The Church is the Embodiment of Grace and Truth!

John 1:14: “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 love the thought that you and I are to be FULL of both grace and truth. Jesus and the N.T. does not suggest a balance between grace and truth, but the full embodiment of grace and truth. Jesus did not come to strike a balance between grace and truth, but He brought the FULL MEASURE of both.

So what is Grace and Truth?

             Grace is generous, free and totally unexpected and undeserved acceptance.

             Truth is is that which confirms reality, fact, or actuality. We don’t have time to debate the philosophy, the historical, or even the age-old question, what is truth. This definition will work for our purposes … In other words, what Jesus is teaching and revealing is that the confirmation of my faith is when I live it in reality, as fact, and in actuality.

The church is the embodiment of BOTH Grace and Truth. Now listen, the only group Jesus consistently condemned were graceless religious people – those who misused truth to control through guilt, fear, and condemnation.

The bible is the ultimate truth which is filled with the ultimate of grace. The church (You and I) is to be characterized by a full dose of truth … calling sin what it is and pointing to the purity and holiness that comes through believing, accepting, and uniting with Jesus … AND characterized by a full does of grace. THIS IS A CHALLENGE!

It takes boldness, commitment, and to move beyond yourself! How do we do this?

First, We confront sin! In our own lives and in the lives of those around us. 

Second, We don’t ostracize the person, including ourselves … Jesus always looked beyond the sin, to the person and helped them to see a greater possibility through living the truth. 

I want to commit to having soft hearts of grace and calloused hands from serving! You know I love ya, Don