Truth is worth every protection.
Today, in our world, it’s the first thing to be compromised. We lie every day: to ourselves, to our jobs, to our families and friends. Not just bold-faced lies, no. We take pieces of the truth, the ugly pieces or painful pieces, and hide them away. Sometimes it’s to make ourselves look better, sometimes it’s to save those around us from pain. Often, it’s not even malicious.
Either way, masking the full truth is in our nature. “Did God really say?” is the question that caused our downfall as humanity, and Eve’s answer, like ours, sounds less like a confidence in God’s word and more like a caveat.
“Well…”
With every “well…” or every “I mean…” have we given away the definitive “yes” and “no” of God’s word? Jesus calls Himself the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6) and draws a line of truth in the sand: He is the Only Way, the Only Truth, and the Only Life. Through Christ, no others, we can find eternal salvation from the wickedness of our compromises to His truth.
So how do we put our foot down for truth in love?
1 Corinthians 13:5-7
“[Love] does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
Re-read it, without your already formed conclusions and perspective. What does this passage about love teach us about truth? Once love uncovers sin, wrongdoing, it doesn’t gleefully clap its hands and point, “I knew it! I knew you were a sinner!” No! Instead, love looks beyond, to the truth of redemption.
“Thank you, Jesus, for uncovering dark places. You’ve exposed our filthiness not to entertain yourself or use us for your gain, but you’ve instead exposed us to light. In my pit of sin and depraved thinking, I can see the light of your truth now. And I can start to hear your rejoicing, that through your mercy, I can walk towards your truth. Amen.”
That kind of truth, that kind of love, is worth standing for. In humility, we cry out “Jesus, you are good!” and pray that the nations hear as well. Not to expose them and prove ourselves right, but to grab their hands, joyful in new life, and lead them towards that light of His truth.