John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’” And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him. (vv.15-18)
John the Baptist’s testimony here was rooted in his understanding of the pre-existence of Jesus. He knew that Jesus was before him in every sense. This new order has an inexhaustible supply of grace (grace for grace, the figure of speech similar to sorrows upon sorrows) and truth, contrasting with an order of rigid laws and regulations given through Moses.
For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ: This describes and demonstrates the fullness of grace announced by John the Baptist and brought by Jesus Christ - a different order than the one instituted by Moses under the law.
No one has seen God at any time: Jesus, the Word, is the perfect declaration of the unseen God. The Father and the Son belong to the same family, and Jesus has declared the nature of the unseen God to man. We don’t have to wonder about the nature and personality of God. Jesus has declared it with both His teaching and His life. Jesus then, who is in the bosom of the Father, and has a oneness of essence with God the Father, is therefore the only one able to declare Him. For He and the Father are one (John 30:10).
The Truth: Jesus' Prayer for all Believers (John 17:20-26)
"I am not asking on behalf of them alone, but also on behalf of those who will believe in Me through their message, that all of them may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I am in You. May they also be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me. I have given them the glory You gave Me, so that they may be one as We are one— I in them and You in Me—that they may be perfectly united, so that the world may know that You sent Me and have loved them just as You have loved Me." (vv.20-23)
