The Truth Only Sets Free Those Who Embrace It

Some may believe they are lovers of truth—and even brag about their acceptance of it. However many times we have seen those who have jumped on the frontline in their zeal for ‘truth’, speaking strong words with passion and fervency, only to come to a point in the narrow road where a particular truth has hit a nerve in their own life, causing them to step back and withdraw.

1 John 2:15-17 

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

The truth is at times an extremely difficult concept for us to accept and fully embrace. We may be happily following along for a while when truth is spoken in one particular area that doesn’t really make any difference to our own life, but the whole counsel of God is to be taught and applied in every believer’s life, and eventually the truth is going to hit a raw nerve somewhere because we all fall short. And when the truth hits, many reject it and turn away because it ended up interfering with their lifestyle and they weren’t willing to change the way they live.

Jesus dealt with this when He walked the earth, and it still happens today.

John 6:60 

Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?”

After many of Jesus’ followers began questioning His difficult teaching, only a few verses down we see that they turned away and decided not to continue to follow Him.

John 6:66 

From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.

So it’s not surprising that some will come along for the ride for a time while it’s not challenging them in their own life on their own walk, but when the difficult teachings of truth hits a harder area that means we will have to change our ways and admit we've been wrong in the way we’ve been living, what will we choose to do? 

Reject the truth, or embrace it?

1 John 2:18-19 

Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

The entire Bible is God-breathed and is there to instruct us in every part of how we live (2 Timothy 3:16), but do we find ourselves ignoring certain aspects either because we don’t like it or because it comes across as too harsh and will mean we will have to make some life-changing adjustments?

It’s easy to say we love truth when it’s not personally demanding change from us, but reality is that truth will not change—so either we conform to the truth (Romans 12:2) or we shrink back (Hebrews 10:39) and reject God’s Son, who is the truth (John 14:6).

Truth is not a game - we each have our own decision to make.

2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 

The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.

The line is being drawn (Joshua 24:15) - which side are you on?

There’s no in-between—it’s one or the other. For or against.

Either you believe and value God’s Word, thereby applying it in your life with eternal rewards, or you disregard the Bible, thereby living the way you want with eternal destruction.

To be a genuine Christian is to be one in both words and actions – not just in name alone.

-- By Jen Ayling