Text: “And the Word was made 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.” — John 1:14
Introduction
The world has known many kings, prophets, and sages. It has seen philosophers who reason, and revolutionaries who inspire. But there has been only one man who walked among us, perfectly full of grace and truth. That man is Jesus Christ.
The Gospel of John, in its opening chapter, gives us a glimpse of something eternal wrapped in flesh. The Word, who was with God and was God, became flesh and lived among men. But He came not with half-measures. He came full. Full of grace. Full of truth.
Some men are strong in truth but cold in mercy. Others are warm in grace but shallow in truth. Christ was full of both. Perfectly so. Not one drop of truth lacking. Not one measure of grace missing. He did not dilute one to express the other. His grace was not soft sentiment. His truth was not harsh rigidity. In Jesus, grace and truth meet, embrace, and walk together.
This is not only a description of Christ’s character but the measure of His ministry. It is the foundation of the Gospel and the character that His followers must learn. We are not called to reflect a balance between grace and truth, but the fullness of both.
I. The World Knows Grace Without Truth, and Truth Without Grace
Outside of Christ, the world swings between extremes.
Some advocate grace without truth. This grace tolerates sin, ignores righteousness, and reduces God to mere kindness. It says, “Live and let live,” but offers no anchor for holiness. It tells people they are fine as they are, while they quietly perish.
Others hold to truth without grace. This truth is sharp, but cold. It calls out error but offers no healing. It proclaims law but withholds mercy. It builds walls but no bridges. It sees the sinner’s disease, but refuses to give the remedy.
But Christ is different. He offers grace that saves, and truth that sanctifies. He does not excuse sin, but He dies for it. He does not deny our condition, but He enters into it. In Him, grace and truth are not enemies. They are companions.
Psalm 85:10 says, “Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.” This verse prophetically points to Christ. In Him, the justice of God is not compromised and the mercy of God is not withheld. The cross is where grace and truth both shine without conflict.
II. Grace Is the Heart of Redemption, Truth Is the Structure
Grace is the free favor of God. It is love shown to the undeserving. Romans 5:8 declares, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” This is grace—God moving toward the rebel, not with wrath, but with rescue.
But grace alone cannot save. Grace must be grounded in truth. And truth is not merely doctrine. Truth is the revealed reality of God. Truth is the holy standard, the righteous requirement, the justice that demands a penalty.
Jesus did not come merely to tell us about grace. He came to uphold truth by fulfilling it. The Law declared, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” Grace responded, “I will die in its place.” Christ did not set aside truth. He satisfied it. He did not remove the law. He fulfilled it.
That is why Paul says in Romans 3:26, that God is “just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Truth is preserved. Grace is poured out. And this is only possible through the God-man, Jesus Christ.
III. Christ Ministered in Grace and Truth to All People
When Christ walked among men, He never failed to embody this fullness.
To the woman caught in adultery, brought before Him by angry accusers, Jesus first dispersed her executioners with a single line of truth: “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone.” One by one they left. Then, turning to her, He said in grace, “Neither do I condemn thee.” But He added truth: “Go, and sin no more.” (John 8:11)
He did not compromise righteousness. Nor did He crush a bruised reed. He gave her a second chance, but also a higher call.
To Nicodemus, a teacher of Israel, Jesus spoke not with flattery but with clarity. He declared, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). That is truth. Yet in the same conversation, He unveiled the heart of grace: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son…” (John 3:16).
To the woman at the well in Samaria, Christ confronted her sin. “Thou hast had five husbands,” He told her. But He did not stop there. He offered her living water. He revealed Himself to her as Messiah. He turned a sinner into a witness. That is grace and truth in action.
Wherever He went, Jesus told the truth about sin, but He also paid for it with His own blood.
IV. Grace and Truth in Salvation
The sinner is not saved by truth alone. The truth condemns. The truth says, “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). The truth declares, “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). The law is holy, just, and good—but it cannot save.
This is where grace enters. Grace completes what truth begins.
Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.” Salvation is not a reward for the righteous, but a gift for the guilty.
Yet grace never saves apart from truth. It does not pretend we are righteous. It gives us the righteousness of Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” Truth demands a price. Grace pays it.
Thus, salvation is not lawlessness. It is law fulfilled by love.
V. Grace and Truth in the Life of the Believer
After salvation, the believer does not graduate from grace or from truth. Both remain necessary, daily.
Grace is needed for forgiveness. Truth is needed for direction. Grace gives us peace. Truth gives us instruction. Grace assures us we are accepted. Truth teaches us how to live worthy of that calling.
Jesus prayed in John 17:17, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” Growth in godliness happens not by sentiment, but by Scripture. The grace that saves must be followed by truth that transforms.
Titus 2:11-12 says, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us…” Notice that grace does not pamper. It teaches. It disciplines. It trains. Grace teaches us to deny ungodliness, to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world.
The Christian must beware of grace without repentance and truth without gentleness. The one leads to lawlessness. The other to legalism. Both are distortions. Only in Christ do we find the harmony.
VI. Grace and Truth in Our Witness to the World
The church must be a reflection of Christ. That means we must hold both grace and truth with equal boldness.
We are not called to win arguments, but to win souls. This requires truth spoken in love. Ephesians 4:15 says, “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things.”
Truth is not to be compromised. Sin must still be called sin. Hell must still be warned of. But our tone must be soaked in grace. Our posture must be lowly. Our hearts must break as we speak.
Colossians 4:6 commands, “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt.” Salt preserves. Grace heals. Together, they honor Christ.
The Gospel we preach is not a hammer alone. It is also a hand extended. We offer grace, not because people deserve it, but because we did not deserve it either.
VII. The Glory of Christ Revealed in Grace and Truth
When John says, “We beheld His glory,” he does not mean lightning from the sky. He means the moral beauty of Christ’s nature. Glory was seen not just in miracles, but in mercy. Not just in wisdom, but in willingness to touch lepers and eat with sinners.
The glory of Christ is most clearly seen when He hangs on the cross.
There, truth is upheld. The law is not ignored. The penalty for sin is paid. Justice is honored.
There, grace is poured out. Mercy is offered to all. The guilty are invited in. The curtain is torn.
Psalm 89:14 says, “Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face.” That throne is now ours to approach because Jesus, full of grace and truth, made the way.
Conclusion
Grace and truth are not options for the believer. They are the very essence of the One we follow. In Jesus Christ, they are joined perfectly. In us, they must be cultivated faithfully.
Let every Christian say, “Lord, make me full of grace and truth.” Let us be kind without compromise. Let us be holy without cruelty. Let us love without lying. Let us speak truth, even when it cuts, but always with the tenderness of one who remembers their own sins.
Jesus came not to crush the sinner, but to carry him. Not to flatter the righteous, but to form them in truth.
May the world look at the Church and once again behold the glory of Christ. Not through our eloquence, but through our lives. Lives full of grace. Lives shaped by truth.
Amen.