May God Grant You the
Courage to Stand for the Truth
Before continuing with this message, I would like
to share something I once wrestled with many years ago. Ask yourself this question. When I study Scripture, am I serious
— or just curious. May I strongly
suggest you take a moment to reflect on that question? It takes great
courage to stand for truth no matter what the consequence.
The Holy Bible tells us we cannot love the world
and God at the same time. From The First
Letter Of John, he asserts, (15) “Love not the world, neither the things that are
in the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in
him.(16) For all that is in
the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of
life, is not of the Father, but is of the world” (1 John 2:15-16, KJV).
From the Boy Scouts of America, one memorizes
the Scout Law:A scout is Trustworthy, Loyal,
Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean,
and Reverent.When reflecting on decades
of scouting, I am painfully aware of the difference between those boys that memorized
the Law and those that learned (received) the Law. Even
with the recent politically correct
changes made in scouting, I stand by the Law as a guiding star when one is
“lost” in the world. Back then, we would
also remind the scouts that if they were confused and feeling “lost” in the
world that according to God’s Word, if you draw
near to God, He will draw near to you (James 4:4-8).
From the Holy Bible, one reads the Commandments of
our God, our Creator. Chances are you readthem but never memorized
them, correct? If that is the case, then asking if you learned (received) them
is a moot question. In either case, let you and I stand shoulder to shoulder on
this first foundation stone — God Is
Truth. I am often asked, “If God
is Truth, then why is the world the way it is? My preferred short, honest,
and respectful reply is — tradition.
Tradition produces shallow worship. Tradition
is natural, doesn’t create the fear of change; it is the fertile soil of
complacency. Sadly, after thousands of
years, we still find when tradition meets Truth, a tradition more often wins
out.
Complaining all the time, trying this, trying that,
but never once have we agreed to, and continued to live by Truth. Faith in our
Lord Christ Jesus just “appears” too simple an answer to the leaders of the world. It is not too far
of a reach to say that for our world leaders — dependence upon Christ Jesus for
the supply and maintenance of life, despite thousands of years of documented
history, is not and will never be a viable option. Here are a few feasible
excuses to reflect on.(1)Not a financially
secure opportunity for world “leaders” (2) Can’t satisfy the ego of world leaders that crave political
power (3) World leaders would
have to abandon centuries of TRADITION and would be forced to develop, live by,
and lead with the moral discipline commanded by our God. How very sad. I admit
that being a true Believer is not easy, but it is simple! Fortunately, not all
is lost yet. The truth will always win out in the end.Praise God!