This month, our meditation has been excerpted from the book entitled Extreme Devotion, compiled by Voice Of the Martyrs. In the following passage, the account of a Russian student provides us with fodder for reflection and perhaps application:
They exchanged the truth of God for a lie. (Romans 1:25)
The godless professor smiled at the photo of Lenin hanging next to the door and then stepped up to the pitcher of water sitting on a table. He pulled out a packet of powder, and as he slowly poured it in, the water turned red.
“This is the whole miracle,”he began his lesson. “Jesus had hidden in His sleeves a powder like this and then pretended to have changed the water into wine in a wonderful manner. But I can do even better than Jesus. I can change the wine into water again.”
He pulled out another packet of powder and put it in the red liquid. It became clear. With another packet, it became red again.
One of the students sat at his desk, shaking his head, unimpressed. Finally, he challenged the professor: “You have amazed us, Comrade Professor. We ask of you just one more thing—drink your wine!”
The professor chuckled and said, “This I cannot do. The powder is poison.”
The Christian replied, “This is the whole difference between you and Jesus. He, with His wine, has given us joy, whereas you poison us with your wine.” The professor angrily stomped out of his room and the student arrested and thrown in prison. But news of the incident spread very far and strengthened many in their faith.
FURTHER: The promise of the enemy of an easy exchange is a lie. Most department stores have a user-friendly return policy that allows customers to exchange their purchases in order to be satisfied. People stand in line to swap a smaller size for a larger one or one color for another in hopes that it will make them look thinner or prettier or just plain happier. Likewise, many people in life are standing in line, with the truth of God in hand. They are told to swap the truth of God for anything, and it will make them satisfied customers. We always end up disappointed in the end. God wants you to see through the lies of the enemy. Hold on to the truth of God—at any cost.
A moment of consideration: These days, we are told that truth is relative, that there is no absolute truth, no anchor to keep one faithful in a constantly changing world focusing directly or indirectly on its own destruction. Just as in the anecdote, above, where a professor was promoting a toxic drink he termed wine, the message the world promotes is just as toxic in its own rights as what this academic was using to debase Christ Jesus.
How are we to discern truth from untruth, from day to day? How can we catch scammers in the act of scamming us out of money and/or property; resist shills for this or that product; be wary of medical cures which fail to live up to the medical professionals and the flagrantly false claims of the World Health Organization; and be watchful regarding academic degrees that promise a bright and prosperous future but provide skills over years of higher education, which are no longer in demand by the end of the schooling of students? These are but a few examples of the error of the world presented as fact. How can we be sure we have the truth in us, to withstand such pressures?
It is important to know the Word of God well, to remember the words of Life and apply them. Jesus IS the Truth; He embodies and applies the Truth in all of His dealings with Christian men and women, through His Holy Spirit living in us. We are to live holy lives in this unholy generation. The relationship between truth and holiness is similar to that between light and vision. Light cannot create an eye or give a blind eye vision, but it is essential to seeing. Wherever light penetrates, it dissipates darkness and brings everything into view. In a similar manner, truth cannot regenerate or impart spiritual life, but it is essential to the practice of holiness. Wherever truth penetrates, it dissipates error and reveals everything for what it really is.
The Holy Bible is true. It tells us the importance of the light we have to share with others. (Matthew 5:14-16) The light within us is important; our eyes perceive light and interpret it, and the Bible says that what our eyes see depends on our knowing the Truth. (Matthew 6:22-23) Spiritual vision is our capacity to see clearly what God wants us to do, and to see the world from His point of view. But this spiritual insight can be easily clouded. Self-serving desires, interests, and goals block that vision. Serving God is the best way to restore it. A pure eye is one that is fixed on God.
In the wilderness following His baptism, Christ was tempted by Satan in three ways:
- Turn stone into bread: Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3, ...man does not live by bread alone, but man lives be every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
- Throw Himself off the Temple peak (testing the love of the Father for Him): Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:16, ...you shall not put the Lord your God to the test.
- Satan would give Him all the world kingdoms, if Christ would fall down and worship Satan: Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:13, ...you shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve.
We discern truth versus untruth by knowing the Holy Scriptures well enough to remember and apply them to each situation that faces us, as Christ did in His earthly temptations and throughout His earthly ministry. We remember the Word of God by committing applicable and helpful verses to memory. (Remember Me - Bible memory app), and (The Bible Memory app) are two very helpful tools for hiding the words of Bible Truth within our hearts and minds. (versions for iOS and Android phones). Spend time each day reading the Bible and letting it speak to you. Spend time in prayer, listening to, as well as speaking with the Lord (Philippians 4:6-7) Walk throughout each day practising His presence, knowing His nearness (Hebrews 13:5) The Word of God applies to each moment of our lives, in sometimes direct ways and sometimes through general guidance. (John 16:13; Psalm 32:8; John 14:16,26) Remember always that we are His (we have been bought with a price) and we are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. What a joy, to follow the Way, the Truth and the Life! And to know His steadfast love at the same time!