Tag: #Jesus Is Truth #Resisting Satan #Christ-centered #Christianity

Resisting the Father of Lies

With so many lies in the world, how can we ever know what is Truth, or if there even is truth? Jesus Christ assured us that He is the Truth, that He tells the truth, that we can believe Him. He backed up His comments through miracles of healing, making it clear that no one could do what He did because no one else was God. His most dramatic Truth was predicting the manner and timing of His crucifixion and resurrection from the dead, and then His rising from the dead to live forever. We can believe Him; we can rest our salvation on His truth.

“This is why I was born and came into the world: to tell people the truth.” (John 18:37 NCV)

“You belong to your father, the devil. … When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44 NIV)

“Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you.” (James 4:7b-8a NLT)

Find blog posts at LoveAndGrace … tweets at Twitter.

Comments welcomed. Let’s share what God says to His saints.

Please join us for Prayer and Questions at the end of the devotion.

THERE ARE SO MANY LIES IN THE WORLD TODAY.

They come at us from all angles, from people who think we should trust and from people we hardly know, from people in authority and from people close to us.

Sometimes, they mean to lie, knowing full well they mean to deceive; other times, they 66.Web_Of_Liesbelieve the lies they’re telling and so deceive  themselves along with us.

Sometimes, those lies hurt; other times, they can be dismissed.

But with all of those lies, how can we ever know the truth? Do we even believe there is a truth? Or is everything we believe “relevant,” acknowledged only in relation to something else?

For those who have come to hear the voice of Jesus Christ and to accept Him into their hearts as their personal Lord and Savior, there is comfort from the world’s lies.

Jesus is Truth. We can believe in Him.

+++

THE BIBLE TESTIFIES to the Truth.

Jesus told His accusers that it was to “bear witness to the truth” that He came into the world. (John 18:37) He assured His disciples and believers down the ages that the Father’s “words are truth.” (John 17:17) He announced that He, Himself, is the “way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6)

He prefaced His promises with promises of truth: “Verily, I say unto thee,” or “Truly, I tell you,” depending on the English translation. While the words differ among translations, the message is the same: “Listen to Me. I am telling you the Truth. You can, and should, believe Me.”

+++

THERE IS A SECOND WAY Jesus tell us the truth: He show us.

66.Jesus_Changes_EverythingTelling is one thing: it points to the way. Showing demonstrates the truth of the promise.

Jesus shows us the Truth by changing our lives.

The Bible is clear that when we accept Jesus’ call to forgive our sins and captain our souls, He sends the Holy Spirit to begin a complete makeover. The Spirit will convict us of sin, show us with increased clarity the truthfulness of Jesus’ claims, and strengthen us to withstand opposition.

+++

THE TESTIMONY OF CHANGED LIVES is the greatest tribute to the truthfulness of God’s Word.

There is no need for argument or debate, no quibbling over doctrinal disputes, no questioning the point of it all. Changed lives leads to a personal testimony that leads to sharing the Gospel (or the Good News) with the rest of the world.

Jesus urged us to let our light shine brightly in this darkened world so that men would see our *good works* and, recognizing the change in our lives, give the glory to the Heavenly Father. (Matthew 5:16)

Our commission is to live the Gospel daily in every situation, praying constantly, and letting the Holy Spirit bring His fruit to bear in our lives. That  fruit is described as “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23 ESV)

+++

66. God-never-made-a-promise-that-was-too-good-to-be-trueSO, WHAT IS HAPPENING IN YOUR WORLD?

Are you finding it easy or difficult to believe in the miracle of life that God offers us through Jesus Christ? Does it seem *too good to be true*? Does it seem to be a *fanciful tale* or a *crutch for the weak*?

Are you so ready to close your mind to the possibility that He is, actually, who He says He is? That He is God. Are you so ready to close your mind to the life-changing transformations you may have seen in someone close to you — possibly a family member, maybe a friend or a neighbor or even a co-worker?

Are you so ready to ignore His offer to give you rest from your labors, to offer a salve for your troubles, to give you answers to those questions that torment you?

Jesus is the answer to the “whys” of life, even when we cannot understand them in this life, at this time. His ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:9), so, of course, we no more can understand everything He does than a hamster can understand what we do.

+++

WHEN THE LIES OF THE WORLD envelope you, and you start to question and doubt and wonder and take that short road to total disbelief, could you hold on a moment and take stock of what’s really going on in your life? 

Jesus told us that those who disbelieve Him are sons (and daughters) of the devil, that 66.Mean_kidsSatan is real, and Satan is the *father of lies.* He is the “great deceiver.” His sole purpose is to take you from God’s embrace and throw you into the garbage.

He does not want you as Jesus wants you; he just doesn’t want Jesus to have you. Satan is like the mean kid who will upturn your lunchbox just to see your sandwich fall to the ground; he doesn’t actually want to eat lunch with you.

Jesus, on the other hand, will help you pick up your sandwich and give you a new one that tastes much better than the old one … and, if you’ll let Him, He’ll sit at lunch with you.

He’ll be your friend.

So, there’s your choice. Believe Satan and live a life filled with lies or believe Jesus and share in the Truth.

Jesus said it is the “truth” that will “set you free.”

Pretty easy choice.

+++

PRAYER: Our Father, our gracious and loving Father, we bless You and  praise You for Your 44. Cross_on_Biblefaithfulness, for Your loving kindness, for Your mercy. We thank You for showing us that Jesus is the Truth, while Satan, the enemy, is a lier and a deceiver. There is no truth in him. Remove the scales from our eyes and those You have asked us to pray for that we may see the lies for what they are and the Truth that is waiting for us to grasp. In Jesus’ loving name we pray. Amen

QUESTIONS:

  1. What, if anything, holds you back from accepting the call of Jesus to let Him into your life? Are you afraid He’ll want you to give up something dear to you? Is it your alcohol or drug abuse? your temper? your love for money? your prideful arrogance? your affair with a co-worker?
  2. How can this meditation help you make a decision for Jesus Christ? Would you like prayer? Can you use the comments section to ask for prayer from the editor and other readers?
  3. What issues are you struggling with that you would prayerfully ask this meditation to address?
%d bloggers like this: