One Full of Grace and Truth
John 1:14
14 The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
I am sitting here pondering this verse this morning because it was highlighted in a graduate class I am taking. It has nothing to do with any sermon on my preaching schedule or class that I am teaching. Maybe it should be in every sermon I preach or lesson I teach.
“Full of grace and truth.” This verse is stocked with some really good stuff, but the grace and truth thing is what is giving me pause for meditation today. How can it be? Sometimes, isn’t grace somewhat absent from truth? Parents correct their children and say if you do that again, you will be grounded for a month. That is truth. Sure enough, those kids do whatever it was they were not supposed to do and truth/punishment is carried out and there appears to be no grace.
How can Jesus be full of both? Initially grace has been extended because truth is present. By the grace of God we have been given truth and we do not have to guess at what God wants. The deliverance of truth in and of itself is an act of grace. Suppose with every step we take we had to wonder if we were walking within the truth of God. We would certainly not feel secure in our journey and just might forsake the journey altogether.
So when God delivered Jesus to the world, He was delivering truth. Three verses later in this same chapter we are told that, “grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”
Also by the grace of God we know the source of truth. It is Jesus! Of course He, later in His ministry, would declare, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
So, in reality, without grace truth could not have been delivered. Without grace truth is incomplete. Without grace truth is an ambiguous concept that you can’t get your hands around. Without grace the source of truth becomes blurred.
Praise God! Grace AND truth came through Jesus Christ.
(Thoughts about grace later)
