203. HOW IMPORTANT IS TRUTH TO CHRISTIANITY?

(The Information & Edification Series -Batch 4)

Truth is of the utmost importance to Christianity. It is so important that, DECLARING that we are Christian while DENYING truth is to DECEIVE ourselves.

Undoubtedly, a Christian loves truth and truth is found in God’s Word the Bible. It is not possible to be a Christian therefore, to have the Spirit of truth in you from God and to hate truth, unrepentantly doubt truth, seek to undermine or dodge truth and to run constantly in the opposite direction of truth. If you do that, then it means that God’s truth is not in you. In short, you may call yourself a Christian and think of yourself as one. You may even look the part but you are not.

Even if truth is difficult to accept, true Christians embrace it by God’s empowerment. True Christians do this because they know that truth cannot be fought against and that they MUST submit to it because truth is of God and God is truth.

Quite frankly, there are too many people walking around today, calling themselves Christians and being considered as part of the body of Christ, yet they hate truth. They prefer to court a lie and to give heed to doctrines of devils. Yet, loving TRUTH is a hallmark of Christianity. For, the Spirit of truth is in every bona-fide Christian, who is a part of the body of Christ.

Whether it is truth about themselves (which at times makes them look bad), about how the world came into existence, the way to salvation or any other topic or issue presented in God’s Word the Bible, a genuine, true Christian, accepts it, in its entirety.

He does not pick and choose. He does not embrace one part that sounds good to his ears and fits in with his agenda, while rejecting another.

No. When it comes to truth as presented in God’s Word, he does not fight against it or secretly resent it. For, in his mind and heart, God has said it and that settles it. There are no ‘ifs’, ‘buts’ or ‘maybes’. There is no standing on the fence or adopting a neutral position or saying that the lines are blurred.

Why? Because a true Christian knows that God’s Word is the FINAL and ULTIMATE authority on ALL matters. He knows that it is not what we as human beings think that is important or how we feel or reason or how we wished things would be but TRUTH is what God has said it is.

The Word of God states to bona fide Christians:

  • “And we KNOW that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is TRUE, and we are in him that is TRUE, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the TRUE God, and eternal life.” (1 John 5:20)

That God is truth is evident in many scriptures in the Bible. In fact, the entire Godhead comprising of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit is characterized by truth and is truth. Here is the proof:

Of God the Father, Romans 3:4 states, “…yea, let God be TRUE, but every man a liar.”

Of God the Son (Jesus), Jesus himself stated in John 14:6, “…I am the way, the TRUTH, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

Of God the Holy Spirit, Jesus said in John 16:3 “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.” 1 John 5:6 also states “…And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is TRUTH.”

It thereby follows that a true Christian that has been redeemed with Christ’s blood, regenerated by his Holy Spirit and reconciled to God the Father, pursues after truth. It is where he wants to be and not another place. He is careful to avoid error and asks the Lord to keep him from being deceived, even self-deception.

Like the Psalmist, the prayer of his heart to the Lord is not to flee from truth but “…let thy lovingkindness and thy TRUTH continually preserve me.” (Psalm 40:11)

He has regard for truth but contempt for lies, even the lies that his own flesh tries to impress upon his mind, from time to time. He loves God’s Word because in it is contained truth and he desires to cling to truth, no matter the changing times or circumstance and to NEVER let it go. For, truth is where his Lord is and truth is what his Lord is.

He can never be nonchalant about truth, unless he is backslidden or on the path to same. If he is in right standing with God and in fellowship with Him, then he is passionate about truth and harbours vehement hatred for lies.

He will NOT subscribe to the view that the paths of old were too stringent or that they have become outdated, provided those paths were founded upon truth. He will not take the view, that anything goes or doctrine is not a big deal or that once we all name the name of Christ, we are all good and all part of one big, heavenly family. He may ask questions yes and search the scriptures like the Bereans did, so as to arrive at truth but once found, he will never seek to challenge it because he has become puffed up in earthly knowledge and so-called intellectualism.

No. The true Christian understands that truth never changes; That even if sinful men have shifted the goalpost under the guise of useless intellectual arguments like ‘interpretation’ and ‘context’ and ‘contemporarism’ and still keep moving it further and further away with each passing day to suit themselves and their lusts, their whims and their fancies, that God’s Word and his truth remain infallibly the same.

