Newsletter
by John Crump
Among the single words you could choose to describe the central message of the Bible, or to describe the reason that Jesus came to us, “Reconciliation” would be near the top of that list. It’s a powerful, potentially life-changing word. In short, it means to restore a relationship that has been broken or damaged. This is the central message of the Bible; this is the reason Jesus came to us. To make possible reconciliation with God for every human being. This is what Heart for Lebanon is trying to accomplish, in a variety of ways, in the lives of the people we serve. This is what every follower of Jesus is called to be, an ambassador of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18-20).
What if I told you that there is an equation that, when lived consistently over time, can make reconciliation more possible in any relationship, life, or circumstance. It’s true. Here it is:
This equation is taken straight from John 1:14;17, which says this: “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…For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” (NIV)
Jesus told us that He did not come to abolish the law of Moses, but that He came to fulfill it (Matt. 5:17). These John 1 verses tell us that the law came through Moses, but Grace & Truth came through Jesus Christ. They tell us that Jesus was the fullness of Grace & Truth, the human embodiment of Grace & Truth. Jesus IS Grace & Truth. So, you could say that Grace & Truth is the fulfillment of the law of Moses. We no longer live under the law; we live under Grace & Truth. Earlier, we said that Jesus came to make reconciliation with God possible. So, when the perfect expression of Grace & Truth arrived, reconciliation was now possible for all of us. Are you seeing how this equation came together through Jesus? We’ll get to the element of “Time” in a moment.
The point of this equation is this: When any one of us can bring Grace & Truth consistently over Time into any circumstance or relationship, reconciliation becomes more possible. Unfortunately, there are no guarantees that reconciliation will happen because circumstances and relationships always involve other human beings who have free will. However, if we can bring Grace & Truth, essentially bring Jesus, who is Grace & Truth, consistently over Time, into any circumstance or relationship, reconciliation becomes more possible.
Heart for Lebanon has consistently brought Grace into the hard Truth of the lives of the people God called us to love, serve, and reach. The Truth is, most of these families were without homes, food, basic necessities of life. But Grace was our team providing the most vital of those necessities along with a genuine, authentic relationship. The result has been that hundreds of the people we serve have been reconciled to Jesus! Not only that, but they have slowly been reconciled to a life with purpose, direction, and meaning. Grace entered the hard Truth that existed and the result was people being led away from despair and reconciled with HOPE!
There has been another key element at work through our Heart for Lebanon team: Time. Our team has brought Grace & Truth consistently into the lives of the people we serve for 18 years. Grace & Truth (Jesus) are not magic dust that you sprinkle on a circumstance or relationship and…POOF!…reconciliation magically happens. No, Grace & Truth are things we live consistently, day in and day out. When we bring Jesus (Grace & Truth) into any circumstance or relationship, consistently over Time, reconciliation has a chance to happen. This equation has been proven true in life after life as many people and families we serve have been reconciled to Jesus, to each other, and to the hope of a better life in the future.
