John: Live by Law or Grace and Truth

When I was about twelve or thirteen years old, I can't remember which year it was, I was part of this uh youth group of the Methodist Church, small little youth group, and we decided, or they decided, and they took us up to the mountains one weekend.

Uh it was a retreat, winter retreat type thing, and it was this lodge, I think it was maybe North George or North Carolina, I can't remember, but it was a it was a lodge up on a hill and it had kind of sloped down to a gravel road that wrapped around this lake, and then on the other side of the lake was a big meadow, a big pasture, and then a ridgeline on the other side.

Well, one afternoon uh they decided we'd all go horseback riding.

So we walked down the hill to the gravel road down to these stables.

These stables are a sad thing in and of themselves.

They were very kind of cramped and they were real dirty, and there's a pack of horses out there in the corral, which was way overpopulated.

It was the kind of place if you're a horse, you don't want to end up.

And it was it was not horse heaven, not a place.

If you're a horse, you don't want to be there.

And I get my horse, he's kind of this scrawny looking horse, and they put the saddle on him, and we get on, and there's maybe 30 of us that were going to get on these horses, we're gonna ride up the trails through the mountains and down around.

And so I get on my horse and and I get toward the back of the line, and we're riding on these trails, and the trails are tight, and you know, and it's just it's it's I mean, it's just nose to tail, nose to tail.

I mean, just in a line.

I mean, there's no freedom, there's no like there's no fun really here.

I mean, we're just kind of walking through the woods, and the horses are very bored.

They've done this a million times.

And so finally we we're going all through the mountains, and we start to come down the ridgeline on the other side, and I can see, you know, through the woods, uh, you could see the lake, and you could see the big pasture, the big meadow.

And so I figured, well, this this pasture is gonna be the place.

This is gonna be where we get to really break free.

I mean, this is gonna be where we get to really gallop.

I mean, we're gonna go after it when we get into this pasture.

And so I figure if if I strategically get as far to the back of this group as possible, that would give me more time to run as fast as possible with this horse.

And so as we get out of the tree line, we get out of the trees, and and I just sort of, me and you know, the horse's name was Buckshot.

And so me and Buckshot, we've been working together on the trail, you know, holding them back and trying to get a hold of him.

So we get into this pasture, and so I hold them back, and and other horses are going by, and I just kind of hold back and hold back, and I let them get a little lead in front of us, and Buckshot's not sure what's going on, and so they get a lead out into that pasture, and then I I let them loose.

And I don't remember what I said, I just kind of like you know, kind of kicked him in the ribs, and we take off.

And he was ready because all his buddies were up there, and we take off, and we are we're going, we are going for it, and I'm holding on, and it is he has tasted freedom.

Buckshot has tasted freedom, and we are flying through this pasture, and I'm thinking, this is awesome, this is great, it's incredible.

And so we start passing horses, we start passing people.

And this was kind of fun for a while, and then we work our way, and Buckshot's not slowing down.

We we we pass the leader and we get out further, and there's this moment where I'm going, you know, okay, I'm I'm enjoying it for him for Buckshot.

He's been in this cramped corral, and now he's free and he's loving this.

Uh, but uh I I don't know a lot about horses.

Uh I got him my first time on a horse, and um I'm not sure.

I'm trying to get him to stop, and he's not stopping.

And there's this point where I'm kind of wondering, should I bail?

Should I jump off?

Like, what how's this gonna play out?

And finally, he just finally he slows up.

We get toward the end of the pasture, and he slows up and the group catches up, and we get back in line back to the corral, to the cramped, overpopulated corral.

So there's one of my horse stories.

My second horse story is not as funny, but maybe it is a little bit more um beautiful of a story, if you will, is uh in college, friend John and another friend, we went to Cumberland Island to go camping, and so we get there, and it's this kind of um natural, pristine island off the coast of Georgia, and we get down there and um there's not much on a couple houses, and so we we're camping, we get our gear, we set our tents up, and then we go down to uh the ruins of this mansion which James Oglethorpe built, and then later the Carnegies owned it, and now it's just ruins.

Beautiful, uh pristine.

