Thought for Today
Psalm 15:1 O LORD, who may abide in your tent? Who may dwell on your holy hill? 2 Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right, and speak the truth from their heart;
Zechariah 8:16 These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another, render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace,
Luke 20:21 "Teacher, we know that you are right in what you say and teach, and you show deference to no one, but teach the way of God in accordance with truth.
John 8:31 Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, "If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."
What is truth? What is the truth? While we are pondering that, how would we respond to Jack Nicholson’s famous line in A Few Good Men, “Truth! You can’t handle the truth!”? Once we determine the real truth, can we handle that truth?
Today is one of those days when I wistfully wonder whether my parents both died before they could pass on to me ‘life’s eternal truths.’ Do you ever have one of those days? Days when you think that everyone else seems to know what they are doing, seems to know how to respond to every situation . . . and you find yourself standing mouth-agape, clueless in a big and intimidating world.
My parents always seemed to have the right answer, always to know how to respond to the situation. My teachers always seemed to have all the answers. My friends always seem to know what to do. Sometimes, I find myself wafting aimlessly on the fitful winds of time, adrift floating without purpose or any control over events, without any answers to the questions.
What is truth? What is the truth? Can I handle the truth? Do I even know what questions to ask to help me discern the truth? One absolute truth is that we can never hope to find any answers unless we know the right questions to ask. Another absolute truth is that I, we, must always begin at the beginning. Beginning in the middle, were it even possible, is doomed to failure.
I am a Christian. “Genesis 1:1 In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth . . . “ That’s a good place to start, at the beginning. What question(s) do I need to ask about that to determine the truth? Maybe, who is God? Moses asked and was answered, Exodus 3:14 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" Do I need to understand astrophysics, geology and the Big Bang Theory to find the truth, the real truth in how Creation came about? I find all of those things interesting, plausible, even probable. But, I find no conflict with Genesis and Exodus in any science or any scientific theories. God is the Creator of Creation.
What does that mean for me as a Christian? For all who call themselves Christian? What is our response to God, our duty before the Creator of Creation? The psalmist captured it perfectly for us, “walk blamelessly, and do what is right, and speak the truth from their heart.” Speak the truth from our hearts. The prophet Zechariah had the truth of it, “Speak the truth to one another, render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace.”
What is that truth? What is the truth of the psalmist, of Zechariah, of Jesus? As I ask myself that, as I wonder what my parents forgot to tell me, I hear in my mind a hymn from childhood, Jesus Loves Me. “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to him belong, they are weak, but he is strong.” Are they little and weak because, (a) they are young, (b) they are small in stature, (c) they sometimes have doubt, or (d) all of the above?
As a Christian, I know the answer is d. As a Christian, I know that in the Bible, all always means all. God loves us all, so much so that he sent Jesus to show us the way back into a right relationship with God. And, THAT’S THE TRUTH!
Stay safe, share the truth of God’s love, trust God,
Pastor Ray