Session 20 · John 1:14-18
Jesus: The Lines on His Face
Looking at the one the whole book has been pointing toward
Book reading: Chapter 20
This is the last session. In the closing chapter, Miller turns to falling in love with Jesus. That fits the whole shape of this book, which began with God approaching on a dirt road and ends with a person. John 1 gives us a way to look at him.
John writes, “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.” Think about what that sentence claims. The same God who filled Isaiah's temple with smoke and made seraphim cover their faces did not stay at a distance. He became flesh. John says “we have seen,” which means eyes, not just ideas. If you want to fall in love with someone, you need to see a face, and John says this one can be seen.
He is “full of grace and truth.” Those two words are held together on purpose. Truth without grace would flatten us, and grace without truth would not touch what is wrong. In Jesus they come in one person. Verse 17 says, “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”
Then John gives one of the most generous sentences in the Bible: “For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.” The word all matters. Nobody who has received from him got a smaller share. Grace comes layered, one gift on top of another, which means you can run low on your own resources without running low on his.
Finally, “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.” Many of the questions in this book, such as doubt, guilt, wonder, community, money, and love, come down to one: what is God like? John's answer is to point at Jesus. If you want to know what God is like, look at him.
So this session is not a test of what you remember from the book. It is an invitation to look again. When did you start to love Jesus, if you do? If you aren't sure you do, what is in the way? What are you taking from these twenty chapters into the next stretch of your life?
Whatever you answer, answer it honestly. Doubt is welcome in this conversation, and so is plain gladness. If you carry grief, guilt, or numbness that makes any of this feel unreachable, bring it to a pastor, counselor, or trusted friend. Jesus came near on purpose, and people who love him can come near with you.
Key idea
John 1 shows that God has made himself known in Jesus, full of grace and truth, so falling in love with him means looking closely at who he actually is.
Questions to consider
- Miller's closing chapter turns to falling in love with Jesus. When, if ever, did that happen for you, or what has been in the way?
- Looking back over the whole book, what is the one thing you want to carry forward, and which Bible passage from this guide supports it?
Journal prompt
Write a short letter to Jesus describing what you have noticed about him, and what you want from him, as you finish this book.
Practice
1. Read John 1:14-18 twice, slowly. 2. Write down five things you notice about Jesus in those verses. 3. Circle the one that matters most to you today. 4. Write a three-sentence prayer in response and put it where you will see it this week.