It cannot be done away with by the will of man, whether he sits in the government, in the judiciary or stands on a pulpit. The true Christian knows that no matter the messenger or how well the enemy packages what he packages, if it contradicts God’s Word, then it is a lie and exposes the bearer as a liar.

For God’s Word already told us “…yea, let God be true, but every man a liar.”

Where a person, irrespective of who he or she may be, deceives himself or herself into thinking that he or she is a Christian but has rejected God’s truth on any issue because he or she hates and resents it, God’s Word gives the reason for this. It states in John 8:44 to those who love lies and hate HIS truth:

  • “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

This is spot-on truthful! A person who hates God’s truth and lives comfortably in contravention of it is clearly not saved, even if he made a so-called ‘profession’ with his lips. Simply put, he is comfortable in the lie and wants nothing to do with truth because the Spirit of truth from God is not in him.

The words of truth (even when they convict and make one tremble) are like honey to the ears of a believer. Once he is not backslidden or on the path to same but is submitting to God, he can’t seem to get enough of it. He has an appetite for it because God’s Holy Spirit of truth is indwelling him. Even if he is backslidden or on the path to same, so that the Word of God convicts him and makes him feel uncomfortable, as a Christian, he will not hate it or resent it because deep down, he KNOWS it is true. The Word of God which is sharper than any two-edged sword, may shame him, make him feel guilty, naked, expose the true motives of his heart and reveal to him his folly but he will NOT hate the Word of God or ever view it with contempt and disdain. No. On the contrary, he will hate the sin within him that is undermining his fellowship with the God of truth and even hate the consequences that flow from his sin but he will never hate God’s Word because he KNOWS that God’s Word is truth and the Spirit of God, which is truth, is in him.

On the other hand, for the one who pretends to be a Christian or has deluded himself into believing that he is one, the words of truth are like arrows. He abhors God’s Word, has contempt for it or some aspect of it and can’t seem to get far away enough from it.

In Psalm 119, the Psalmist, who believed and loved God’s truth stated:

  • “O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day. Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts. I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word. I have not departed from thy judgments: for thou hast taught me. How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a LIGHT unto my path.”

By contrast, of the one that hates and resents truth and therefore flees from it, John 3:19-21 states:

  • “And this is the condemnation, that LIGHT is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than LIGHT, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the LIGHT, neither cometh to the LIGHT, lest his deeds should be reproved. 
  • But he that doeth TRUTH cometh to the LIGHT, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.”

Whereas the Psalmist in Psalm 119 (like a believer), gratefully regards the Word of God as a lamp to his feet and a light to guide his path in life and therefore comes to it, the one that hates God’s truth (like an unbeliever pretending to be a Christian or one who has deceived himself into thinking he is one), hates the light of God’s Word and does not welcome it as a guide in his life. He wants to rule his own life and his own affairs and therefore resents and does not submit to truth, even where he wants to be regarded by others as being a Christian.

Yet, 1 John 1:6 makes it clear that “If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth…

John 14:17 makes it clear that the world cannot receive the Spirit of truth. For, only those who belong to Christ because they have truly believed that he is Lord, have been adopted into his family and are accepted in the beloved are indwelled with His Spirit.

Hence the reason that John 8:31-32 reads, “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the TRUTH, and the TRUTH shall make you free.”

Those that claim to represent Christ, that preach, teach or promote Him and are genuinely his children, abide in truth. They do not deviate to suit the audience, nor are they ashamed of declaring God’s unadulterated Word, which is truth. They do not tamper with it or assign a meaning to it that they prefer or ignore some parts of the Bible that are as clear as day, as if those scriptures were not in it, like an ostrich that buries its head in the sand, hoping that what it does not want to see or deal with will disappear.

No. Those that belong to God and tell others of him, speak, as he gives utterance, the truth. Even when they slip on occasion and get something wrong as maybe all Christians occasionally do, once they love truth, desire to avoid error and ask God to help them avoid deception, in his mercy, God reveals the truth to them, causing them to abandon any false belief, repent of it and embrace HIS truth.

It was because Elijah was a true man of God, promoting and representing God’s truth, that the Shunnamite woman was able to say to him, after he performed a miracle through God’s enablement in 1 Kings 17:24, “…Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is TRUTH.”

Unlike others, he was a genuine prophet of God, not like the many false prophets, teachers and preachers today, who love, embrace and speak lies.

