GETTING TO KNOW GOD – Part 1 of 2

It’s time to be honest with yourself and with God: Do you know Him? If so, how well?

If you’ve acknowledged honestly that you don’t know God, I can relate. For too long, I believed in God but didn’t know Him. Now I do. And knowing Him consumes me. Knowing Him makes every moment count.

Has God transformed you? Are you different because of Him? If not, perhaps you’re a Christian Atheist. God loves you and earnestly wants to reveal Himself to you. Sadly, our sin separates us from a holy God. In His mercy and grace, God sent His Son, Jesus, to become the perfect sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins. Jesus, the sinless Son of God, became sin for us on the cross. He is the “Lamb of God” who died in our place. Romans 10:13 says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” “Everyone” includes you and me.

If you don’t know Him, you can. If you used to be close, you can be close again. Getting to know God is not difficult, and it isn’t about a bunch of rules. Yes, God wants your obedience, but He wants your heart even more. He says over and over again that if you seek Him, you will find Him (Deuteronomy 4:29; Jeremiah 29:13; Matthew 7:7-8; Acts 17:27). You can find Him by reading your Bible; He’s been there all along. And when you begin to seek Him, you’ll find that He’s already running toward you, His beloved child. Get to know Him and allow His presence to impact every area of your life, every day. 

-- Craig Groeschel in “The Christian Atheist: Believing in God but Living as if He Doesn’t Exist”

THE NEED FOR BOTH GRACE AND TRUTH – Part 2 of 2

"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."  (John 1:14 NIV)

In Christ, truth is never without grace. Grace is the unmerited favor of God, the love that reaches us in our brokenness and draws us back to Him. Grace does not excuse sin but offers forgiveness and restoration. Through grace, we are reminded that we cannot earn our salvation; it is the gift of God through faith in Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9). Grace invites us into a relationship with God, despite our imperfections.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to embody both grace and truth in our daily lives. This balance can be challenging. Too much emphasis on truth without grace can lead to harsh judgment, while grace without truth can result in complacency or capitulation. But Jesus shows us the perfect way -- loving sinners while confronting sin, extending compassion without watering down the call to holiness.

When we live in grace and truth, we become reflections of Christ to the world. Our words and actions can bring healing, reconciliation, and hope to those around us. We can share the truth of the Gospel with boldness and humility, while also extending the grace that reminds others of God's endless love.

In Christ, grace and truth are not opposites but companions. When embraced together, they lead us to a deeper understanding of God and a more authentic witness to the world. 

-- SOUND BITES Ministry™ 

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THE NEED FOR BOTH GRACE AND TRUTH – Part 1 of 2

"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."  (John 1:14 NIV)

The beauty of John 1:14 lies in its profound declaration that Jesus Christ, the Word, became flesh and lived among us. In this simple yet powerful verse, we see the fullness of God's character revealed in His Son -- grace and truth, perfectly intertwined. As believers, this balance invites us into a life that both reflects and relies upon these divine attributes.

Truth is the foundation upon which all else is built. In Jesus, we encounter the truth about God’s holiness, the reality of sin, and the path to reconciliation. Truth is not always easy to hear, but it is essential for spiritual growth and freedom. Jesus Himself said, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:31-32 NKJV). His life and teachings call us to walk in the light, to confront sin, and to align ourselves with the righteousness of God. 

-- SOUND BITES Ministry™ 

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THE APOSTLE OF LOVE

The Gospel-writer John has often been nicknamed “the apostle of love.” Indeed, he wrote more than any other New Testament author about the importance of love – laying particular stress on the Christian’s love for Christ, Christ’s love for His church, and the love for one another that is supposed to be the hallmark of true believers. The theme of love flows through his writings.

But love was a quality that he learned from Christ, not something that came naturally to him. In his younger years, he was as much a Son of Thunder as James. If you imagine that John was the way he was often portrayed in medieval art -- a meek, mild, pale-skinned, effeminate person, lying around at Jesus’ shoulder looking up at Him with a dove-eyed stare -- forget that caricature. He was rugged and hard-edged, just like the rest of the fishermen-disciples. And again, he was every bit as intolerant, ambitious, zealous, and explosive as his elder brother. In fact, the one and only time the synoptic Gospel writers recorded John speaking for himself, he displayed his trademark aggressive, self-assertive, impertinent intolerance. (See Mark 9:38.)…

So it is clear from the Gospel accounts that John was capable of behaving in the most sectarian, narrow-minded, unbending, reckless, and impetuous fashion. He was brash. He was aggressive. He was passionate, zealous, personally ambitious – just like his brother James. They were cut from the same cloth.

But John aged well. Under the control of the Holy Spirit, all his liabilities were exchanged for assets. Compare the young disciple with the aged patriarch, and you’ll see that as he matured, his areas of weakness all developed into his greatest strengths. He’s an amazing example of what should happen to us as we grow in Christ -- allowing the Lord’s strengths to be made perfect in our weakness. (See 2 Corinthians 12:9.) 

-- John MacArthur (1939-2025) in “Twelve Ordinary Men: How the Master Shaped His Disciples for Greatness and What He Wants to Do with You”

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CHRIST'S UNIQUE CLAIMS

Some of the most obvious considerations, when thinking about the supremacy of Christ, are the claims He made about Himself.  Other teachers said they were telling the truth.  Christ said, "I ... am the truth" (John 14:6).  Other teachers asked people to follow their teachings.  Christ asked people to follow Him.  More than twenty times in the Gospels Jesus spoke about the need to follow Him.  The other great leaders taught people to worship God… Jesus accepted the worship of Thomas (John 20:28).  Jesus made statements that clearly implied that He was God, and some of His hearers were so scandalized by these remarks that twice they wanted to stone Him for blasphemy (John 8:54-59; 10:30, 31).

Seven "I am" statements appear in John's Gospel, showing that Christ claimed to be the source of eternal life.  He said, "I am the bread of life" (6:35); "I am the light of the world" (8:12); "I am the gate" (10:7, 9); "I am the good shepherd" (10:11); "I am the resurrection and the life" (11:25); "I am the way and the truth and the life" (14:6); "I am the true vine" (15:1).  Leon Morris reminds us that "in each case the Greek form of 'I am' is emphatic."  Each saying includes the personal pronoun "I."  "There is no need to include the personal pronoun unless emphasis is required."  Morris concludes that to Jewish ears, the words I am "aroused associations of the divine."  These and other statements of Christ make us agree with J. T. Seamands' statement that the uniqueness of Christ "is not something we concede to Christ, but something He confronts us with." 

-- Ajith Fernando in “The Christian's Attitude Toward World Religions” 

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