I read chapter 3 of John’s Gospel a few days ago and was struck by the last remark Jesus made to Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council, the Sanhedrin, came to speak with Jesus at night. At the end of the discourse, Jesus speaks of the grace of Go in a powerful and different way: “21 But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done through God” John 3:21.
Jesus speaks to Nicodemus who comes to Jesus at night to find out just who Jesus really is. And in this discourse, in His response to Nicodemus, Jesus addresses what the verdict is about who Jesus truly is: “19 And this is the judgment (the verdict), that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. 20 For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. 21 But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done through God” John 3:19-21.
Jesus makes the point that Jesus is the light that has “come into the world,”and we have freely chosen to love darkness rather than Jesus, we have chosen to love everything else in life except Jesus. And all we have to do is merely look at our choices, our behavior, and we know that Jesus speaks the truth about who we really are and, mostly importantly, who Jesus really is. Simply put, our choices and decisions and behavior — our deeds — are evil. We are people, in fact, who “hate the light” — we hate Jesus — and we actually avoid Jesus because being in any kind of relationship with Jesus exposes our evil, our hatred of Jesus, to others. Or as Jesus said in another time: “Whoever is not with Me is against Me”
Matthew 12:30.
And then comes the very amazing conclusion Jesus reaches in the presence of Nicodemus. Any one of us who makes choices and decisions that are true, in other words anytime you and I follow Christ, we follow Christ so that it may be clearly seen by both ourselves and by others that our choices, our behavior and our decisions, we do through the grace of God. In other words, anything we do that is true and good happens because of God’s grace and, in fact, points to and gives all the credit to Jesus Christ. It is simple: Whenever we sin we have no one to blame but ourselves, and when we follow Christ we have no one to thank except Jesus Christ.
That is, my dear friends, the theology of grace. Pray today that we may live by and be seen by others as people who are following Christ.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on me a sinner.
From the Bible:
"But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me’” 2 Corinthians 12:9.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast”Ephesians 2:8-9.
“But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace” Romans 11:6.
“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” James 4:6.
“For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace” John 1:16.
“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” John 1:14.
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