Proverbs 12:17 reminds us that “He that speaketh TRUTH sheweth forth righteousness: but a false witness deceit.

In 2 Corinthians 4:2, Paul stated of the testimony that he and other true teachers and preachers of God’s Word had:

  • “Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not; But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the TRUTH commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.”

When truth is presented by one of God’s servants, as HE has authorized, those that have his truth in him, will accept it because it is true but those that do not, will not. In 1 John 4:6, it declares, “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.

If a person claims to love God therefore, to believe on Jesus and to be a Christian but refuses truth when it is presented, disbelieves it, blocks his ears, turns a blind eye and runs away from it, his actions reveal his true nature. Even if he is in the pews or occupies the pulpit, he is NOT of Christ. “For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and TRUTH.” (Ephesians 5:9).

Even if an entire church gathering or denomination has gone a-whoring after lies, truth remains unmoved. Even if it makes one unpopular because everybody but one or a few, has departed from what God has said and as a result, the one or a few that refuse to budge are despised, belittled, shunned, attacked, made fun of or considered to be irrelevant, fussy or just loving to make much ado about nothing, TRUTH REMAINS IMMOVABLE.

For, truth did not begin with man, nor will it end with him. Truth was from before the foundation of this world and will be there for ever more. Hence the reason that Psalm 119:160 declares to God, “Thy word is TRUE from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth FOR EVER.

That the Word of God is truth, has always been true and will always be true is clear throughout scripture. In John 17:17, for example, Jesus prayed to God the Father: “Sanctify them through thy TRUTH: thy word is TRUTH.”

2 Timothy 2:15 tells us: “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of TRUTH.

in John 1:14, it states: “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.”

Psalm 33:4 also declares, “For the word of the Lord is right; and all his works are done in TRUTH.

God is therefore truth, his Word is truth, he begat us in truth and desires all those that are Christians to love and walk in truth.

His Word states:

  • “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)
  • “Of his own will begat he us with the word of TRUTH, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.” (John 1:18)
  • “Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with TRUTH, and having on the breastplate of righteousness” (Ephesians 6:14)
  • “That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the TRUTH in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.” (Ephesians 4:14-15)
  • “The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in TRUTH.” (Psalm 145:18)

In 3 John 1:3-4, John, one of Jesus’ apostles, wrote to Gaius, a fellow believer, “For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the TRUTH that is in thee, even as thou walkest in the TRUTH. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in TRUTH.”

Similarly, in 2 John 1:1-4, he wrote to a group of believers, opening his letter with the following words:

  • “The Elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the TRUTH: and not I only, but also all they that have known the TRUTH; For the TRUTH’S sake, which dwelleth in us, and shall be with us for ever. Grace be with you, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in TRUTH and love. I rejoiced greatly that I found of thy children walking in TRUTH, as we have received a commandment from the Father.”

The true Christian therefore loves the TRUTH, knows the TRUTH because the TRUTH (which is God’s Spirit) dwells in him and will be with him for ever and in obedience to God, seeks pursues after and strives to walk in TRUTH.

It doesn’t matter who a person is, how well he or she looks the part of Christian or even if he or she believes that he or she is of the Lord’s fold. The fact remains: You cannot claim the name of Christ if you hate the Word of God which is truth. You cannot claim to be Christian but yet hold God’s Word in contempt. You cannot be a genuine Believer if you love the opposite of everything God’s Word says and live your life unrepentantly, without submitting to its authority.

Jesus is the Word of God as John 1:1-5 and 9-14 tells us. So, to deny the authority of God’s Word and to hate it is to deny and hate Christ.

CONCLUSION

In closing therefore, the conclusion of the whole matter is that it is not possible to love the Lord Jesus and to be in genuine relationship with him but yet hate truth, as espoused in his Word, the Bible. It is not possible to be a child of God and to view his Word or aspects of it with contempt, content to rebelliously live a life that opposes what it says.

When it comes to those who call themselves Christians therefore, who walk among us, sit in our pews and even occupy our pulpits and other platforms but yet in unbelief, doubt God’s truth, hate it, seek to undermine, belittle, dismiss or suppress it or any aspect of it and so, live a life that is contrary to it, brazenly without repentance, whether they have shown their true colours from the start or have gradually moved away from truth in time and have now wholeheartedly embraced a lie, these people are NOT Christians. They would rather the lie than the truth because the truth is not in them.

