City Life Starter

The Word:

John 18:37-38 “Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are you a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. 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.”
Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?”…….”

John 17:17 “Sanctify them by the truth. Your word is truth.”

John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, and the light. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Rev 19:11 “Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True…”

Reflection Questions:

1.) Is truth absolute or relative? How do you know?
2.) How do you define tolerance?
3.) How do you speak the truth to someone who has their own truth?

By Heather Mattingly

The term “politically correct” is bandied about our current culture with alarming speed. How do you know if you are using “politically correct” words, or not? Or whether or not you are offending someone? The answer is: you really don’t know, and at some point, you probably have already been offended and have offended someone else.
Our Lord and Savior was not crucified on the cross because He got along with everyone and is a nice guy. He offended. He did not come to tell us – human beings, whom He created and loves with an everlasting love (Jer. 31:3) – that we can believe whatever we want and God will still accept us. No, He corrected this thought when He walked this earth by saying, “I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! ….Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division.” (Luke 12:49, 51).

We live in a dark and fallen world; this is a tenet of our faith. The Good News is that light has entered the world! But “men loved the darkness rather than the light, for their works are evil.” (John 3:19). Our Lord Jesus is the light of the world (John 14:6). Do you truly believe this? If the answer is yes, you are going to offend others. You may not be comfortable with this fact, and that is OK. But, as Pastor Chris and Kacee say often, are you willing to die to yourself and speak the truth in love to the people God has placed around you who are immersed in lies and darkness and desperately need to hear the truth, even though it will hurt? Light always hurts those in darkness (think about how your physical eyes hurt when you step out of a dark movie theatre).

How do we, as followers of Jesus Christ, proclaim Him as Truth in a culture where each individual person has his/her own individual truth? How can we practically apply this in our daily lives? Two things, and Pastor Chris also says these often:

1.) Get to the Source of Truth and stay in the Source – every day.
Are you spending time with Jesus daily? In addition to being the Light, He is also the Truth (John 14:6). It is crucial for you to know what He is saying to you. You must spend time with Him everyday, if you’re not doing so already. To not hear what He has to say to you daily is like going to battle with a weapon with no ammunition in it. How can you combat lies, especially when they’re disguised as individual truths, without knowing the absolute Truth?

2.) Moment-by-moment dependence on Holy Spirit’s guidance.
This is something that is practiced and improved over time (a great resource is “The Practice of the Presence of God” by Brother Lawrence, written in 1693). A good way to start is by taking a moment in the middle of your day to acknowledge Him and ask Him out loud, “Holy Spirit, what is the next thing You want me to do?” Or, when having a conversation with someone, ask Him in your mind, “Holy Spirit, what do You want to say?” His answer might be for you to just listen, but His answer might also be for You to speak the truth in a certain tone. Only He knows, and He made the person you are talking to, so He knows what the person needs to hear.

Again, if this scares you, that is OK. This is scary. But we were saved to be soldiers. Hebrews 11:37 tells us some of our fathers in the faith were “….stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword…..”. These are not euphemisms; these men and women suffered terrible deaths for their faith – our faith – and were found faithful to the end. Do you want to be found as faithful, no matter the cost? It starts with our words, and the Lord Jesus gives us another warning that, “….whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels.” (Luke 9:26).

Prayer

“Holy Spirit, thank You that You, the Spirit of truth (John 16:13), are living inside me, and that You are guiding me into all truth (John 16:13). I need You and ask for Your power to enable me to hear You and speak Your words. Most of all, please give me Your love. Without Your love, our world is lost. Anoint me with Your love and boldness today to speak Your word when and how You wish. I’m willing. Please show me how to be Your obedient vessel today.”