Grace and Truth

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Jn 1:17 NIV

We need truth. God is not a fairy tale. God created the world. Jesus was and is the eternal Son of God. The Ten Commandments come from God. Idolatry, murder and adultery are sins. That is the truth.

But we also need grace. Jesus died on the cross to take the punishment for our sins. Only through God's grace do we receive forgiveness and eternal life, and much more.

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Rom 8:31–32 NIV

All Bible-believing Christians agree that we need grace and truth, but in the minds of many Christians it is the other way round, that is not grace and truth, but truth and grace.

But is the order important? In the Bible, it is not just concepts that are important, but priorities.

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Jn 1:17 NIV

First came the Ten Commandments and then grace through Jesus. But we need to take a closer look at this teaching.

What came before the Ten Commandments?

And God spoke all these words:
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. Ex 20:1–2 NIV

Rescue from slavery in Egypt came first, and then the teaching of the Ten Commandments.
That is, first grace and then truth.

How did Jesus minister as a preacher? He began by healing the sick, and only later did he reveal the truth that he was the eternal Son of God. In the beginning, he appeared only as a miracle-working prophet. That means first grace and only later the full truth.

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. Mt 16:13–17 NIV

Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. Mt 16:20 NIV

What was Jesus' approach? First revealing God's love through miraculous healings and then, much later, proclaiming the truth of his heavenly identity.

Many Christians grumble because some are healed in charismatic events, but not all repent.

But Jesus himself healed many who did not become believing followers. This made Jesus very sad, but he continued to heal the sick even though not all became disciples.

Grace first and then truth. That was and is God's approach.

How did Jesus minister?

 Many Christians begin by proclaiming biblical doctrines.

‘Jesus is the Son of God, who was in eternal fellowship with the Father before creation. We are sinners and need forgiveness. Jesus died for your sins. If you repent and believe, God will forgive you and give you eternal life.’

I believe this is the truth, according to the Bible. There are also Christians who have heard this message and have come to faith as a result. The apostles in the book of Acts also preached this truth often, but not without signs and wonders.

But did Jesus start like this?

What did Jesus say?

From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” Mt 4:17 NIV

What does this mean? What did the Jews understand at the time? What did ‘the kingdom of heaven’ mean?

We Christians study the whole New Testament and we have other theological explanations, but the Jews at that time were thinking of prophecies in the Old Testament.

After his resurrection and shortly before his return to the Father in heaven, the apostles were still thinking about the restoration of God's kingdom in Israel.

Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” Acts 1:6 NIV

Why didn't Jesus try to clear up this misunderstanding right from the start? Jesus did not explain theology. He did not start with doctrines.

Later, Jesus asked his disciples what they believed about him.

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” Mt 16:13–14 NIV

Then he asked them what they themselves believed. Only Peter gave the right answer.

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Mt 16:16 NIV

How did Jesus respond? Should the disciples proclaim the whole truth everywhere?

Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. Mt 16:20 NIV

Why? The Jews believed that the Messiah would appear as an all-powerful king and commander and force the enemies of God to accept the rule of God. That is what they read in the Old Testament, but we are still waiting for that time. It hasn't come yet.

How did Jesus minister? He preached trust in God, inner purity and love of neighbour, and he healed and healed and healed.

He was rejected by the Bible experts of his time.

When Christians today minister in the same way, with practical love, genuine kindness and miraculous healings, they are rejected by many Bible experts and conservative Christians.

Nothing has changed. God has not changed. He still wants to show his practical love with miraculous healings, and many religious professionals reject this approach, as they always have.

Doctrines are important, but doctrines are often not a good starting point in mission.

In the Gospel of John, we read that Jesus was full of grace and truth, not truth and grace.

What is grace? Undeserved favour and unconditional kindness. Only if this is our starting point, will many people be willing to hear the message of truth.

It is not enough to tell people about the undeserved favour of God. We must demonstrate and practise the genuine kindness of God in our own attitudes and actions.

Ministering Truth with Love and Gentleness

 In Tolkien's ‘’The Lord of the Rings‘’, ATHELAS is a powerful healing herb. The true king is also a true healer, and he applies the herb ATHELAS to terrible wounds.
This is a Christian allegory.

In the Bible, ATHELAS is the Greek word that means TRUTH.
In the New Testament, the true king is Jesus, but his true identity is veiled because Jesus lives an ordinary life among ordinary people, just like Aragorn in the Lord of the Rings.

In the Lord of the Rings, two heroic characters are stabbed to death with blades empowered by demonic witchcraft, namely Frodo and Eowyn. Aragorn, the king in exile, places the ATHELAS herb in hot, steaming water and applies the medicine to the fatal wounds.
When people are traumatised by dark and terrible experiences, only the truth can heal them.

Many Christians have some understanding of this, but lack the deep wisdom and love to apply the truth in a healing way.

In ‘’The Lord of the Rings‘’, it is the king himself who applies the healing herb gently and with healing skill.

It is not enough to explain the truth about the king to traumatised people. We must bring them with gentleness into the presence of the King himself.

Some severely damaged people can only tolerate medicine in very small doses. Sometimes we need to administer very small doses of truth with much love and patience.

In the New Testament, Jesus did not explain the full truth of who he is to the crowd when they came for healing. He healed the sick and he spoke in parables.

Timing is also crucial. Even with his chosen twelve apostles, Jesus did not begin by telling them that he was the eternal God who came down from heaven. He waited for the Father to reveal it to them.

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”

And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. Mt 16:13–17 NRSV

A young woman goes to church in search of God. She was abused as a child and became a prostitute. She feels more like a victim than a sinner and is very confused. How can we help her with love and truth?

The pastor confronts the issue of her sin, but shows little compassion for her as a suffering victim.

Timing!

We need to know when and how to give truth to hurting people.

To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: Ec 3:1 NKJV

Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Gal 6:1 NIV

Remember, truth must always come with grace and love. Truth without love often makes wounds worse, not better.

There is also a time for confronting sin and for strong preaching, but we must be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit and the needs of the people we want to reach.

Ultimately, God will judge the world with truth and condemn anyone who has rejected Jesus, but we must never forget that we are not judges. Only God is the judge.