In Matthew 13:24-30, Jesus let us know, through a parable, that the wheat (meaning genuine Christians) and tares (meaning unbelievers posing as Christians) must needs grow together until the time for harvest. When the Lord returns, he will have those who pretend to be Christians or have deceived themselves into believing that they are but are not, separated from those who are genuinely his children. For, whereas people may be fooled, God is never fooled. He knows those who are his and those that the enemy has planted to create problems in the church membership and generally throughout Christendom.

Jesus stated:

  • “…The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.”

In 1 Corinthians 11:18-19, Paul wrote to the Church at Corinth, on a situation where the membership, all of whom called themselves ‘Christians’ were apparently experiencing some level of conflict, due to a difference in beliefs. Paul did not express shock or dismay. Instead, in keeping with what the Lord Jesus had explained earlier, he informed the Church that there must be persons among them, right within the church membership, seeking to advance the things that went against the truth of God’s Word (and therefore denying Christ by their unbiblical beliefs), so that those who stood against them and firmly on the side of truth, could be clearly identified as those who truly belonged to the Lord.

Paul was not surprised therefore, that there were those planted within, using the banner of ‘Christianity’ but yet still in a state of unbelief and therefore, seeking to undermine and go against God’s truth. He wrote: “…I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it. For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.”

When it comes to the tares, meaning people who falsely call themselves Christians, the Word of God tells us that as his children, we should not strive with them. We are certainly not to compromise by giving in to their lies or to regard the truth which we hold as no longer important. Instead, we are to withstand the lies, keep clinging to truth and refuse to ever let go of it. We are to also declare the truth (without making changes to any of the message or watering it down, so-to-speak, so as to try to appeal to the itchy ears of the hearers but faithfully deliver it, even as we have received it), in the hope that those who oppose will come to their senses, believe the truth and so, be recovered from the devil’s clutches.

In 2 Timothy 2:12-26 for example, Paul gave Timothy, a Christian, who believed the truth of God’s Word and was seeking to live it, sound advice as to what he should do in relation to his Christian walk and in relation to those who sought to oppose, belittle or undermine the truth, even from within the church membership.

Paul told Timothy:

  • “Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ…If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself. Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers.
  • Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of TRUTH. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; Who concerning the TRUTH have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some. NEVERTHELESS THE FOUNDATION OF GOD STANDETH SURE, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. 
  • BUT IN A GREAT HOUSE THERE ARE NOT ONLY VESSELS OF GOLD AND OF SILVER, BUT ALSO OF WOOD AND OF EARTH; AND SOME TO HONOUR, AND SOME TO DISHONOUR. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.
  • Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes. And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness INSTRUCTING THOSE THAT OPPOSE THEMSELVES; IF GOD PERADVENTURE WILL GIVE THEM REPENTANCE TO THE ACKNOWLEDGING OF THE TRUTH; AND THAT THEY MAY RECOVER THEMSELVES OUT OF THE SNARE OF THE DEVIL, WHO ARE TAKEN CAPTIVE BY HIM AT HIS WILL.”

(Written on 03rd and 04th December, 2021, added to thereafter)

ADDENDUM

Some years ago, (between 2005-2007 to be precise), while pursuing a Masters Degree on a neighbouring island and renting in a particular area, a very kind and nice lady offered to transport me to and from Church, every Sunday. She and her son were living in the same vicinity and attended the same denomination as I.

She did indicate to me back then that her husband, who used to attend the same Church as she and who she had mistakenly believed to be a Christian, had left the faith, left her and her two sons and embraced the false muslim religion. Whether he had ever formally divorced her or not, I did not know and never asked. She was not the kind though, to institute legal proceedings to do so, us believing that divorce went against the will of God and the clear Word of God.

I have always felt really sorry for her though, as she has had to spend all her years alone (he left her early on in her marriage from my understanding) and she has had to raise her two boys on her own. Nevertheless, she seemed to have raised them well, which I found to be admirable and the one I knew and had met (the other was studying overseas at the time and so I never met him) seemed to love the things of the Lord.

When I moved back to my island after completing my studies and then went to the United Kingdom, came back and returned to the island for some additional years, I may have seen her once then, at a Convention but we never got the opportunity to really chat as we did before.

