Three Inescapable Truths
“If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31b, 32).
In the business venture of precious metals, the rule of thumb is rarity determines value. It is the scarceness of a jewel that increases its price. Absolute truth, therefore, should be highly prized among men and nations. Tragically, for many that is not the case. Jesus Christ, who is Almighty God in the flesh, determined the value set upon the concept of truth. According to Him, it is the one and only liberating force available to our poor fallen world filled with disobedience, darkness, disease, despair, and death (Matthew 1:23; John 1:14).
It is in the Holy Bible, the all-time bestselling book in the history of man, (and the most scrutinized) where we can safely find the four-fold source of truth. Mercifully, it has the power to set free captive humanity.
First, the Bible is a self-authenticating book. Its 66 books combined faithfully records God’s Word to our fallen race. In Jesus’ High Priestly prayer, He stated, “Sanctify them (Christians) by Your truth. Your word is truth” (John17:17). The Bible is the book of truth. Other religions and so-called “holy books” may have some semblance of truth, but the Bible contains the truth and nothing but the truth with a capital T. Contrary to popular opinion, there are no errors, contradictions, or inconsistencies contained within the sacred scrolls.
Second, Jesus is the person of truth. Ephesians 4:21 affirms, “If indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus.” Jesus was promised in the Old Testament to the tune of 300 specific prophecies. He was born, lived, ministered, died, and rose from the dead to fulfill each one in order to establish God’s salvation in the earth. He declared that He was the way, the life, and the truth. No man comes to the Father except by Him (John 14:6).
Jesus did not just make truth claims like other religious leaders. He presented Himself as truth personified. In fact, when questioned by Pilate as to His claim of being a King and what the nature of truth was, Jesus responded, “For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice” (John 18:37). In other words, if a soul is a truth seeker, he will eventually hear the voice of the Good Shepherd, who laid down His life for His sheep (John 10:11).
Third, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth. There are many spirits in the world that carry many voices and varied messages. All of them, except one, are deceptive in nature. They exist to mislead unsuspecting souls astray that they might be devoured by lies, which leads to their earthly and eternal destruction.
In the midst of this delusion, John 16:13 decrees, “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”
The last bastion of truth is found in the church of the living God. The Apostle Paul stated, “but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15).
The church has the awesome and fearful responsibility to not only preserve the integrity of God’s truth, but to make sure the church maintains its true meaning. Nehemiah 8:8 states, “So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading.”
The Apostle Paul admonished the church, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). The Scriptures are of no private interpretation; therefore, the church has the duty before God to preach with integrity God’s Word and preserve its true meaning as God intended (2 Peter 1:20).
It is extremely important that you go to a church that takes seriously this sacred duty before God. Men’s opinions and interpretations of the Bible do not set mankind free; only God’s truth can accomplish that merciful goal. Know this as well; all false religions and cults contain some aspect of God’s truth. Tragically, they also mix enough lies and religious misinformation to deceive souls, who follow in their pernicious ways towards hell (2 Peter 2:1-3).
First Inescapable Truth
Now that a proper truth foundation has been laid, it is time now to be careful how we build (1 Corinthians 3:10) The first inescapable truth one must deal with in order to come to the saving grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ is God is Holy. Out of all God’s other divine attributes, holiness is central to God’s character.
When Isaiah the prophet got a glimpse of God’s majesty in heaven, he heard and saw amazing Kingdom realities. Isaiah 6:1-3 describes this powerful encounter with the living God. The prophet records the cry of angels who fly to and fro in God’s throne room, “And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!” Out of all the attributes of God that could have been exclaimed, it was God’s holiness that unified the chorus of angels who were up and close and personal with the Almighty.
Why is this attribute important for you to understand? Because God is holy, He cannot abide sin. His pure holiness hates it and He will not tolerate it. Nothing sinful will survive His holy presence. Sin and sinful people will be judge by the standard of God’s holiness, which are His righteous commandments. In fact, sin is the violation of God’s commandments (1 John 3:4). It is this sinful problem that alienates us from our Creator. God’s holiness stands in direct opposition against our sinfulness.
Second Inescapable Truth
God is just! He is the God of all justice. He loves justice (Psalms 37:28). The very foundation of His throne is built upon the pillars of righteousness and justice (Psalms 89:14). Therefore, He charges all men everywhere to “to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8).
Because God is just, His justice demands that He punish sin, disobedience, and rebellion. When God addressed human courts in Israel, He demanded, “You shall not pervert justice; you shall not show partiality, nor take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous (Deuteronomy 16:19). God practices what He commands. When it comes to our evil, sin, and crimes, He cannot be bribed nor will He turn a blind eye or deaf ear to our immorality and injustice. He is a just judge who will pass sentence upon every person according to what we have spoken and done in this earth. None of us escape His demand for justice and the punishment He renders.
Third Inescapable Truth
God is Love (1 John 4:8). His desire is that we know the height, depth, width, and length of His everlasting love (Ephesians 3:18). Because God is love, He made a way for sinful people like you and me to be reconciled back to Him through the love and truth of Christ, our Savior.
Pay close attention to this verse of Scripture. It is glorious good news. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him” (Romans 5:8, 9).
He who knew no sin became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Through our Lord bearing the agony of that cruel cross as a sacrifice for our sins, He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus (Romans 3:26).
Jesus Christ became the propitiation for our sins through his shed blood. That means that God’s demand for holiness and justice was fulfilled by the sacrifice of His only begotten Son (John 3:16). What we could never do for ourselves, Jesus Christ accomplished on our behalf. We owed a debt, we could never pay. He paid a debt, He did not owe. This is the basis for the song, Amazing Grace, who saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I’m found. I was blind by now I see.
These truths were presented to you on this day in the hopes that it will become the day of your salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2). The early church burst on the scene 2000 years ago as the glorious Gospel sounded forth. As men’s hearts were convicted of their sins, they cried out, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:37, 38). It is my sincere prayer that you will repent and believe the Gospel. The Kingdom of God is at hand!
IN KING JESUS’ SERVICE,
Rev. Rusty Lee Thomas
