank you, but continue 
in our misery. Imagine somebody has the power 
to save us, but he doesn't have the will to. That would be depressing, 
wouldn't it? He has all resources, all abundance, 
every virtue, everything we need, but he doesn't pour it out upon 
the needy sinner. But he is willing. He is willing. 
He is able. Doubt no more. That's John's 
emphasis. And I think in the prologue what 
he is suggesting to us, and of his fullness we have all received, 
and grace for grace, is what our confession teaches in chapter 
8 at verse 3. It tells us that Jesus is thoroughly 
furnished to execute the office of mediator and surety. In other 
words, John is saying, the one described in verses 1 to 3, that 
divine Word, who was in the beginning, who was with the Father, who 
is consubstantial with the Father, that one has all the resources 
necessary for needy sinners, and He is willing to bestow that 
upon needy sinners. Now let's just make this really 
practical. Perhaps you're a needy sinner today. Well, we're all 
needy sinners to be sure. But perhaps you're a needy sinner 
who hasn't come to the Savior. Perhaps you're a needy sinner 
who hasn't closed with Christ. Perhaps you're a needy sinner 
who hasn't looked and lived. Perhaps you're a needy sinner 
who is still dead in his trespasses and sins. Well, look at the great 
abundance in the Savior and understand that when preachers declare to 
you, everyone who believes in Him will have everlasting life, 
they're not kidding. They're not making that up. They're 
not faking that. When Paul and Barnabas say to 
that Philippian jailer, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and 
you shall be saved. That's not a testimony to the 
jailer. It's a testimony to the sufficiency 
of the savior. When the apostle in Hebrews 7 
says that he's able to save to the uttermost all who draw nigh 
unto God through him. He's not kidding. He's not joking. He's not making that up. Kids, 
I know that you've heard the gospel a lot. If you come to 
this church, we try to preach the gospel often. You've heard 
it at home at the family altar. Have you closed with Christ? 
Have you believed the gospel? Have you understood that whatever 
you need is found in Him? We need justification. Christ 
provides it. We need sanctification. Christ 
provides it. We need glorification. Christ 
provides it. This is what leads Paul to exclaim 
praise in Ephesians chapter one. He says, blessed be the God and 
father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every 
spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. And then he 
celebrates God's sovereign grace, choosing us, predestinating us 
unto redemption in him. He celebrates redemption through 
the blood of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit 
to apply that. See, needy sinners can find in 
the Savior every need met. Needy sinners can find in the 
Savior every bit of grace upon grace that is ever needed by 
a sinner. That's the apostle's emphasis. This one who is described in 
verses 1 to 3 in terms of his divinity. This one who is described 
in verses 6 to 13 in terms of his mission. This one is equipped 
to deliver according to John in verse 16. And of his fullness, 
we have all received and grace for grace. Again, Cyril of Alexandria, 
he said, he is so far from any lack that he can supply all things 
without diminishing himself while preserving the greatness of his 
superiority. So it is always the same. In 
other words, when we go to Christ, it's not as if he is emptying 
himself. He doesn't have as much for the 
next guy. I remember way back when I had 
this idea that God was sort of like an old PBX operator. Now, 
you kids aren't going to get this, I apologize, but way back, 
The day and I'm not that old brethren, but there's been a 
significant change in terms of technology cell phones and whatnot 
With reference to these operators that you know They you'd call 
the operator and then they would sort of connect your call to 
someone else As a young papist, I think I had that view of God, 
you know if I was talking to him then you know Perhaps he 
wouldn't hear somebody else or if I was talking to him then 
perhaps you know that he was so caught up with me, not that 
that was in my thought, but it was almost like he was this divine 
operator. He couldn't kind of do multitasking. That's not God. God is omnipotent. God is omniscient. God is omnipresent. God is not like us. In other 
words, when we come to the Savior, we do not exhaust his resources. It's not as if 2,000 years after 
the cross, Jesus doesn't have as much power anymore. No, Jesus 
has all power. Jesus has all authority. And 
every sinner who comes to Him in faith will find blessing, 
will find mercy, will find forgiveness, and will find that He is God 
for us. So in verse 16, the apostle highlights 
the fullness of the Word for us. But then notice the revelation 
of God by the Word to us, and that's verses 17 to 18. I think there's some misunderstanding 
about verse 17. That's why I wanted to spend 
a little bit of extra time here this morning. In the first place, 
notice that it is a comparison with Moses. Verse 17, for the 
law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through 
Jesus Christ. Now, a lot of times, as I said, 
people misunderstand that. They say, well, there was no 
grace and truth in the Old Testament because law was given through 
Moses. No, that's not what it means. 