I mean, there's like two or three houses on this pretty big island.

I mean, if you're on the beach, all you see is ocean, beach, dunes, forests.

That's it.

I mean, you you might see a person, maybe not, but you're not seeing anything else.

We go down to this mansion and we get down there, we walk around, and there's and there's wild horses on Cumberland.

Just free as free horses, wild horses.

There's a there's a herd of them out in this pasture next to this meadow that kind of goes down to the beach next to the mansion.

And so I I go over there and I I spend maybe an hour over there.

There's this one horse, and I don't know the horse's name.

He probably didn't have a name, he's free.

And so I I just I call him Blaze.

Let's just call him Blaze for the sake of the sermon.

So I I spend probably an hour kind of getting closer to Blaze, and he's he's he's eating grass, he's in the sun.

He can run free at any moment.

He can run through the woods, he can run on the beach, he can run through the meadow, he can run wherever he wants.

And he's big, brown, beautiful, healthy horse.

Now, here's my point.

My point is this I've seen buckshot, and I've seen blaze, and I know which horse I'd rather be.

So I want you to hang on to that image as we read John 1, 14 through 16.

The word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

It's talking about Jesus.

We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Sort of what we've been talking about already in the past two sermons.

I won't go through verse 14 too much.

Verse 15, John testified concerning him.

He cried out, saying, This is the one I spoke about when I said, He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.

We're going to talk more about John the Baptist in the coming weeks.

Verse 16, out of his fullness we have all received grace and place of grace already given.

So another version says, Grace upon grace.

So God's grace is uh God's provision which causes joy.

God's grace to his people is continuous, it's never exhausting.

That's what grace is.

Grace is that we're getting something we don't deserve.

It is his one-way love that has no interruption and has no limit.

It means when you screw up and you mess up and you feel ashamed, or whatever you do, you think, you behave, that in that moment, just as there is breath waiting for you, there is grace waiting for you.

Verse 17 and 18, for the law was given through Moses.

Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

No one has ever seen God but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

So, three questions this morning.

I like to use questions if you've picked up on this.

So three questions.

The first one is, is what are the two ways of life that John's mentioning that exist for any one of us?

Two ways of life.

The second is, is what does life on each of these paths look like?

And the third is the final question, which I'm not going to read now because it kind of gave away the first two, so we'll get to it eventually.

So John recognizes two very different ways of life.

John says, and later Paul talks about it repeatedly, over and over and over again, all his letters.

The way of law, which is the way of Moses, which is the life of Buckshot the horse, and the way of grace and truth, which is the way of Jesus, which is the life of Blaze the Horse.

So maybe six months ago, a year ago, it must have been a year ago, I was in my office at the church I used to work at, fancy office, fancy desk, fancy chair, feeling very important.

And so I'm sitting there and I get a phone call.

And so I pick up the phone, I answer it, hello.

You wouldn't believe you're not gonna believe this.

I want a free cruise.

That's what the guy told me.

I want a free cruise.

I don't know if you ever want a free cruise.

I said, This is amazing.

What are the chances?

I'm just sitting here, you called, you found me, you called me.

Tell me more about this free cruise.

I want to know more about this.

And so he goes into detail about the ship and the stops and where we're going and the locations and the excursions.

It's a free cruise.

This is amazing.

And so I say, Well, so like all of this is free.

I don't I don't owe anything.

He says, Yes, it's all free.

It's all free.

But but um there's this meeting on Saturday morning that you that you'll need to go to.

I said, Well, what kind of meeting?

Well, you know, it it reviews your opportunity for future cruises and your opportunity for um timeshare.

We all know this feeling, right?

This is this is the same feeling as this statement right here.

You're great.

Everything you just presented was really great.

But we need to get together to talk about um like section two that you presented.

I mean, it's the same thing as like, I love what you're doing here.

I love it.

But one thing I want to mention to you.

See, all the praise goes silent and anxiety arrives with when the condition, but in church it sounds like this God loves you unconditionally, but really to be secure in God, you really need to.

Do you see the difference in that?

Do you see the difference between God loves you unconditionally?

Period.

Good, I need that.

