July 10

And of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace.—John 1. 16.

WHAT have ye received? And grace for grace. For these are the words of the Evangelic text, as appears from a comparison with the Greek copies. He saith not, And of his fullness have all we received, grace for grace; but he saith thus: And of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace; namely, have we received: so that he would have us understand that we have received of his fullness a somewhat unexpressed; and over and above, grace for grace. Namely, we have received of his fullness, first grace to begin with; and again have received grace, grace for grace. What was the grace we received first? Faith. Walking in faith, we walk in grace. For how have we merited this? By what previous merits? Let not each stroke himself with a hand of soothing; let him turn back into his conscience; let him seek the hiding-places of his own thoughts; let him retrace the whole series of his doings. Let him not think of what he is, if now he is something; but of what he was, that he might be something; he will find that he was not worthy, save of punishment. If then thou wast worthy of punishment, and Christ came not to punish sins, but to forgive them; thou hadst grace given thee, not wages paid. Why is it called grace? Because it is bestowed gratuitously. For thou didst not by any previous merits buy that thou hast received. So then the grace he first received, being a sinner, was this: he had his sins remitted. What deserved he? Let him ask Justice; he finds a punishment: let him ask of Mercy, he finds grace. But this had God also promised by the prophets: wherefore, when he came to give what he had promised, he gave not only grace, but truth too. How was truth manifested? That which had been promised, was performed.

What then is "grace for grace"? By faith we deserve well at God's hand; and this so great a boon, forasmuch as it has been bestowed upon us who were unworthy, even upon us who were not worthy to have our sins remitted, is therefore called grace. What is "grace"? That which is given gratuitously. What is "given gratuitously"? Granted not paid. If it were due, as a debt, we have a reward paid, not grace granted. But if it were in very deed due, thou wast good: if however, which is the true account of the matter, thou wast evil, but yet didst believe on him who justifieth the ungodly, think what, by the law, did of right hang over thee; and what by grace thou hast obtained. But having obtained that grace of faith, thou shalt be just by faith; for the just doth live by faith; and thou shalt deserve well at God's hand by living by faith. And having deserved well at God's hand, by living by faith, thou shalt receive the prize, immortality and life eternal. This too is grace. For, for what merit dost thou receive eternal life? For grace. For if faith is grace, and life eternal is, so to speak, the wages of faith; God seems indeed, in bestowing eternal life, to be as it were repaying a debt:—a debt to whom? to the faithful, for he hath deserved it at God's hand by faith: but forasmuch as faith itself is grace, therefore LIFE ETERNAL also is grace for grace.

Hear the apostle Paul acknowledging grace, and yet, afterwards, demanding what was due to him as a debt. What acknowledgment of grace in Paul? Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious; but, saith he, I obtained mercy. He said that he was unworthy to obtain; but yet, that he did obtain, not through his own merits, but through God's mercy. Hear this very man, now suing for what was due to him as a debt, who, in the first instance, had received that which was no debt, but grace: For, saith he, I am now ready to be offered up, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness. Now it is a debt that he is suing for, he is exacting a debt. For see the words which follow; which the Lord shall render unto me in that day, (as) a righteous Judge. That in the former instance, he might have grace bestowed upon him, he stood in need of a merciful Father; that he might have the prize and reward of grace, of a just Judge. Will he, who condemned not the ungodly, condemn the faithful? And yet, if thou consider rightly, it was he who, in the first instance, gave thee that faith, whereby thou hast deserved well at his hands; for not of thine own hast thou deserved that any thing should be due to thee. Wherefore in that he afterwards bestows the prize of immortality, he crowns his own gifts, not thy merits. So then, brethren, all we of his fullness have received; of the fullness of his mercy, of the abundance of his goodness we have received—what? the remission of sins, that we might be justified by faith. And over and above this, what? and grace for grace: that is, for this grace, in which we live by faith, we are presently to receive another; yet that, what is it but grace? For if I shall say that this also is due, I attribute something to myself, as if I had a claim in the way of debt. Whereas, God doth crown in us the gifts of his own mercy: yet, upon condition that in that grace which we received first, we walk to the end.

"I know in thee all fullness dwells, And all for wretched man; Fill every want my spirit feels, And break off every chain.

"If thou impart thyself to me, No other good I need: If thou, the Son, shalt make me free, I shall be free indeed."