This is the second post on balance, the first being on the balance of hearing and doing. On the topic of finding a balance of grace and truth in our lives, the Bible says this:
Let not mercy and truth forsake you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart, And so find favor and high esteem In the sight of God and man. Proverbs 3:3
In other words, grace and truth should be with you always. Like a necklace that you would wear. They should be – figuratively of course – written on your heart. They should be a part of who you are – apart of your character. Both of them. Not one or the other. Both. At the same time. Balanced. Interwoven. Apart of each other. Inseparable.
If you do this, you will have favor and a good reputation with God and also other people. In other words, this is a great way to live!
The problem is when we choose one or the other; when we make it an either/or decision.
Sometimes we choose one over the other in a moment. Think about the last time you had an argument – or a fight! – with a family member. It was probably full of truth, but not much grace! Or think about the last time you didn’t want to hurt someone’s feelings, so you really did not give them the whole truth of what you thought and were just – well – kind.
Sometimes we deceive ourselves in choosing one over the other permanently. I have heard people say “well I just speak my mind”, or “I just don’t have any mercy”, or “I just don’t want to be too hard and unkind”. What they are telling themselves is that they are simply not capable – their DNA does not allow them – to have both grace and truth in their lives. And they are right! We cannot do this on our own.
But if Christ’s Spirit lives in us and empowers us and guides us then we absolutely can live this way.
When we act and live one without the other, we are out of balance. And it has consequences.
When you act truthfully without grace, that is called self-righteousness. You are not giving any grace; you are giving what truth alone would rightfully give them. You are assuming that you are always right, and no one deserves any forgiveness. If God dealt with us this way, none of us would survive one more second.
On the other hand, when you act graciously without truth, you are informing the world that you believe there are no boundaries, no reality, and we can live as we please. Many times, grace without truth leads to destruction of relationships and people. The parent who is not willing to give the child truth through correction, ends up creating an adult sized baby. The spouse who is not willing to share their true feelings about their unhealthy relationship, creates a chasm between them and their partner. And on and on.
The Bible says that Jesus is full of grace and truth [Jn 1:14].
This means that first of all, He is full of the grace of God that seeks the good of everyone – unbelievers included. This grace and love flows out of His entire being. AT THE SAME TIME – in order to bring about God’s gracious plan of redemption, Jesus proclaimed the Truth of God in word and deed with absolute accuracy and perfection. The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ embodies both grace and truth for us – our sin debt is paid and we didn’t have to pay for it!
In “full of grace and truth” the and is significant!
God wants me to have this perfect balance of grace and truth in my life as well.
This is an excerpt from a book manuscript I am currently working on. The book is about how we have redefined church in the last few decades, in some ways to its detriment. This passage deals with the topic of evangelism and discipleship coexisting in a ministry. It can be done, should be done, but there must be balance. There are numerous opinions on this topic. This is mine.
There must be a balance between evangelism and discipleship. Sometimes, maybe oftentimes, these two can be experienced simultaneously. For example, it is certainly possible for a witnessing opportunity to act as a discipleship lesson, as the discipler models for the disciple how to share their faith effectively. There are certainly other examples.But sometimes these two are mutually exclusive by nature.
In a church, evangelism and discipleship should each be consistently done, yet not so exclusively as to the detriment of the other. There should be balance.
There must be balance in our content. I believe that every sermon should carry the gospel in some form – because the gospel permeates everything we believe. But I don’t believe that every sermon or Bible study can have as its lone subject the gospel. This is what Paul meant when he wrote that we should move on from the basic teachings about salvation and on to deeper things . This is discipleship. If every sermon is focused only on the basic facts of salvation, it would be to the detriment of the believer’s discipleship. On the other hand, if every message from the church is about deeper Christian life and truth, it would be to the detriment of the lost who are present. There should be a balance in content.
There must be balance in our chronology. Balance must be present on a weekly basis as well as a seasonal or yearly basis. This is why homiletics is so important in the life of a pastor or pastoral team. A pastor must understand first how to prepare each individual sermon with this balance in place – so that the Christians are fed and the lost are convicted. Sometimes the message will speak to one group more heavily than the other, but both should receive something from that week. Likewise, planning out the sermons for the season or even the year is also a crucial task. True, it helps the pastor and other ministries (media, drama, small groups) prepare in advance for the coming week’s topics. But there is a more important reason to plan out sermons or series well in advance. Doing so will ensure that the church strikes a healthy balance between evangelism and discipleship on a monthly, seasonal, or yearly basis. And by doing this, the church leadership can be sure that they are maintaining the church’s focus on the lost while also building that focus on the foundation of growing Christians. Failure to build this balanced foundation ministry-wide results in a church that is all but ready to crumble.
Is your ministry a balanced one? How do you maintain balance?
As church leaders (lay or “professional”) we are all involved in making disciples. But if you haven’t defined “disciple” how will you know when you’ve done it?
Yes, yes a disciple is “a follower of Christ”. I got that. But what does that look like in your church?
In our ministry, a disciple has the following “qualities” or “accomplishments”:
Profession of Faith
Assurance of Salvation
Baptized by Immersion
Small Group Involvement
Worship Service Involvement
Serving Faithfully
Giving Regularly
We accomplish these qualities in individuals through a variety of different means including classes, mentoring, small groups, and preaching, to name a few. But the point is that we know what the finish line looks like.
What does a disciple look like in your ministry? Comment below on your “qualities”.
The real verb in the Great Commission is “make”(Matt 28:19). Technically, while “go” is a command, it is a participle in the Greek. It is not the main verb or thrust of the sentence.
Enough grammar.
The point is that as we are going (i.e. going through our day) we are to be involved in disciple making: teaching people to follow Jesus.
