John 1:17

“For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”

               John has just talked about the fullness of Jesus, how He contains enough in Himself not just to be complete but to give this fullness to the rest of the world, His grace and truth. In this next verse, John explains the origin of this grace and truth and helps to clarify what truth we are talking about. John makes the explanation for what the “grace and truth” is for by making a comparison between the law, grace, and truth.

               John starts this verse by talking about the law. The law John is referring to is the first five books of the Bible, Genesis through Deuteronomy. These were rules and regulations set up by God and given to people of Isreal through Moses. This law set up how to be a holy people to a God who is holy and requires holiness. John is explaining here that the law of God was given by Moses which can almost be considered the start of what would come to be known as the people of Isreal, or the Jewish people. John starts with the law not to contrast Jesus but to compare Jesus and what He brings to the law.

               John, after he shows that Moses brought the law, shows what Jesus brings which is—you guessed it!—grace and truth. It is important to note the transition in this verse. John does not say Moses brought the law, but Jesus brought grace and truth. Moses brings the law, then with no transition “grace and truth comes through Jesus.” This shows that John is connecting the grace and truth Jesus brings to the law. The law in this is not superseded but modified by Jesus who comes and brings grace and truth to the law. This is explained better by Mathew when he recorded Jesus saying, “‘Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Matt. 5:17). John agrees with Matthew in this verse; he is showing that Jesus brought enlightenment to the law, not a replacement, as Jesus says in His own words.

               When we bring together the two concepts, we find the John is saying that Moses brought the holy law of God to God’s people, a law that showed His people how to be holy before Him. Then, Jesus comes and enlightens the world to that law through the grace and truth He brings. Sacrifices no longer come through the constant sacrifice of animals but through the one man’s sacrifice, Jesus’s sacrifice. The sacrifice of Jesus is the grace that He brings to all of us but the truth that Jesus brings is the revelation of who God is through Him. This will be explained in more depth in the next verse, but the truth of the law is that God is not just telling His people to do this or that but it is the guide so that His people might never wonder who God is but know for sure how to grow close and follow God.

               For us as Christians, this verse needs to be an encouragement but also a guide to us for viewing the world. We live in an age where the modern thought in Christianity is that Jesus came to get rid of the old way and bring a new way. John shows that this is not the truth. What Jesus brings is an enlightenment of the law of Moses that it is not just a set of rules but is a connection, reaching up toward our God, and Jesus is God reaching back down to make the final connection so that we might have a real relationship with the creator of the universe. Knowing that we have that connection, it is important to bring that always when we are reading the Old Testament. God does not want us to read those first five books in the same spirit of the Israelites but as redeemed creatures with the grace and truth of Jesus. We must read Jesus into the Old Testament to truly understand the full truth of it. This also shows us, however, that we cannot stop reading the Old Testament. We must read the whole Bible to know Jesus better and to grow closer to God. I challenge all of us to reread the Old Testament with a Jesus perspective.

               To those who are not Christians, there is only one way to know God and that is through Jesus. John makes that even clearer in this verse—even the law is insufficient to save you without the enlightenment of Jesus and the sacrifice He made on the cross. You wonder why you still struggle with sin or issues in your life? You can never get better with the medicine of the law without first the vaccine for your sin nature that comes from Jesus. He is calling you now to come to him and be cured so that He can work on all aspects of your life.