And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. (John 8:32)
We are living in a time when anything goes. If fact, truth is not all that popular. We are living in a feel good society, but that feeling escapes them. Diversity and acceptance is the cry of the day.
With diversity comes more division and conflict. We are to accept people for what they are, but on the other hand, we are not allowed to have any ideas contrary to theirs. Truth cannot be altered. If you change the truth, then it becomes a lie. Pronouncing a thing to be true does not change reality, i.e. global warming, evolution, false religion and so on.
I. THERE IS ONE TRUE GOD AND HE IS THE GOD OF TRUTH
Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. (Isaiah 44:6)
He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.(Deuteronomy 32:4)
- His name is Jehovah.
And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them. (Exodus 6:3)
- He sent His Son to bring grace and truth.
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. (John 1:14, 17)
- Grace brings salvation, then we need God to teach us the truth. He does that through His churches and the Holy Spirit.
Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.(Psalm 25:5)
- God’s Word is truth.
Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. (John 17:17)
II. WE ARE TO LOVE IN TRUTH
My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. (I John 3:18)
- Love is the one quality we are to have above all others.
Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. (I Corinthians 13:13)
- We are to love God with all that is in us and our neighbor as ourselves.
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. (Matthew 22:37-40)
- Love will allow us to get along with one another.
And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. (I Peter 4:8)
III. THERE IS TO BE MERCY AND TRUTH
Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: (Proverbs 3:3)
- Mercy without truth will produce all kinds of evil.
He that walketh in his uprightness feareth the LORD: but he that is perverse in his ways despiseth him. (Proverbs 14:2)
Mercy and truth will remove evil.By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil. (Proverbs 16:6)
- Mercy and truth is beneficial in government.
Mercy and truth preserve the king: and his throne is upholden by mercy. (Proverbs 20:28)
IV. WE ARE TO SERVE GOD IN TRUTH AND SOBERNESS
But he said, I am not mad, most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness (Acts 26:25)
- Soberness here means soundness of mind, i.e. (lit.) sanity or (fig.) self-control: soberness, sobriety.
- The world is set on folly, but God’s children should not be.
For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. (Titus 2:11-14)
- The word sober is used twelve times in the N.T., six times it means to be of a sound mind and the other six means to abstain from wine.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: (I Peter 5:8)Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. (I Thessalonians 5:6-8)
- When you drink alcohol, it impairs the soundness of your mind.
V. WE ARE TO SERVE GOD IN SINCERITY AND TRUTH.
Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.(Joshua 24:14)
Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (I Corinthians 5:8)
- How many times have you heard someone say, it does matter what you believe as long as you are sincere?
- Well, believe it or not, I have been sincerely wrong – haven’t you?
- God says we are to serve Him in sincerity and truth.
VI. WE ARE TO SERVICE GOD IN TRUTH AND RIGHTEOUSNESS
Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; (Ephesians 6:14)
- Truth without righteousness is not acceptable, indeed, it does harm to the work of God
- It does not glorify God.
And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. (Acts 16:16-18)
VII. WE ARE TO WORSHIP GOD IN SPIRIT AND TRUTH.
But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:23-24)
We are to try the spirits because there are many false teachers out there. Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error. (I John 4:1-6)
- One of the fruits of the Holy Spirit is truth.
For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth; Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. (Ephesians 5:9-10)
And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. (John 14:16-17, 26)
But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: (John 15:26)
- The local N.T. church is the place we get the truth.
Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. (John 16:13)
But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. (I Timothy 3:15)
- We are to study God’s Word and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us to the truth.
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (II Timothy 2:15)
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