John 1:14 And 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.
John 1:16-17 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
The Law that was given through Moses is good. The Apostle Paul affirms this in 1 Tim. 1:8: “the law is good if one uses it properly” (NIV). And again in Rom. 7:12 he wrote, “the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous, and good.” In the law, “God graciously revealed his character and righteous requirements..." (ESV Study Bible, p. 2190). If it is not good, the psalmist would not have said “Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.” (Psa. 119:97)
However, even good things must be replaced if there are better things, specially when what is available is better by a great distance. The Word who was with God from the beginning was made flesh and dwelt among us. This event in history "marked the final, definitive revelation of God's grace and truth." (ESV Study Bible, ibid). Not only is Jesus superior to Moses through whom the law came, he is also superior to the patriarchs, through whom the nation of Israel was called (John 8:53). On top of that, he is superior over all the angels according to the Book of Hebrews.
With the fullness of this revelation, it is written here in verse 16 that we are given grace upon grace. There may be some differences in how the translators put this (see NIV 2011 and ESV’s footnote) but I think the main point is clear. This is the main point: in Jesus, we have arrived at the climax of God's progressive revelation of his saving grace. The law given through Moses was good, yet Jesus is better and it is superior by a great distance. And because it is superior by a great distance, the amount grace that is given to us comes with a far greater quantity. In Jesus, there is grace for those who believe in immeasurable abundance.
Brothers and sisters, how could you be aware of this superabundance of grace fail to worship God? How could anyone with an awareness of this inexhaustible fountain fail to exalt his name. Let the redeemed rise up and worship the Lord!
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