The Unmentioned Word

At the end of the prologue in the gospel of John, there is an identifying Word about Jesus.  In verse 14 of that first chapter, it speaks of Jesus being "full of grace and truth."  And then a few verses later, the Word says, "From His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.  The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ."   While pondering these words, it occurred to me that the word "grace" is not a word used in the gospels.  According to one source, it appears only seven times, but never is the usage of the word attributed to Jesus.  Six of those times it appears in the gospel of John and the other time in Luke.     

What becomes obvious is that the scriptural usage of the word "grace" in the New Testament is primarily found in the other than gospel material.  When Jesus was pronouncing the Beatitudes, He never says, "Blessed are those who live with grace for they shall be given grace."  If the gospels record all the Words of Jesus, then the only conclusion is that He never used the word.  It is a conclusion to which most of us would not readily come as there is so much about His life which points us toward the fact that His life was an expression of the grace of God.   

As we reflect on the Words speaking of Him by saying, "(He) was full of grace and truth,"  we are reminded of His interaction with the woman caught in adultery, old Zacchaeus up in a tree, blind lepers along the road,and the constant failure of the disciples to get what He was saying.   It may be true that we have no record of Jesus using the Word, but there are so many stories about Him which reveal the reality of grace being given expression in His living.  It is an example which would do us all well to follow.