Steven A. Bush - September 1, 2013
The Truth Can Slap Us In The Face
In John 1:14 the apostle writes this about God the Son: "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." Jesus--full of grace and truth, or as the Hebrew OT renders grace and truth, unfailing love and faithfulness. Proverbs 27:5-6 (NCV) says: "It is better to correct someone openly than to have love and not show it. The slap of a friend can be trusted to help you, but the kisses of an enemy are nothing but lies." No one who ever walked the planet loved people more than Jesus. And no one spoke the truth like He spoke it. It didn't mater who you were--Pharisees and Sadducees, Gentiles or Romans, Jews or Samaritans, Herod or Pilate, family members or disciples--Jesus spoke the truth and some probably felt the truth He spoke slapped them in the face. Nicodemus, the rich young ruler, Peter, they all probably felt the slap of the truth. In John 14:6, Jesus declares at the Last Supper to the Twelve: "I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father but my Me." As the apologists all rightly say, Jesus was either lying, sorely deceived, or telling the truth when He declared those words. The exclusivity of Jesus' words may trouble you, may slap you in the face, may punch you in the gut... But hopefully Jesus' word penetrate to your heart of hearts, cut you to the quick, and cause you to come alive and be regenerated, born anew, to live forevermore. That's our prayer... Let's see what our Lord will do.