Needless to say, I haven’t seen her in years and lost contact but recently, I came across her Facebook page, sent her a friend request and when she accepted and I gained access to her Page, I was surprised to see that she had migrated and had recently gotten married to another man.

My immediate thought was that her husband must have died, given that God’s Word is clear that there is to be no remarriage once one’s spouse is still alive, she knows the Word of God on this issue and always seemed to be intent on obeying the Lord. I was therefore overjoyed for her, as I believed that her husband had died and that God would have provided a proper Christian husband for her, even after she retired. She was still youthful looking though and beautiful and it seemed like a match made in heaven.

However, I later found out that her husband was still alive. I therefore unliked the picture on her page that I had liked, as I cannot support wrongdoing. Somebody must have persuaded her that it was okay to remarry, when God’s Word clearly forbade it. It is funny how easy it is for us to believe a lie when we want our own way or to do something that we KNOW that God does not approve of. We will twist scripture, ignore some verses and convince ourselves that it is okay. Yet, TRUTH remains unchanged.

(To read more about what the Bible teaches on this topic of marriage, divorce and remarriage, after reading this Article, Read Note 150 under the ‘SINGLE Daughters’ Page entitled: ‘WHAT THE BIBLE HAS TO SAY ABOUT SINGLENESS, MARRIAGE AND WIDOWHOOD and Note 1 under the ‘MARRIED Daughters’ Page entitled: ‘THE SERIOUSNESS OF MARRIAGE AND THE SANCTITY OF WEDDING VOWS’

Given that I had also celebrated the news of the marriage with someone by whatsApp a few days earlier, thinking that the marriage reflected God’s glory and was a testament to his faithfulness, now that I knew the truth of the situation, I felt that I needed to retract what I had sent. Disobedience to God’s clear Word is not a reason to celebrate but to be sad.

I therefore sent the person with whom I had celebrated the news, a whatsApp this morning, explaining what I had found out and stating that I was shocked that she had chosen this man over God’s Word. I also expressed that I was disappointed in what she had done and that I hoped that the Lord gave her opportunity to repent. I also resolved within, to keep her in prayer, in the hope that she would see the error of her way and return to the Lord.

The person to whom I had sent the whatsApp did not know the lady and I don’t think that she had ever met her but I felt the need to correct the error that I had sent. No, this was NOT reason to celebrate and so the record I had put out, had to be set straight, in light of truth.

That I was disappointed and saddened that a person I regarded as a fellow sister in the Lord and respected, had, in her old age and like Solomon, turned her back on God’s clear Word (which is TRUTH) and decided to do her own thing to satisfy her own longing for companionship and maybe sexual desires is a normal response for every genuine Christian who BELIEVES God’s Word and is SEEKING TO OBEY it. Whenever we hear of failures or even see them within ourselves, we feel disappointed. For, even when we fail, God’s Word of TRUTH remains the same. It doesn’t lower its standard to accommodate us in our sinful condition.

A genuine Christian who has embraced God’s truth on this issue of divorce and remarriage, ought to therefore understand and agree, in light of God’s Word, that this situation with the lady who was supposed to be a Christian (and maybe is but who has clearly fallen) was disappointing news. A genuine Christian would have therefore been likely to reply, that yes, it was disappointing and we should keep the lady in prayer.

Yet, in response to my whatsApp, this is how the person to whom I sent the message, replied:

  • “Ok, before you serve up disappointment and sorrow though, just make sure all your actions are aligned with God’s word. There may be some areas you’re overlooking due to regarding them as ‘minor’ but still of consequence. Leave the woman to ‘work out’ her situation between her and God as often these matters require.”

Interestingly, the person I sent the whatsApp to, calls herself a ‘Christian’, although I have long believed that she isn’t, as she always seek to undermine, belittle or dismiss truth. She does not love truth but always takes the side against it, even subtly. Her response to my whatsApp, where she sought to use the situation to attack me was therefore not surprising.

Note the tone used with the words ‘serve up’ and ‘just make sure’. I never ‘served up’ disappointment as was nastily suggested. I simply expressed it.

She was also willing me, to make sure I was 100% perfect, before expressing disappointment, when the Word of God makes no such requirement of me.

Her tone and attack were not called for, given that I simply and merely set the record straight on what had happened and EXPRESSED disappointment.

