“Grace, mercy and peace” mark the order from the first motion of God to our final satisfaction. Our relationship with God begins not with our seeking God, but rather with God’s sovereign grace reaching down to us (Romans 5:6).
Grace is God’s unmerited favor toward us. Mercy is God’s compassion toward us in our misery despite our continual falling short of God’s standard of righteousness. Peace points to our reconciliation with God because Messiah paid our price for sin. Christ’s resurrection means that we can enter God’s presence as His children and know that we are accepted.
John says that these three benefits “will be with us.” It is John’s reassurance that God will not abandon us. We are a part of Christ’s community of love. “In truth and love,” means that we are to continue to hold to the truth and practice love for one another.
Wrong views of the person of Christ spill over into wrong views of His work on the cross. If we deny Jesus’ true humanity, then He could not be the Substitute, paying the price for our sin. For John, it was essential that the Church have sound doctrine on Christ’s person (God incarnate) and work (that His sacrificial death and triumphant resurrection are how our sin debt is paid, and we are afforded the opportunity to enjoy eternal life).
John is concerned about both truth and love. He uses love four times in these six verses. Truth and love cannot be separated. But love must be extended in ways that protect and affirm the truth.
Authentic Christianity consists of believing the truth about Jesus, loving one another, and obeying God’s commandments. Let us affirm today that we will be authentic in our discipleship walk.
(We invite your comments. Feel free to share this devotion with your friends and invite them to subscribe by forwarding their email address to the Pastor at: fredjeffsmith@gmail.com.)
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