There was grace and truth in the Old Testament. Every word 
of the Old Testament is truth, to be sure. And many of the words 
of the Old Testament are grace, to be sure. The sacrificial system, 
for instance. Though the blood of bulls and 
goats could never take away the sin of man, it pointed forward 
to and prefigured the coming of the Lamb of God who takes 
away the sin of the world. As well, turn to John chapter 
5 for just a moment to see something of what Moses wrote about. John 
chapter 5, specifically verses 39 to 47. Verse 39, you search 
the scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life, 
and these are they which testify of me. But you are not willing 
to come to me that you may have life. I do not receive honor 
from men, but I know you, that you do not have the love of God 
in you. I have come in my Father's name and you do not receive me. 
If another comes in his own name, him you will receive. How can 
you believe who receive honor from one another and do not seek 
the honor that comes from the only God? Do not think that I 
shall accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you, 
Moses, in whom you trust. For if you believed Moses, you 
would believe me. for he wrote about me. But if 
you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my word?" 
So going back to John 1, 17, we know that what he means there 
cannot be that there was no grace and truth present in the Old 
Testament. A second observation in terms 
of what John can't mean is that there's no law in the New Testament. Jesus will say in John 14, 15, 
if you love me, you will keep my commandments. The Apostle 
Paul, as he embarks on the celebration of the doctrine of justification 
by faith alone, inserts in Romans 3.31, what do we say then? Do 
we nullify the law? No, certainly not. We establish 
it. In Romans 7.12, the Apostle describes 
the law of God as holy and good and wise. When we come to the 
New Testament Scriptures, it's not as if they are absent of 
the law. So John cannot mean in verse 
17, no grace and truth in the Old Testament and no law in the 
New Testament. As well, he cannot mean that 
there is this sharp antithesis or this sharp break between Moses 
and Jesus. He's not saying Moses bad, Jesus 
good. That's not the emphasis in verse 
17. So again, under what I call, or what not I call, everybody 
has called dispensationalism, at times that sort of a mindset 
is promoted. This idea that there's this great 
antithesis between the old and the new covenants. That's not 
the text, or this text does not teach that whatsoever. What does 
he mean when he says, for the law was given through Moses, 
but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ? Well, I would say 
in the first place, the old covenant was anticipation and promise, 
and the new covenant is realization and fulfillment. There's a relationship 
between the two covenants. The one is promise, the other 
is fulfillment. The one is anticipation, the 
other is realization. I think we can successfully say 
that in terms of an open Bible. As well, the Old Covenant, as 
Old Covenant, was primarily a law covenant. I have preached and 
I hold to the fact that the Old Testament or the Old Covenant 
was primarily a covenant of works so that the children of Israel 
would see their need for the Messiah that would come to save 
them by grace. So the Old Covenant is primarily 
marked by law. New Covenant is primarily marked 
by grace. I think those are safe assumptions 
with reference to this passage. But I actually think the point, 
verse 17, is not on antithesis. It's not even on the relationship 
between the two covenants. But it's on the mode of revelation 
between the two covenants. Now let me explain what I mean. 
I know it's hard. I know it's hot. I'm convinced 
it's hot. They told me today it's gonna 
be 40 degrees and it feels like it even in the AC cooling place 
that we have, cooling center. But please pay attention because 
I think when you see this, not that I'm presenting it as some 
newfound thing in the history of the church, But I think when 
you see this, you'll get at what John is doing. There's a crescendo 
in the prologue. He's telling us that this one 
in the beginning, who was with the father and is God, is the 
one in whom the revelation of God has come to a pinnacle, has 
come to full disclosure. Look at the verbs used by the 
apostle in verse 17. For the law was given through 
Moses, Moses himself didn't originate the law. Moses didn't one morning 
wake up and say, you know, I want to mess with the children of 
Israel. I'm going to take them out to Sinai and I'm just going 
to give them my heart in 10 words. No, God spake by Moses. But notice 
that the law was given through Moses. Moses was the mediator 
by which God's law came to the children of Israel. It's a wonderful 
thing. The pomp and glory of Exodus 
19 is amazing. The thunder, the lightning, the 
smoke, the fire, the warning by God that no man can approach 
the mountain and live, that is an amazing scene. But that law 
was given through Moses. Notice what the next phrase tells 
us. But grace and truth came through 
Jesus Christ. It's the difference between God 
using the mediatorial office of Moses to give his law through 
to God coming in the flesh by which grace and truth are seen 
clearly. It is the mode of revelation 
that comes as the climax in verses 17 and then 18. 18 confirms this interpretation. 
No one has seen God at any time, but the only begotten Son who 
is in the bosom of the Father, He has exegeted Him, is literally 
the word. He has declared Him. He has explained 
Him. So John ends the prologue this 
way. Everything you see and hear from verses 19 to the end of 
chapter 21, it wasn't given through the mediation, but rather it 
came through the mediator. Christ is the embodiment of grace 
and truth. Christ is the embodiment of who 
God is. Such that when Philip says in 
John 14, show us the Father, Jesus is able to say, if you've 
seen me, you've seen the Father. Again, he's consubstantial, he's 
of the same substance with the Father every step of the way. So as John is introducing his 
gospel, he wants you to understand that this Lamb of God who takes 
away the sin of the world is God from God, light from light, 
true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in being with the 
Father through whom all things were made. This is the glorious 
exposition of the theology behind the economy. Now, with reference 
to the background, turn to Exodus chapter 33. I think Exodus 33 
and 34 is in the mind of the apostle. Exodus chapter 33. We've seen this in our reading 
through scripture in the evening services. The law was given through 
Moses and grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Notice 
in Exodus 33 at verse 18, he said, please show me your glory. Isn't that the emphasis in the 
prologue? The word became flesh and dwelt 
among us, and we beheld what? His glory, the glory as of the 
only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. So Moses 
says to Yahweh, show me your glory. Yahweh says, I will cause 
it to pass by you, but I'm going to hide you in the cleft of the 
rock. Because if you are without mediation, if you are naked as 
it were, you will be undone. So Yahweh causes that glory to 
pass. And Moses does have a view of 
it, but it passes and Moses is safely folded in the cleft of 
the rock. Not so with John 1.14. The Word 
became flesh and dwelt among us. So when you said to Jesus, 
show us your glory, it wasn't just this passing sort of vision. 
He didn't say, first of all, I want you to hide under the 
piano and then I'll walk past you and you can sort of see the 
back parts of my glory. No, when we have Jesus, we have 
the very glory of God Almighty. So in verse 17, he's not telling 
us Moses bad, Jesus good. He's not telling us old covenant 
miserable, new covenant wonderful. He's not telling us of this great 
antithesis that obtains between the two covenants, except at 
this point, in terms of the mode of revelation, the law was given 
through the mediation of Moses. But grace and truth came through 
the mediator of the New Covenant. The very embodiment of Jesus 
amongst his people was the celebration and presentation of the very 
glory of God Almighty. You see it on the Mount of Transfiguration. Remember that time when the Son 
of God is on the Mount with his disciples. And as it were, he 
peels back the humanity and reveals the divinity. They see his glory. They see his majesty. Peter later 
witnesses concerning that in 2 Peter 1. We were eyewitnesses 
of his glory. And it wasn't that he put us 
under the piano. It wasn't that he hit us in the 
cleft of the rock. It wasn't that he just passed by for a 
moment, but he dwelt among us and we beheld his glory, the 
glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace 
and truth. He's not only full of grace and 
truth in terms of who he is, but he's full of grace and truth 
in terms of what he does for us. Notice, Exodus 33, 18, "'Please 
show me your glory.' Then God said, "'I will make all my goodness 
pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. 
I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have 
compassion on whom I will have compassion.'" See, there's no 
grace and truth in the Old Testament. In fact, those are the perfections 
that God demonstrates to Moses as he passes by. It is grace 
and truth. Notice in verse 20, but he said, 
you cannot see my face for no man shall see me and live. And 
the Lord said, here is a place by me and you shall stand on 
the rock. So it shall be while my glory 
passes by that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and 
I will cover you with my hand while I pass by. Then I will 
take away my hand and you shall see my back, but my face shall 
not be seen. See, in verse 18, in John's prologue, 
it is tantamount to telling us that now the face of God is revealed 
in the person and through the work of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, notice the actual execution. 
Drop down to 34.5. Now the Lord descended in the 
cloud and stood with him there and proclaimed the name of the 
Lord. And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, the Lord, 
the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering and abounding 
in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving 
iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the 
guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children 
and the children's children to the third and fourth generation. 
So going back to the prologue, the issue in verse 17 is some 
great disparity between Moses and Jesus. The issue in verse 
17 is on the revelation of God Almighty through the incarnation 
of the Son of God. When we beheld Him, we beheld 
the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace 
and truth. One commentator makes this observation, 
the old covenant is as much grace as the new, but it is the new 
covenant that grace is given its ultimate and final expression. 