She was clearly not pleased with me being disappointed and sought to put me in my place. Note the accusatory tactic used (which the devil loves), to try to guilt me, remind me that I am not perfect and to therefore suggest that I ought not to be disappointed, ought not to say anything, ought not to assert the truth of God’s Word. Note also how she sought to side with the lady and not TRUTH, telling me to leave her to work out her own issues with the Lord. I maintain that this cannot be the response of a genuine believer of the Lord, to a whatsApp message, where I merely asserted God’s truth and expressed disappointment in the woman’s decision to forsake it.

To be quite honest, all of my actions are not aligned with God’s Word 100% of the time because I am an imperfect, sinful human being. I have God’s divine nature within (for which I will be eternally grateful) but that sin nature, to which Paul also alluded in the Word of God is still present with me. Sometimes therefore, the things I ought to do, I do not and the things I don’t want to do, I do.

HOWEVER, once I am seeking to walk in light, embrace God’s truth, am seeking to obey him, to grow daily in his knowledge and grace, to confess my sins and repent of them before him whenever I mess up, to trust in his succouring strength because he saves to the uttermost and is able to keep his children from falling, given that he has justified me by Christ’s blood, imputed the perfect righteousness of Christ on me, has sanctified me positionally, adopted me into his family and is sanctifying me progressively, I CAN with the spirit of meekness, express disappointment when a person I considered to be a fellow sister or brother, falls into the clutches of satan.

Is the Preacher on the pulpit perfect? No. Yet he is still commissioned to go out and declare God’s Word. No Christian is perfect and at no time, does a Christian have all his actions 100% aligned with God’s Word. Yet, despite our own imperfections (which we do not deny and never told anyone that we were perfect in our own selves), we have been given a commission and by the grace of almighty God, it SHALL be fulfilled!

The words sent to me are indicative of the tactics used by the enemy, to try to shut God’s people up. He comes and he says: “You’re not perfect so shut your mouth.” YET, God’s Word encourages us to examine ourselves, to confess our sins, to repent where need be and to strive to obey him but although we ourselves are not perfect of ourselves, once we are genuinely seeking to live for the Lord and to grow in Him and to put away all sin, he does not tell us to shut up, to say nothing, to wait until we are 100% aligned at all times without any sin whatsoever, to speak and in the interim, to just allow lies and sin to have free rein.

In 1 John 1:7-10, John wrote to Christians, reminding them that:

  • …if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

Notably, John was under no illusion that Christians were completely sinless. Only Jesus was sinless. That is why we all needed him as our Saviour. Yet, he encouraged Christians to walk in the light, so that the blood of Jesus Christ, could continue to cleanse them from unrighteousness whenever they messed up and repented. Not because grace abounds much more than sin though, does it mean that we should just sin and then expect God to clean up our mess.

Romans 5:20-21;6:1-7 states:

  • “…But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin.”

Given that the Christian should be walking in newness of life, although he or she will not be completely sinless, he or she should not serve sin, meaning make sin his or her lifestyle but should sin less and less as he or she GROWS in the grace and knowledge of the Lord.

John therefore encouraged Christians to not just walk in the light but to also confess their sins (sin being anything that went against God’s Word which is TRUTH), telling them not to delude themselves into thinking that they had no sin. In confessing, the Christian receives forgiveness from the Lord for that sin, once he or she is sincere and resolves to turn away from it.

The Christian who has a repentant life is therefore not to go around condemning others to hell self-righteously but to declare God’s truth (although not sinless), to call sin sin, to speak of the consequences for unrepented sin as revealed in God’s Word the Bible and what it means when someone calling himself or herself a Christian, loves his or her sin or those of others or is indifferent to it, thinks it to be no big deal and more of a personal matter and therefore hates God’s objective truth.

The Christian is to also hate sin, wherever he or she sees it, to pray for other saints and people who have fallen into sin and to even pray for self where he or she sees variances from God’s Word in self.

When we see sin in others or even in ourselves, it ought to grieve us. It ought to make us feel disappointed and sorrowful. For, the aim is to walk in the light and it is the Christian’s desire that we and all our Christian brothers and sisters walk in the light.

It is the devil that wants us to be silent, to not feel disappointed about sin, to just let people live their lives as they please and therefore, when we declare TRUTH, he seeks to try to guilt us into silence, to say that we are not good enough or perfect so we should not assert God’s truth. He does this because he hates God’s truth and so do they who are his children.

