Life Matters - May 17, 2023

“To avoid criticism, do nothing, say nothing and be nothing.” Elbert Hubbard’s one-liner is “tongue in cheek” because no matter how much we may try to stay out of anything controversial, our action (or inaction) will give us away. If we see our neighbor’s house is on fire and we “do nothing” we become complicit in their suffering. If another is being unfairly defamed and we “say nothing” we are in agreement. If we endeavor to “be nothing” we may be partly right because apart from what Jesus our Savior does in us we really are nothing. But (and this is a life-changing “but”) with Christ in us the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27) we can do all things through Christ which strengthens us. (Philippians 4:13) With Christ in us we can take part in the “all things” of saving souls, by speaking the Truth and thus be as a “city set on a hill that cannot be hid.” (Matthew 5:13) “Who lighteth a candle and putteth it under a bushel?” (basket), Jesus asks and then continues, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16) But in doing so we are not to be man-conscious, but God-conscious, as Jesus continues to instruct us farther on in the same sermon, recorded for us in Matthew chapters 5-7. To deny the power of Christ is to deny Him and will have eternal consequences. (II Timothy 3)  

Truth is in jeopardy these days. Alan Bloom saw it and wrote The Closing of the American Mind, published in 1987. Dave Breese saw it and gave us the history of the dismantling and continual discarding of truth as objective reality in Seven Men Who Rule the World from the Grave, published in 1990. From the befuddled brain of Soren Kierkegaard came thoughts about truth that were so befuddled that they befuddled even him though he went on to write those thoughts that have gone on to befuddle higher education curriculums years later, until now we hear expressions such as “my truth” “his truth” “your truth” and so on as though truth has a fluidity subjective to one’s thoughts and reasonings about it. Truth is objective in that it has an object, a higher law that determines what it is and what it is not. Soren Kierkegaard himself admitted his own confusion, so it does seem as if those following his doctrine would rather stay confused, because the truth is too uncomfortable. But the truth about falsehood will eventually overtake even the most comfortable and relaxed in it as the unbelieving, with the fearful, the abominable, the murderers, the whoremongers, the sorcerers, the idolators, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. (Revelation 21:8)  

We don’t know for sure what (except some sort of belt) that men used back in the day when men wore robes (before such a thing as Levis or Khakis etc.) to “gird up thy loins now as a man” as God challenged Job (Job 40:7) or depicted as a part of the spiritual armor in Ephesians 6 (…“having your loins girt about with truth.”) but we do know that such a girdle, belt or whatever, was used to gather up and tighten robes snugly on the men when preparing for work or battle. That belt may not seem as important for war in comparison to the sword, the shield, the breastplate, the helmet, or the shoes but if the warrior in hand-to-hand combat only tripped over himself (his loose robe) one time it could cost him his head no matter his skill in wielding everything else. And so it is that before we take up anything else we need our “lions girt about with truth” (Ephesians 6:14) We need spiritual defenses, the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith quenching the fiery darts of the wicked; we need the weapons of offence, our spiritual feet shod and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, the truth we also need our loins girt about with. “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind…” (I Peter 1:13) Lest we trip over ourselves. And lose our heads. The enemy has declared full scale war on truth. Stay girded for it.  

Life Matters!