The progression of the prologue has moved from a God who has 
given to his people to a God who has Come to his people. See, when we get to the incarnation 
of our Lord, this is most incredible, most glorious, most amazing. The antithesis of verse 17 has 
nothing to do with the badness of Moses and the goodness of 
Jesus. It's not even an antithesis. 
It is a comparison. God's law was given through Moses, 
but grace and truth came through our Lord Jesus Christ. This, 
my brothers and sisters, demonstrates that in the person of our Lord 
Jesus, we have the one who is co-eternal with, distinct from, 
and consubstantial with the Father, the one who created all things, 
and the one who for us men and for our salvation came down from 
heaven. He assumed our humanity. He took 
on our flesh with all the essential properties and the common infirmities 
thereof, and yet without sin. And He did that in order to live 
for us. He did that in order to die for us. And He did that 
in order to be raised for us, because the fullness of grace 
and truth is in Him. And from that, we all have received 
grace upon grace. John sets forth the dignity of 
the Savior before he articulates and explains the salvation itself. He starts with theology and he 
moves to the economy, and the church needs to imbibe something 
of that in our day. We need to understand that the 
beginning of Jesus was not Bethlehem. The beginning of Jesus, if I 
can even use this language, is in eternity past, because He 
is the only begotten Son of the Father. As the Creed says, light 
from light, God from God, very God from very God. Well, in conclusion, 
I just want to bring out a few thoughts and then we'll go. First, 
the preeminence of Christ. See, as you get saved when you're 
a younger person, you're just happy you got saved, right? It's 
great getting saved. There's nothing better, right? 
There's nothing better. I've never found a bag of money, 
but if I ever do subsequent to this point, it won't be as good 
as having been forgiven of my sins and having received the 
righteousness of Jesus Christ. There's nothing better, is there? 
Is there anything better than to know that when you pillow 
your head at night, should you die, you enter into the presence 
of Christ? If you contract COVID, if you 
contract whatever disease, you contract whatever ailment, you 
fall into any sort of calamity, be it financial, be it job, be 
it relational, whatever it may be, we have life in Jesus Christ. That's the pearl of great price. 
So when you first get saved, you're happy to be saved. But 
then as you move along in your salvation, you're happy as you 
understand the one who saved you. You're happy as you consider 
the one who left heaven above, who took on our humanity, who 
identified with us, who lived for us, who died for us, and 
who rose again for us. That should draw our hearts out 
to praise and worship and adoration, not just that we have been saved, 
but who we've been saved by. Blessed Father, Son, and Spirit, 
the Father sought The Son wrought, and the Son bought, and the Spirit 
wrought this salvation that we currently enjoy. And with reference 
to the preeminence of Christ, consider the scope of Scripture. 
You have the prophets pointing to Him and declaring His preeminence. You have John the Baptist who 
had an interesting position in redemptive history. He not only 
pointed to Him, but he also pointed at Him. And by at him, I don't 
mean in a derogatory sense. He pointed to him as the forerunner, 
announcing the arrival of the king. And he pointed at him when 
he says, behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of 
the world. Consider the testimony of the father relative to the 
preeminence of the son, both at the baptism of Jesus and at 
the Mount of Transfiguration. That voice thunders out of heaven. 
And it says, this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. It's always discouraged me when 
I think about the fact that myself and others with me, I don't want 
to confess your sin. C.S. Lewis made the point, national 
repentance puts the man nationally repenting, you know, imbibing 
or telling people they've committed a particular sin. But typically, 
we don't always value and prize the Savior as we ought. And if 
the father has such approbation of the son, if the father is 
so well pleased with the son, what should his people be? What 
should be our mindset relative to the preeminence of Christ? 
Later in John 14, the Spirit testifies. The Spirit declares 
the preeminence of Christ. Jesus says, He will glorify me. The apostles, what was their 
task? What was their mission? They 
were just like John the Baptist. They testified concerning Jesus. They cried out in preaching concerning 
Jesus. It wasn't about Peter. It wasn't 
about Paul. It wasn't about John. It wasn't 
about James. It was about Jesus. There's far 
too much people-pleasing today. Oh, the celebrity preacher, this 
guy, that guy, this guy. It's about Christ. C. H. Spurgeon said it right. Let the 
name of Charles Spurgeon perish, but let the name of Jesus Christ 
be magnified. That's not always the mindset 
today. There is in the hardened hearts 
of men a little desire, a little longing, a little yearning for 
some prestige. No, the ministry of the gospel 
is to point toward Jesus Christ and say with the Baptist himself, 
he must increase, but I must decrease. And then of course, 
the church confesses his preeminence. 1 Timothy 3, verse 16, by common 
confession. There was an early confession 
that the church used, but I'll just cite the nice scene here. One Lord Jesus Christ, the only 
begotten Son of God, the begotten of the Father before all worlds, 
God of God, light of light, very God of very God, begotten, not 
made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all 
things were made, who for us men and for our salvation came 
down from heaven." Brethren, theology, who God is in terms 
of who God is, is absolutely essential. We can't just say, 
well, I just want the benefits, I just want the gift, I just 
want that. Kind of like on a birthday, if you handed your kid a gift, 
and all they're just consumed with the gift. You kind of want 
them to say thank you, not because you have some spirit of self-aggrandizement, 
but there's this posture of gratitude, this posture of thankfulness, 
this posture that's just decent among creatures. But among the 
blood-bought children of God, yes, we want the gift. Yes, we 
receive the gift. Yes, we benefit by the gift. 