God loves you unconditionally, but really to be secure, you need to.

God is for you, but really for that to happen, you need to.

And this but, this condition, this is the way of the law, this is the first possible way of life that me and you have.

Romans 6, 14, I could have picked a million verses from Paul's writings, just one, for sin shall not be your master because you are not under law, but under grace.

So let's review this.

So law is overarching, is speaking about the principle, the standard of righteousness.

We see this through the moral law in the Old Testament, we see it through ceremonial, we see it through judicial.

The law is the standard of right living for us.

But deeper than that, it's also a philosophy of life of aiming to live up to that standard.

And the law is good.

Let's be very clear.

The law is holy, the law's righteous.

The standards are good, the standards are holy.

They are needed for our society, they're guardrails for our society.

And we should want to live this way.

The problem is not with the law, the problem is with me and with you.

Because we are broken and we don't always live up to the law.

We're actually broken against the law.

We do well in one area, we fail in another.

We shore up that area, and it reveals a whole another level of motives we didn't even realize we're there.

The law was given to help us understand we are needy people.

And we need to live humbly in a receiving posture, not in a merit-based posture.

These are two very different paths: the way of law and the way of grace.

Let me explain with question number two.

What does life on each of these paths look like?

1 Corinthians 15, 56 and 57.

I remember the first time I read these two verses, I was sitting on a rooftop in Guatemala on a mission trip, reading through.

I think I just flipped there randomly.

I'm not sure.

And I read through and I read it, and I said, I've probably read this a million times, but it feels like the first time I've ever read this.

I can't believe this.

And part of it was I started to learn about these two different ways of life that Paul is always talking about, and John's mentioning here.

And here's what it says.

Listen to this the sting of death is sin.

We knew that.

We get that.

Here's the part that hit me.

And the power of sin is the law.

I thought the law was good, like holy.

I mean, it's the standard of righteousness.

But so the standard of righteousness is the power of sin.

This wonderful standard?

Why is it the power of sin?

Here's why.

Because if you live a life of trying to live up to the standard, this is the way you're going to feel accepted, this is the way you're going to feel secure, this is the way you're going to feel righteous, you will fail.

And you will be accused, you will be condemned, you will be perhaps prideful for a season, and then in despair for a season.

This accusation, this guilt, this condemnation, this pride, this burden, all of this is what verse 56 means by the power of sin is the law.

But so thankful, verse 57 comes.

But thanks be to God.

He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

So, see, life under the law creates what's known as a closed circle.

You do this, you get this.

You don't do this, you don't get this.

But you do this, you get this, you do this, you get this, and round and round and round we go.

Behave righteously, you're accepted by God.

Obtain a great job, you're valued as a person.

You know, uh memorize a you know a passage of scripture, you're what a great Christian you are.

Is it around and around and around?

Lose a great job, you're not worth much.

You know, like like watch down, like watch like four downtown abbeys in a row instead of you know reading your Bible, you know, bad Christian.

Watch The Bachelor, bad human being, right?

I mean, this is the circle.

And it's conditional, and it is around and around we go.

And it also looks like the next thing, the next thing I need, the next job I need.

Like this is the closed circle of the law.

I need the next job, and then I'll feel.

I need the next relationship, and then I feel.

I need the next shirt, and then I feel.

I need the next look, and then I feel.

This is the closed circle of the law that never stops.

And it always ends up accusing and condemning.

This is why Paul says the power of sin is the law.

It's a closed circle.

It's the closed circle of buckshot in that corral, and you can't get free.

And here's the kicker with it: success or failure, either way, you're trapped in the system.

Either way.

Life in the circle is a constant scoring.

It's what we end up doing when you're in the circle of the law.

What you end up doing because you're not succeeding, you can't get out of the circle.

So what we start doing is I start looking at Matt and I compare myself with Matt.

How am I doing?

How's how how you know how much of a Christian is he?

And how much of a Christian am I?

And I start looking, you know, at David and how's he doing?

How am I doing?

And I start looking at Brian, and you know, what kind of car does Brian drive?

