September 20
Isaiah 33:10-36:22 | PS 64:1-10 | Prov 23:23 | Gal 5:13-26
With AI, social media, and the media it is very difficult to know or assess truth. By inserting words and surroundings that never really happened, by taking one sentence from a 20 minutes speech out of context, by stringing together words from various comments, even if loosely tied together people can create the image that they want others to think. They don't want truth, they want their version of truth. They don't want God's truth, having elevated themselves as their own gods, they want to disseminate their version of truth. It is so important to realize that life is long. Each of our histories are long, and we have all done things which we would be happy for others to see, and things which we hope no one else sees, for none of us are good or righteous (Romans 3:10-12). We read in Galatians 5:16-17, "I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish." Paul goes into a lengthy discussion in Romans 7 of often not doing those things he wants to do, but instead doing those things that he doesn't want to do. Does this make him or any of us hypocrites? No, we are merely humans, and if we have crucified ourselves with Christ and live according to the Spirit, then our actions will generally fall in line. But when we take our eyes off, we can all be guilty of doing and saying things that we are not proud of.
We must remind ourselves, that with the exception of our Messiah, Jesus, if we repent and accept His payment, then we are declared righteous (2 Corinthians 5:21). This does not mean that our actions are always righteous. Notice the words in Isaiah 35:8-10, "And a great road will go through that once deserted land. It will be named the Highway of Holiness. Evil-minded people will never travel on it. It will be only for those who walk in God's ways; fools will never walk there. Lions will not lurk along its course, nor any other ferocious beasts. There will be no other dangers. Only the redeemed will walk on it. Those who have been ransomed by the Lord will return. They will enter Jerusalem singing, crowned with everlasting joy. Sorrow and mourning will disappear, and they will be filled with joy and gladness." Notice the words redeemed and ransomed. Jesus alone, is worthy of paying our ransom, with His perfect sacrifice on the cross. Jesus, alone, can make the statement "paid in full", "it is finished" from the cross, meaning the transaction which He so selflessly accepted in the Garden of Gethsemane to take our wrath upon HImself was completed.
Jesus is not simply another option or philosophy, He is the only way. The king of Assyria did not recognize the One True God as he threatened the people of Jerusalem in Isaiah 36:18-20, "Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, “The Lord will deliver us.” Has any one of the gods of the nations delivered its land from the hand of the king of Assyria?... Who among all the gods of these lands have delivered their countries from my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem from my hand?’” Christians when walking in the Spirit will embody the fruits of the Spirit as outlined in Galatians 5:22-23, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law." Only if one abides in the entirety of God's Word can one know truth. You can't ignore certain sections because they don't fulfill your narrative. Truth is truth, and God's truth is absolute truth. It doesn't vary from generation to generation, it is not relative or situational. There will always be those, who might even appear good, but without knowing the truth, can mislead others by their words. David, a man after God's own heart, though certainly not perfect, prayed this in Psalm 64:3, "They sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their bitter words like arrows." Get off the reels, the feeds, the threads, the television, your hand held devices and pick up God's Word. Only a steady diet of this will keep you clear-minded. As we read in Proverbs 23:23, "Get the truth and never sell it; also get wisdom, discipline, and good judgment."
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: