God's Unmerited Favor

“And out of His fullness we all have received, and grace for grace.” (John 1:16)

“...His fullness...” refers to the fact that Jesus had the Holy Spirit without measure while on earth. He was all God walking on this earth. He operated in all the gifts of the Holy Spirit and without limit. He was able to do what the Father wanted Him to do. On a side note, we cannot. Even if we fast and devote ourselves only to the Lord, separating ourselves completely from the world, which we cannot do anyway, we are subject to what God permits and what the Holy Spirit will do. Each one of us is given a gift. And all together we as the church are able to do what the Lord has for us to do. None of us have the fullness but a portion which work together to do what the Lord wants. We don’t know everything. God has His purposes and He knows what is needed best. We do not.

We cannot do anything on our own that would please the Father. “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it remains in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the Vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:4-5) We cannot even testify of the Lord without Him, without the Holy Spirit and without His anointing enabling. “I thank my God always on your behalf for the grace of God given you in Jesus Christ, that in everything you are enriched by Him, in all speech and in all knowledge; even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you; so that you come behind in no gift, waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

(1Corinthians 1:4-7) It’s the gift of the Holy Spirit that enables us and confirms to us and others about Christ and that we are Christ’s.

I am in awe of people who are never at a loss for words. It’s a gift of God that enables them to testify of God’s Goodness verbally. But not everyone has that gift. My thoughts get jumbled when I have to speak, but the gift that I have is in my mind which goes directly to my fingers.  I can write down the profound words of God. That’s my gift. We each have a measure, a part of the fullness of God’s Spirit. No one except Jesus while on earth had the fullness of God’s Spirit. “But to every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:7) And the Lord has given the church special gifts to build it up and mature to the fullness of Christ. “And truly He gave some to be apostles, and some to be prophets, and some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. And this until we all come into the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a full-grown man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;” (Ephesians 4:11-13) And the church is on its way to the fullness of Christ, but it’s a lifetime process.

And we have received “grace for grace.” Grace is the unmerited or undeserved favor of God. The meaning of “grace for grace” has several connotations. It can mean the favor of God in the Old Testament gave way to the favor of God in the New Covenant. It can mean grace and more grace or additional grace, in other words, God’s favor and additional favor.

This favor is ours because of the work of Jesus on the Cross. Paul explained it in his twelve long sentences. “ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ; according as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, in which He has made us accepted in the One having been loved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace, which He caused to abound toward us in all wisdom and understanding; having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, for an administration of the fullness of times, to head up all things in Christ, both the things in Heaven, and the things on earth, even in Him, in whom also we have been chosen to an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His own will, for us to be to the praise of His glory, who previously had trusted in Christ; in whom also you, hearing the Word of Truth, the gospel of our salvation, in whom also believing, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the earnest of our inheritance, to the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.” (Ephesians 1:3-14) This sentence cannot be divided without missing the whole meaning.

The Lord’s abundant grace, unmerited favor of God, is because of Jesus and His redemptive work for us. We receive abundance of favor and enabling to please the Father through the gifts He gives us when we are joined and keep ourselves joined to Jesus.