Saturday, September 27, 2008


John 1:14-16
"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory the glory as of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth…vs 16. And of His fullness we have all received and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ."

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For the past several weeks I have been looking deep into the grace of God. I began to do so after several raw conversations with a good friend who has been on a journey of the rediscovery of what it is to truly know and serve God. What a journey that can become!
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I began to read books that focused on grace and dig into the Word with a hunger to capture the essence of grace. Initially in this quest I found a great new series to preach which is a preachers joy. But soon I was entrenched in a new perspective of scripture that I had known all my life and clarity began to renew my mind to things that perplexed me in my search for the truth of Christianity. I found the doubt and confusion of my questions begin to lift as a new focus took over my thoughts and perceptions.
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This happened because when you look deeply into grace – it changes you.
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Confusion and doubt comes because we aren't looking at the purity of truth with our eyes wide open, and the only way to view scripture, Christianity and even Church is through the wide open view of GRACE!
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When we read the word in the view of man's interpretation or under the view of the Law, then we get a perversive and condemning interpretation of that word which is too hard and too heavy to carry and it confuses, burdens and frustrates. And this is where so many believers end up at one point or another. But when you understand what Grace is -the heart of God for man reflected through the sacrifice of Jesus, the work of the cross and the power of His resurrection - then you view and interpret the word by that grace and it gives this word life and power!
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The Law condemns and Grace gives life! And the essence of Life is growth and transformation!
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This is indeed a journey to walk out; learning more about grace and seeing the Word through it! It is the road to Emmaus. In Luke 24:13-32, Jesus found some disciples walking on the road to Emmaus discouraged, confused and frustrated. They had seen Jesus suffer and die and now there was a crazy rumor He was alive. Because they were so unbelieving they didn't recognize Him as He asked them to explain their frustration. They began to go on and on about what had happened in Jerusalem and how they were so disallusioned with this Jesus situation, and then Jesus rebuked them for being foolish and unbelieving.

But you know what His solution for them was?

For the next 7 miles on that road to Emmaus, He began to speak of Himself in the scriptures from the time of Moses until then, unveiling the typologies of who He was. He told them that in Genesis He was the promised seed, in Leviticus He was the perfect sacrifice, and how in the ministry of the Priesthood He was the perfect mediator even seen in the beauty and facets of their garments. He went through the Bible speaking of Himself and giving them the view of the Father's grace for man from then until now. He showed them the hidden revelations of who He is and what GRACE God has for His people through His work.

He was teaching them on that journey not to interpret things by their own understanding and by the Law - but interpret it through Him, just as He had taught in Matthew 11:29,

"Take my yoke upon you and LEARN OF ME…I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls for my yoke is easy and my burden is light:”
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He, Jesus, is full of two things...GRACE and TRUTH.
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So when we take the time in our frustration to seek the truth and grace of Jesus, everything comes into the right perspective and we are relieved of our burden of frustration and discouragement. All in the view of GRACE!
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So at the end of that seven mile journey they had learned of Him and looked at each other and said
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“Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, while He opened the Scriptures to us?”
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"Emmaus" in the Greek literally means "warm springs" or "warm baths." That road in that their day was known to have hot springs along the way where people gathered for it's medicinal and healing waters.
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On your road to Emmaus, let the Grace of Christ cause you to rediscover Truth in the right perspective. Let it bathe you of every misconception and wrong thinking, heal every misguided thought and renew your passion for the simple to the deep things of God.