EVERYTHING WE NEED: I Tell You The Truth
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6 NIV). Jesus spoke those words to His disciples as absolute truth. Absolute, because it is not up for debate and cannot be changed. Some say truth is not the same for everyone; what may be true for you may not be true for me. That is incorrect! Absolute truth is a statement that is true for everyone, anywhere and anytime. Lying is not an acceptable characteristic for a believer. It can ruin one’s testimony and destroy relationships.
Deception can first be traced to the Garden of Eden. When God told Adam and Eve they could eat of every tree except the one in the middle of the garden, Satan confronted Eve: I tell you the truth (my words), you won’t die, you will be like God, full of wisdom and knowing good and evil (Gen. 3:1-6). Even though his statement sounded trustworthy, it was nothing but a lie. Still, Eve fell for it and even deceived Adam. As a result, sin entered the world, and lying soon found lodging in the hearts of the human race.
When Cain killed his brother, God asked him where Abel was. Cain replied, “I tell you the truth, I don’t know; I’m not his keeper” (Gen. 4:2-6). This lie was Cain’s undoing. God cursed him from the earth; no longer would it produce crops for him, and he would become a restless wanderer from then on. There are consequences for dishonesty.
Ananias and Sapphira conspired to lie to Peter about how much money they received from selling some land. Ananias died immediately when he lied. His wife came along later and was asked if what they gave was the actual price. She replied, “Yes, I tell you the truth, it is the exact amount” (Acts 5:1-10). She died as well. It doesn’t pay to be deceitful.
Dishonesty is everywhere — in government at all levels, in major corporations, in universities, in social media, in advertising and even among individuals. False information hits us from all sides, sometimes making it difficult to know what to believe. That is why it is so important that Christians be truthful in their personal and business dealings. It is hard to have confidence in someone who tends to exaggerate, make up stories or just blatantly tell lies.
The Bible states: “Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body” (Eph. 4:25). “Finally… whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things” (Phil. 4:8). “The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy” (Prov. 12:22). If we practice speaking the truth, others will have confidence in what we say and do.
Jesus is absolute truth; no one else! In John, we read these words several times:
• I tell you the truth, “…no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again” (3:3).
• I tell you the truth, “…the Son can do nothing by himself, he can only do what he sees the Father doing…” (5:19).
•I tell you the truth, “…whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life” (5:24).
• I tell you the truth, “I am the bread of life…” (6:47).
Even when He doesn’t use this phrase, everything He says is true. It doesn’t matter if someone believes it or not. It still stands. In Num. 23:19, The Lord said to Balak, king of Moab, “God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” (Num. 23:19).
When falsehood is more prevalent than truth, we can take great comfort in knowing that God’s Word is 100% true and dependable.
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