And man, if I I think if I, you know, we start this comparing the scoring, like how's my life, my family, my children, my job, and you know, start ranking all this and scoring all this.

And this is exhausting.

The reason this is exhausting is because it's the closed circle of the law.

You're going around and around and around, and you're exhausting yourself.

And God in his grace doesn't say, you do this, I'll give you this.

He says, You've never done this, I will always give you this.

You're not righteous, but because of Jesus I'll make you righteous.

Back to John 1, 16 and 17.

So John says, Grace upon grace for the law was given through Moses.

Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Why the four?

He's connecting these two verses, connecting these two thoughts.

What is so great to say, grace upon grace, more grace, it's unbelievable, you wouldn't believe.

What is so great that John is using this term, grace upon grace?

Well, what's so great is what's verse 17, that the great gift is that this never-ending cycle of the circle of the law.

We don't have to do that anymore.

That's what Jesus accomplished for us.

We're already righteous, we're already valued.

He fulfilled the law, so we don't have to live under it anymore.

Verses 17 and 18 talk about the law, and it talks about grace and truth.

The law is part of the story.

It's God's righteousness, it's our inability, it's how we should live.

Jesus is the whole story.

He's grace and truth.

And truth is more than just law.

Truth is what's right about life, what's right about this world, what's what's right about morality, what's right about God, what's right about us, what's right about how we relate with each other.

This is what truth is.

So here's the question that always comes with this idea of grace and truth.

Uh, third question: what's the balance between grace and truth?

I would say that there is no balance.

Maybe you would disagree with me, you're welcome to disagree with me.

Jesus was these things.

I'm a human and I'm an American.

This is not you can't divide that within me.

I'm a husband and a dad, you can't divide that within me.

I'm not half of one of these things.

I am this.

They interact and they relate to each other.

I spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to communicate this.

Um, so it kind of entertained my pondering here.

Many say that grace without truth leads to licentiousness, leads to rebellion, you know, people are gonna go hog wild.

Truth without grace leads to legalism.

Meaning, if you take truth away from grace, you have a drunken party with strip dancers, what you're gonna end up with.

Or if you take grace away from truth, you have no party at all, and nobody's willing to dance.

Right?

This is what this means.

But I'm I'm not complete personally, I'm not completely happy with that.

And the reason why is because I feel like it presupposes that you can rightly have grace without truth, or you can rightly have truth without grace, and I don't think you can.

This is the brilliance that God is not a principle, he is a being.

He's not divide, you can't divide him up.

Grace and truth come together in the person of Jesus.

When we truly understand grace, there's truth is always there.

When we truly understand what truth is true in this world and about him and about us, there's grace is there.

Grace and truth, they dance together in our hearts, creating a freedom that does not birth rebellion, but it births honesty and confession and joyful obedience that springs from the heart out into behavior.

What's the point of all this?

What's the point of all this?

It can sound so theological.

Here's the point quit resting and finding security in what you've done or what you're doing.

It's a closed circle.

Remember, maybe for the first time, remember again that our security comes in what God has done for us.

This is why Jesus died on the cross.

So we would know once and for all God is righteous and God is just, and though we are not, He loves us.

Remember Buckshot, remember Blaze?

That cramped corral, that wide open island.

As we take communion, remember, or perhaps for the first time to confess and to believe, that the only way out of the corral, the only way out of the closed circle is Jesus.

God's love to you that is certain and secure.

He is our grace and truth.

Let's pray together.

God, we thank you and confess that we love to be in control.

We love to make ourselves feel better about ourselves rather than to rest in how you feel about us.

We love to do things.

We love to be self-reliant.

We we don't we don't naturally love faith.

Humble us to receive, to live life in a receiving posture, to receive our righteousness from you, that we are righteous, always righteous, that we can't do anything to be loved by you more, we can't do anything to be loved by you less.

It has all been handled, it has been certain in the cross.

Would you increase our faith?

Increase our faith in the cross of Jesus that we might rest in Him more, that we might know freedom.

That you would free us from the law.

Would you help us to see this every day?

Would you help us to see how how we're doing this in our lives, that we might be free and we might honor you?

In Jesus' name we pray.