My Jesus

I've been studying the book of John. Whenever I begin a study of a book in the bible, I like to read through the book a couple of times first just to get an overall impression of the book. Then I go back and study each verse a little more in-depth.

At the beginning of John, Jesus is described as many things-

1. The Word (who was in the beginning with God and by which all things were made).
2. Life.
3. Light.

But the words that I seem to come back to are "grace and truth." We're told in John 1:17, "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." Jesus is grace. Jesus is truth. Grace has been defined as God's unmerited favor. We cannot earn this. It exists in the person of Jesus as does truth. Truth is not left up to us to decide. It's absolute and only found in Jesus. But let's notice another word for a second...law. After Moses led the Jews out of Egypt, God have him the ten commandments. You can find those in Exodus chapter 20. Also in Leviticus you will find more laws as well sacrifices that the Jews were to make to atone for their sins. It was constant. They kept these laws perfectly or else. The purpose of the law was to reveal their sins to them so that they would see their need for God. This is not what happened though. Instead sin took advantage of the law and the people actually sinned even more. Isn't this what Paul is speaking about in Romans 7 beginning in verse 7. The law which Moses brought was not a law of grace. It was a law of condemnation. Not one of them, or us, could ever live up to it. In steps Jesus and with Him comes, ah, grace and truth; like a breath of fresh air. Like the living water He promises us in John 4:10. He became sin, even though He was sinless, so that "we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

My friends, Jesus brought grace and truth so that we never have to serve a law again. Never! He freed us from that burden. Our response to Him now is to be grateful for the grace that He has freely bestowed on us. We do this by laying down our sins and becoming "new creatures." (2 Corinthians 5:17) We trust Jesus to be grace and truth for us. He wants to give us this freedom, so that we can boldly, in His strength, bear the image of God. Amen.