Grace and truth

 I remember how the gospel message first touched my life. I had grown aware that lying and hypocrisy were habits I could not shake. I was bound by the need to be thought well of, to protect an image rather than live in truth. Then the gospel was preached to me — that Christ died for me. In that moment, the grace and truth that are in Jesus came into force: that he died, crucified for our sins and was raised to eternal life by God. This message is the pinnacle of the grace and truth that comes through him.

When I believed that message, on praying with the preacher, something pure and powerful began to work in me. The Holy Spirit started to teach me by power the wrongfulness of the lying, not as a mere moral correction, but as a revelation from heaven. Truth and righteousness was awakening within me. It was as though a light broke into a darkened room, exposing not just what was wrong, but also what was possible. The hold of sin began to break, not because of my willpower, but because of the Spirit’s power revealing Christ’s reality within me.

Years later, others reminded me of that same grace and power — of the truth I had once experienced so vividly — and how it must continue to shape my life. I came to see that this freedom is not a single event to look back on, but a continual way of living. The grace and truth Jesus gives are not confined to the moment of conversion; they flow endlessly from him to those who believe. We must live in them daily, allowing faith to release that same liberating power again and again.

Jesus gives grace and truth together. Grace offers forgiveness; truth reveals reality. When we believe in him, these become a living force within us, breaking sin’s grip and restoring us to the life God intended. The gospel is not only the message that saves us once — it is the power that sustains us always. To live by faith in Jesus is to walk continually in the freedom his truth gives, never returning to the shadows of self-deception, but remaining in the light of his grace.

Stephen D Green using AI for wording

Better than Law

 Jesus did not bring mere Law, like Moses. His words, miracles, and deeds of ministry revealed the reality in heaven of which the Law had been only a textual copy. While the Law clearly taught that adultery was wrong, it could not prevent people from finding themselves guilty or from facing deadly punishment under its strict demands. In John 8, the story of the woman caught in adultery illustrates this vividly: even under the Law, a person could be condemned by others and trapped in guilt with no means of escape. Jesus saves. He affirmed the truth that adultery was sinful, a truth known not merely from the Law but from the very reality of God’s heart, the eternal truth upon which the Law is based. Yet he did not stop at affirmation; he refused to condemn her, delivering her from immediate judgment so that she could receive something greater than the Law—grace and truth revealed in him.

Jesus went further than the Law could ever go, making its truth alive and accessible, not just a written command but a reality to be believed and lived. He did not simply demand obedience; he empowered it through his words and powerful works of grace, offering the transformative path of salvation. By sparing the woman from condemnation and calling her to “go and sin no more,” he demonstrated that true righteousness comes not from fear of punishment but from the encounter with mercy and the invitation to a renewed life. In this way, Jesus fulfills the Law, not by abolishing it, but by completing it—moving from mere rules to living truth, from judgment to redemption, from external compliance to internal transformation. His ministry embodies the convergence of grace and truth, showing that God’s reality is not simply known but experienced, and that obedience to God flows naturally from the heart transformed by love and salvation.

Stephen D Green, with wording by AI 

Full gospel of Jesus Christ

 Many within the church have long emphasized repentance as if it were the entirety of the gospel, yet the message of Jesus encompasses far more. In the New Testament, repentance often carries a deeper meaning than mere sorrow for wrongdoing. It is the turning of the heart from unbelief — the moment when a person ceases resisting the good news of Jesus and opens to receive it. This repentance is not primarily about recognizing specific sins, for the gospel reaches even those who have never known the Law or its commandments. Rather, it is the inward movement by which one turns away from opposition to the truth and begins to embrace Jesus and his teachings.

Paul’s encounter with the disciples of John the Baptist in Acts 19 beautifully clarifies this connection between repentance and belief. These men had received John’s baptism, which called for repentance, yet they had not been instructed about Jesus or the fullness of his message. Paul explained that John’s baptism pointed forward to belief in Christ and the embracing of his teachings. When they understood this and received it in faith, they were baptized into Jesus, fully entering the life and freedom his gospel provides. Here, repentance is clearly not the end goal; it is preparatory — a turning from unbelief that makes space for belief, discipleship, and union with Christ.

Jesus’ own words in John 8 illuminate this further. To those who believed in him, he called them to continue in his teachings, assuring them that discipleship would lead to knowledge of the truth, which sets the heart free. To those who did not believe, he warned that remaining in unbelief meant remaining in sin. Freedom in Christ, he makes clear, is not merely a matter of moral correction or external conformity, but an inward liberation: a transformation of the heart that aligns the believer with the reality of God’s kingdom. Belief, embraced and acted upon, is inseparable from the life-giving knowledge of truth that Jesus imparts.

The fullness of the gospel, then, is a unified movement. Repentance turns the heart from unbelief; belief embraces Jesus and his teachings; discipleship lives out that faith, bringing grace, truth, and freedom into the life of the believer. Repentance opens the soul to receive Christ; belief brings that reception to life, and discipleship flows naturally from the union with him. As Paul showed with the disciples of John, repentance is not simply an acknowledgment of guilt or a moral step, but a necessary turning that allows the gospel to be received in fullness.

Ultimately, the gospel of Jesus is not a call to endless remorse or ritualized confession. It is an invitation into life, truth, and freedom — for all people, whether they have known the Law or not. It begins when the heart turns from unbelief, deepens as belief embraces Christ and his teachings, and matures in the living, transforming power of discipleship. In this way, repentance, belief, and discipleship are not separate steps but an integrated journey, revealing the true freedom and life Jesus came to bring.

Jesus’ gospel

 Many pastors and leaders only know of repentance. It is not Jesus’ gospel. Believe in him, embracing his teachings.

Meditation

 Receiving Jesus and His Words

Theme: To receive Jesus is to receive His words — to welcome His teachings with faith, let them live within you, and practice them in love.

1. Prepare Your Heart

Find a quiet place where you can be still before God. Take a few deep breaths and silently pray:

“Lord Jesus, I invite You in. Let Your words dwell in me richly. Open my heart to receive what You want to give.”

2. Meditate on His Words

Choose one saying of Jesus — something simple yet full of life:

• “If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” (John 15:7)

• “Ask and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (John 16:24)

• “This is to My Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit.” (John 15:8)

Repeat the verse slowly. Whisper it to yourself. Let each phrase rest in your mind and heart. Do not rush. Allow the Holy Spirit to make the words living and real within you.

3. Let the Word Take Root

Sit quietly for a few moments, simply holding the verse inside you.

Ask God to help it stay, to take root, and to transform your heart.

This is how the Word becomes part of you — not just something you read, but something you are becoming.

4. Live the Word

As you go about your day, look for ways to practice what you’ve received. If the verse speaks of love — love someone.

If it speaks of prayer — pray boldly.

If it speaks of joy — share it freely.

Let your actions be the fruit of your meditation.

5. Remember the Center of It All

Never forget the heart of your faith:

“Christ died for you. He was crucified for you. And God raised Him from the dead to live forever as your Lord.”

Hold this truth close. Return to it often. It is the foundation of your fellowship with the Father and the Son — the love that never fails and never ends.

6. Continue Daily

Do this not just once, but as a way of life.

Each day, receive His words anew. Let them dwell in you deeply. Live them out with understanding and joy.

And in doing so, you will grow in true fellowship with God — knowing the Father and the Son in living reality.

— AI with Stephen D Green

Warning

 False teachers might think they are destroying the spiritual Temple, but if anyone destroys this temple, God will destroy them.