John 14:6) Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Let's dig more into truth today. Jesus says He is the truth. I see God as the ultimate truth. There is no gray with Him, but rather black and white. There is sin and there is righteousness. There is Satan and there is God. Jesus says He is the truth which to me means He is truth itself. Anything aside from God is not truth. Matthew 12:30 came into my mind just now. Read it below.
Matthew 12:30) He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.
He is not relative and neither is His truth. Among the many false religions the message of Jesus Christ is the true one. The Bible says so. Again, the dictionary came in handy to my study. Here are three ways truth was described...faithful, fact, and spiritual reality. I found those really interesting and enlightening. I especially like the last one, spiritual reality.
He is the true God incarnate and was also truly a man, flesh and bones. Let me be the first to say I don't really grasp the concept of the Trinity. Jesus Christ was God who is also the Holy Spirit. I understand the role of each, but the actual logistics of it all is way over my head. I used to really try and figure it out, but learned it's okay to not understand. I believe the Bible is truth so I'll just hang my hat on that.
I never know what is true in the world. You watch one news show and they say one thing and then another says something completely different. One politician says this and the other says that. Heck, even the same politician says one thing one day than the other the next day. We live in a day of deception, but deception began way back.
Genesis 3:4) "But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die."
How can we counteract the deception of the world? One way is to know truth or Truth. I have found great clarity since I began really digging into and studying Scripture. Of course it is an ongoing battle to counteract Satan's lies. The best way to know a lie is to know truth. Truth becomes a part of us as we spend time abiding in the Lord. If you put your faith in Jesus Christ you have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside you. The Bible calls Him our Helper. If we tune in to the Holy Spirit He will let us know what is truth and what is not.
My mom used to tell us to be discerning. She used this word quite often. "Anna, you have to be discerning with whom you date, or whom you befriend, or whom you trust," she would say. Discernment means to have an acuteness of judgment and understanding and to be discriminating. She felt discernment was one of the most important traits to have. I started reading a book by one of my favorite author's. Derek Prince wrote a book titled, Protection from Deception. Actually, I would read it on my favorite work out machine, Jacob's Ladder. If you do not know what that is please google it. My husband refers to as the Widow Maker. If any of my friends are reading this they are probably laughing right now because I am literally like the only person that uses it at our gym. Aaaaanywho, the book is all about being deceived and how one of Satan's goals is to deceive.
2 Corinthians 11:14) And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.
1 John 4:1-4) Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
So if your not sure about something open up that Bible and see what the Scripture says. It will never leave you hanging. I have a hard time quieting myself before the Lord. I've actually started picturing myself sitting before His throne saying nothing. I have learned one can pray without saying anything! Wild I know! I'm also getting better at not making my grocery list during this time. In these times the Spirit will lead you to great and unthinkable things. You will acquire a clarity like you won't believe. Mom always said that you had to have discernment to be truly wise. Gosh, I miss that woman.
Love this. Your mother so had the gift of discernment. =)
ReplyDeleteShe sure did. It is an important thing to have!
ReplyDelete