Being Confronted With Truth

“Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, ‘If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free’.” (John 8:31-32)

It has been said that people cannot change truth, but truth can change people. Truth remains steadfast, in spite of opposition, general opinion and even persecution. When all is said and done, the truth will always, always prevail.There are those who go to great lengths to try to prove that God’s Word, the Bible, cannot be believed, that it contains lies, errors, and that it is not to be trusted as the infallible Word of God. Even many who claim the Bible to be God’s Word and claim to believe its validity will try to pick and choose or twist and turn portions of it, therefore turning it into a lie. Some will try to make God’s Word conform to their own personal lifestyles rather than allowing it to change them from the inside out, and others will pick and choose small portions of His Word and hold it up as truth by itself without considering the context of the scripture and the entirety of the Word of God. Jesus declared that His Word will set you free, yet many who claim His Word as truth are not freed by His Word, but rather use it as a cause for bondage and division within the very Body of Christ to which God sent His Word to deliver. 

Think about this: If a person were to emphatically state that he does not believe in the law of gravity, of course we know he would be foolish. The law of gravity is as sure as the ground we walk on. It is truth! However, if he believed his theory so strongly that in order to prove his point, he jumped off the Empire State Building…then guess what? Truth, once again, would prevail and that person would experience the consequences of his unbelief! 

That’s how it is with the Word of God. Though we may not see the consequences of living apart from the truth right away, a day of reckoning will come, and truth will prevail. There are consequences to walking contrary to the Word of God. Jesus said, “And you shall know the truth…” To “know the truth” in this instance is not a matter of head knowledge, but a matter of heart knowledge. To “know the truth” means that it becomes life in us and our lives revolve around it. We believe it strongly enough that we act on it and we incorporate it into our daily lives. Only then will the Word of God make us free. 

The 28th chapter of Deuteronomy clearly points out the blessing of obedience to God’s Word, and it also outlines the curses for not adhering to His commands. The contrast is breathtaking. As a child of God, there are certain rights, privileges and inheritances that belong to us in God’s Word, but each of them is conditional. God will always be faithful to keep His part, but He requires that we also fulfill our part. And in all honesty, the things God requires of us are for our own good, not His. 

By walking in line with God’s Word, we can expect eternal life (John 3:16), we can receive our needs met (Phil.4:19), we can receive physical, emotional and spiritual healing (I Peter 2:25), we can walk in victory over sin (Psalm 119:11), receive guidance for our daily lives (Psalm 119:133), use it as a source of wisdom (2 Tim. 3:15-17). By God’s Word, we may see our lives completely fulfilled, and we can receive joy and peace beyond our wildest dreams. These are only a few of the blessings of obedience to God’s Word. By living in His Truth, we are made completely free. 

Disobedience also has it’s “rewards” as outlined in God’s Word. God is a righteous judge, and He will not allow His Word to be ignored forever, though He is a patient God. Disobedience brings defeated lives (Judges 2:14-15), rejection (I Peter 2:7-8), spiritual death (Romans 5:12-19), and in the end, eternal damnation (Rev.20:13-15). If we live our lives in disobedience to God’s Word, we will never know complete fulfillment, contentment, peace, joy or love. Disobedience puts a wedge between us and God, and our spirits will never be free of condemnation. 

King David penned in Psalm 119:5-6, “Oh, that my ways were directed to keep Your statutes! Then I would not be ashamed, when I look into all Your commandments.” Satan will always have an accusation to bring against us in our own minds, and if we are walking outside God’s Word, he will be absolutely right. Until we choose God’s way over our own way, we will always be defeated and miserable. The easiest and best way to defeat the enemy of our soul is to walk in obedience to God’s Word. 

And besides all that, we will be completely free in our spirits. Our lives will be more exciting, more joyful and happier than we could ever imagine. Psalm 119:1 says, “Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord!” Be blessed today, and walk according to God’s Word.