This is why we must put on the armour of God. As God’s children, we are not perfect in ourselves but have been perfected in Christ Jesus. We therefore have HIS righteousness upon us and yes we must seek to live for him but although at times we mess up, once we are not living in sin and comfortable in it and have rejected God’s Word but are genuinely seeking to obey his TRUTH because we love it and to keep short accounts with God through repentant hearts, we HAVE BEEN GIVEN A MANDATE BY THE LORD, AS CUSTODIANS, TO GO FORTH INTO THE WORLD WITH HIS TRUTH AND NOT TO KEEP IT SILENT BUT TO SPREAD IT.

If we see a lie or some false way, we have the authority to call it a lie. If we see something that is sinful, we have the authority to call it what it is, whether we see it in someone or even at times, within our own selves. We must NEVER allow the devil to shut us up so that lies can prevail.

Ironically, the same person who regards herself as a Christian (but who I believe from the fruits she has sown over the years and how much she seems to hate truth is not) is the same person who told me some years back, to stop posting God’s truth on my personal Facebook Page as I was not perfect and people were not listening.

Thank God I did not listen to the devil who was clearly using her to try to keep me silent and stuck in my past, even for sins committed that I had repented of and forsaken. By God’s grace, not hers, I opened five Facebook Ministry Pages, this Website, wrote a book (which is to be completed) and have plans to write more!

I am mindful of Revelation 12:11 which states, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony…”

Ephesians 6:10-18 also states:

  • “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of HIS might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 
  • Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with TRUTH, and having on the breastplate of RIGHTEOUSNESS; And your feet shod with the preparation of the GOSPEL OF PEACE; Above all, taking the shield of FAITH, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is THE WORD OF GOD: PRAYING always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.”

If you examine the words that were sent by the person on whatsApp to me, carefully, you will see that she wanted me to NOT girt my loins about with truth, to forget that I was righteous (not through my own perfection but Christ’s and therefore, through implied accusation on the basis that I was not 100% sinless and had made mistakes, to make me feel guilty), to not shod my feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace (which is based on truth) and to forget that I have been saved by grace through faith and therefore, as God’s child, had authority to call sin, sin and responsibility to assert truth. Ultimately, she wanted me to just forget about the Word of God, to focus only on my failures (maybe even some from my past) and to stop asserting God’s truth, just leave the woman to handle her own affairs.

She therefore wanted me to act contrary to the Word of God, which is what the devil wants.

Mind you, I did not trouble the woman who got married or tell her anything about her sinful condition. I simply corrected the record based on what I had communicated to the person on whatsApp and expressed disappointment with the news. The attack was therefore very subtle but it sought to disarm or undermine my spiritual weapons as given by God, by pulling the devil’s old useless card of: “You’re being judgmental. Leave it alone” and the carefully veiled threat of “You’re not perfect and I know stuff about your imperfections and where you have failed, so be fearful and shut your mouth.”

The person, as motivated by the devil, therefore sought the opportunity where I simply stated a situation for what it was based on God’s TRUTH and expressed disappointment, to try to guilt me, make me feel fearful, anxious, not good enough and to keep my mouth shut and my fingers silent.

This tactic, which the person I sent the whatsApp has often used throughout the years, may have worked in the past but no more! I know who I am in Christ and have learned to rebuke and reject every accusatory spirit, seeking to shut me up and suppress God’s truth.

The Bible tells us as Christians not to be judgmental but to JUDGE RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT and that means, to call a spade a spade. That means, that if God’s Word has declared something to be something, then that is what it is! Us calling it what God has already called it is not being judgmental or declaring ourselves as perfectly sinless but it is to embrace and assert TRUTH. The Word of God tells us to love truth, to use discernment, to examine fruits which will reveal peoples’ true nature and to stand on the side of truth, which is whatever God has said it is.

Keeping this in mind, this is what I therefore whatsApped in response to her scaling but subtle attack on TRUTH, dealing some blows to the enemy that had clearly used her (again) to try to quiet me through guilt, shame and fear:

  • “Well actually, me being disappointed had nothing to do with me seeing all of my actions as aligned with the Word of God. There are areas that I see in my life that are not aligned and that too brings disappointment because as a Christian, I love God’s Word and know and believe that it is the ultimate authority. The disappointment is therefore not predicated on self-perfection. Not sure why you took that view. For every bona fide Christian, anything that departs from the Word of God, brings disappointment even if within. So as I said, given that adultery is wrong and sinful, I am disappointed. Every bona fide Christian should be. And every bona fide Christian should likewise be disappointed when they see sin in me and in themselves. Every bona fide Christian hates sin because the spirit of God (is) indwelling them. If they are neutral or don’t see it as a big deal or say well I’m not perfect and there is sin in me so that means I can’t hate it when I see it in me or others, then something is wrong.”

