Articles and Poetry by Our Members
| The Testimony of Grace and Truth |
| Author: Rod McDonald Entered on: 6/24/2006 |
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| The light of Jesus' glory shines with the spectral colors of truth and grace. "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14) God did not send to His people a testimony of truth alone by a messenger angel who appears for a moment and then departs. Nor did He send his Son for an example alone as merely a portrait of perfect humanity: of humility, divine love and self-denial. Christ was the Word made flesh -- a man walking in the truth. As the sun shines white light constituting all color, so the earth receives and reflects the light making visible all colors of the spectrum. Likewise, when men respond to Christ, they receive and reflect the spectral components of truth and grace. This truth and grace in Jesus requires a response from men. John, in his gospel, uses the verb 'to believe', in its various usages, to describe this response. Interestingly, in the context of the gospel, the few who respond sometimes are said to believe in His truth and other times to believe in His grace or His person. On the one hand, 'to believe' (in John's gospel) emphasizes believing the truth: "His disciples remembered that He said this, and they believed the Scripture, and the word which Jesus had spoken." (John 2:22). "...and many more believed because of His word" (John 4:21) On the other hand, 'to believe' emphasizes the embracing or receiving the fullness of Jesus' grace: "...even to those who believe in His name." (John 1:12) "He who believes in the Son has eternal life..." (John 3:36) Therefore, as Christians, who ought to walk in the same manner as He walked (1 John 2:6), who are called to practice the truth (1 John 1:6), this testimony of truth and grace seen in Jesus life should be imitated in our own lives. Our witness of God's glory, as individuals and as a church, must burn and shine with truth and godly example. Christians are a letter of Christ written by the Spirit of the living God (truth) on tablets of human hearts (grace) known and read by all men. (2 Cor 3:3) We search Paul's epistles for their theology, yet may neglect the rich example of his godly life. For example, to the Thessalonians Paul wrote: "...for our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction..." (1 Thes 1:5) And further "But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children. Having thus a fond affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us." (1 Thes 2:7,8) Likewise, Peter appeals to the scattered elect. Not only were they to proclaim the excellencies of Him who called them out of darkness into His marvelous light, (1 Pet 2:9) but also he admonishes: "Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may on account of your good deeds...glorify God in the day of visitation." (1 Pet 2:12) To Peter, the effect of godly suffering for doing what is right makes visible the best of the grace of Christ. The best we can do in putting God's grace on display in our lives is to patiently endure suffering. The seed of early church growth was by the blood of martyrs, so now, in our day, the brilliance of God's glory is made most visible in our suffering. "For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously..." (1 Pet 2:21-23) As Christ was full of truth and grace, and the glory of God radiated with these spectral colors, so ought the church, the body of Christ in the present world. The saving message of the gospel will be presented with the most power when we "walk in the truth" and especially by the example of our patient endurance in suffering. It is from this platform we may be asked for the hope that is in us. (Emphasis added to all scripture references.) |
