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 Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
The
virgin birth of Jesus was perfectly typical, like any human birth, with one
exception. Mary's conception was not void of a seed; it was just like any other
pregnancy. The difference was the seed; instead of a human source, God used the
seed of His Holy Word. As stated in today's verse, Jesus was the Word of God
that dwelled among us as human beings. When this happened, God stepped onto our
earth, and God's Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And when He did that, it
was the most potent and intense revelation of God the human race would ever
know. There are two profound realities in Christ Jesus; He embodies and
personifies Grace and Truth.
Grace
is that profound aspect of God's nature that chooses to save and love us even
though we are fallen and unlovely. It is not simply that God walked up to us in
our lost state and gave us something we needed. We were at enmity with God - we
were defiant and rebellious. When God came to the earth in the person of Christ
Jesus some 2000 years ago - the only time He would ever do that - we killed
him. We crucified the Son of God! But here is the incredible unlimited grace
and truth - still God loves us; grace forgives us; grace did the unimaginable
and unthinkable - it reached down and saved the very ones trying to kill it.
The
world likes and accepts that God is a God of unlimited grace. Most people at
least tacitly recognize their need for His grace. However, they struggle
because He is also the God of absolute truth. People want unlimited grace and
then relative truth. The reason people do not like the truth is it contains the
law. And the law is the standard by which humankind, collectively and individually,
is condemned. Not that we must follow the requirement and regulations of the
law, we do not. The law shows us how evil we are and how much we need Christ
Jesus, our Lord, and Savior. Jesus nailed the law to the Cross, meaning that He
lived the law we could not live and sacrificed His precious, perfect, sinless
blood to justify our sins.
When
the people brought the woman caught in adultery to Jesus, they said she should
be stoned (John 8:4-5). So, what is going down here? They have the law but no
grace. Anytime you have the truth but no grace, somebody will get stoned,
whipped, hung, or beaten. But Jesus always adds boundless grace to absolute
truth - the result is a beautiful expression of holiness and love. He says,
'You are right, she needs to be stoned - but God will punish all sin, so you
are guiltless cast the first stone.'
Let
me give you one more - probably the most excellent example of unlimited grace
and absolute truth - at the Cross, where Jesus paid our sin debt in full. We
owed a debt we would never be able to pay; Jesus paid a debt he did not
deserve. His blood cleansed us when we deserved damnation and secured our place
in Heaven when we had earned a spot in Hell. The devil stood next to us and
pointed at our sins. Satan said they were all liars and thieves, and pride
filled their hearts. They think too highly of themselves and have lustful
thoughts. Jesus said, "you are correct," and then took our place on
the Cross. He bore our stripes. He paid our debt; He died our death so that we
might go free. Why? Because we saw His glory, the glory of the only begotten of
the Father - full of grace and truth.
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