Notice, how despite her attack, I admitted that all of my actions are not aligned with the Word of God, meaning that I’m not 100% perfect. That is a basic truth of all Christians so I let her know that that is not news to me. The Word of God already told me that I’m not without sin. That is why Jesus’ forgiveness is available once I confess, repent and forsake.

Notice how I told her that I am a Christian. My confidence in who I am in Christ despite the enemy’s latest attack was sure to enrage. Yet, no devil is going to come and take my faith in Jesus away or make me doubt my salvation. Not anymore.

Notice how I told her that I love God’s Word and know and believe it to be the ultimate authority. That is bound to drive the enemy mad, as I know he hates God’s Word.

Notice as well, that I maintained my position and declared it afresh: That adultery is wrong and sinful.

Last but not least, notice as well how I made it clear, that every bona fide Christian HATES SIN and that every bona fide Christian has the spirit of God (which is truth) in them. In other words, I was saying in my message: You are attacking me for simply telling the TRUTH? What and WHO are you? Do you belong to Christ who is TRUTH as you allege or is somebody else, your master?

She sought to guilt me into silence therefore, to make me feel bad and fearful so that I would STOP declaring truth but instead, I flipped it and let her know that if she had an issue with TRUTH, it revealed or exposed who she really was and where her loyalties really lay.

In response, she put an emoticon that suggested that she was at peace. Nothing could be so far from the truth. Her actions spoke quite loudly to me and have for some time. I have long realized that she hates God’s truth and loves to embrace lies, even openly supporting those who have been teaching doctrines of devils and given in to seducing spirits. She calls herself a Christian but as I said in the opening of the above Article and this situation demonstrates it perfectly and is therefore befitting to close:

Truth is of the utmost importance to Christianity. It is so important that, DECLARING that we are Christian while DENYING truth is to DECEIVE ourselves.

You cannot hate the Word, seek to undermine and muzzle it and resent those who are seeking to abide by it and yet state that you are a Christian, by virtue of some verbal profession you once made. For, you are in fact denying the Lord Jesus Christ because Jesus is the Word. The Word of God tells us that:

  • “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and THE WORD WAS GODAnd 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.” (John 1:1,14).

If you don’t believe in the authority of the Word, if you are not seeking to stand upon it and don’t love it (even when it convicts you of sin), then my friend, you are NOT a Christian.

I rest my case.

(Addendum written on 9th December, 2021, added to thereafter)

Dear Reader, if you found the above Article to be interesting, informative, edifying or beneficial, you may also be interested in reading the following:

  • Note 18 – ‘Riches, Abundance, Breakthrough And Promotion – Lies From The Pit Of Hell’
  • Note 28 – ‘Our Words Have Power – A Lie From The Pit Of Hell’
  • Note 42 – ‘Ten Red Flags That That Speaker Or Teacher is a Wolf Disguised In Sheep’s Clothing or Operating Under the Devil’s Deception’
  • Note 51 – ‘I Know The Plans I Have For You…’
  • Note 101 – ‘The Problem With Much Of Today’s So-called ‘Worship’ Music’
  • Note 162 – ‘The Spirit Of Prophecy’
  • Note 190 – ‘Offering Strange Fire Unto The Lord’
  • Note 201 – ‘Holding Fast To Your Beliefs, Standards And Boundaries’
  • Note 246 – ‘Imposters Among Us’

Additionally, under the ‘SINGLE Daughters’ Page:

  • Note 1 – ‘Lies Will Enslave You But The Truth Will Set You Free’
  • Note 202 – ‘Are You Regenerate Or Unregenerate?’
  • Note 226 – ‘The Whole Truth…’
  • Note 228 – ‘God’s Laws Are Supreme’
  • Note 230 – ‘Women Teaching In The Church – What Does The Lord Command?’
  • Note 291 – ‘Can A Narcissist Be A Christian?’
  • Note 302 – ‘God Has Said It, So That Settles It’

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