But we want the giver. We want to know him. We want 
to increase in our knowledge. We want to understand him. This 
morning, we're exhorted from a reading by A.W. Pink on the 
necessity of growing in our understanding of the very being of God, the 
perfections of God. God is spirit. He's infinite, 
eternal, and unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, 
justice, goodness, and truth. If that just sounds like dead 
cold theology to you, the problem isn't that statement. The problem 
is most likely your heart. Doctrine concerning who God is 
ought to promote in the heart of the sinner saved a desire 
to respond in gratitude, in love, in worship, and in praise. Secondly, 
in terms of the fullness of Christ, the fullness of Christ in himself, 
he's full of grace and truth, and the fullness of Christ for 
us, and of his fullness we have all received in grace for grace. 
I mentioned something about willingness and power earlier. Turn to Matthew 
chapter 8. Matthew chapter 8. And we'll end here. Matthew chapter 
eight, just to see this in our Savior. A willingness without power is 
a nice sentiment. Power without willingness is 
depressing. Both together means blessing 
for the recipient. Look at verse one. When he had 
come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. 
And behold, a leper came and worshiped him saying, I don't 
think we really have come to grips with this scenario, but 
leprosy was no joke. It was not the case that, you 
know, you just kind of moved and breathed and had your being 
with everybody else. You were separated from society. You want 
to talk quarantine? Look at the laws concerning leprosy. 
You were not involved. Family, friends, associates, 
work. You didn't go to work with leprosy. 
You didn't show up at, you know, the job site being a dripping, 
oozing leper. Just, sorry, but that just didn't 
happen. So this fellow had understood all too well, not only sin, but 
the consequences of sin. And look at how he addresses 
the Savior. If you are willing, you can make me clean. He knows 
that the Lord has power. He knows that the Lord has ability. He knows that the Lord has the 
requisite aid that is necessary for his condition. Now notice 
what happens in verse three. Then Jesus put out his hand and 
touched him. Jesus touched a leper. Well, 
didn't he defile himself? No, because he's got the power 
to not only not be defiled, but to make clean the leper. Again, 
it's a power issue, but it's also a will issue. Notice what 
he says, I am willing. be cleansed." Immediately, his 
leprosy was cleansed. We just sang, come ye sinners, 
poor and wretched, weak and wounded, sick and sore. Jesus ready stands 
to save you, full of pity, joined with power. He is able, he is 
able, he is able, he is willing, doubt no more. The fullness is 
in him and the fullness is bestowed by him. So if anyone here today 
is still in their sins, don't hesitate, don't resist, don't 
make some mental sort of calisthenic in your mind wherein you say, 
well, I'll put it off and I'll put it off and when I have a 
convenient time. No, He is willing and He is able. Come to Him and you will have 
everlasting life. It is most blessed, it is most 
glorious, it is most wondrous, and then you enter into this 
blessed pursuit of who he is, understanding, knowing, growing, 
learning, and finding even more benefit for your soul when you 
understand that the grace heaped upon you comes from the one in 
whom the fullness of grace and truth reside. Well, let us pray. Our Father, thank you for your 
word and thank you for this prologue in John's gospel and what it 
teaches us concerning the Trinity and as well concerning the power 
of God unto salvation for everyone who believes. To the Jew first 
and also to the Greek. For in this gospel, the righteousness 
of God is revealed from faith to faith, that as it is written, 
the just shall live by faith. So God, work in the hearts of 
men, women, boys and girls here and elsewhere, and cause them 
to look by faith to the Son of God and live eternally. And we 
ask as well that you would help us to grow in our knowledge, 
grow in our understanding, grow in our appreciation and in our 
love for this one who is altogether lovely and chief among 10,000. 
And we pray in Jesus' name, amen. We'll close with a brief time 
of meditation.