I’ve seen the word truth battered around in headlines, conversations, articles, social media, and from the lips of newscasters and politicians. I fear that just as the word lie has come to have no substance or meaning in those same avenues of correspondence, truth will simply represent the political viewpoint of the person saying it. And maybe even the person hearing it.
Lies divide! Truth unifies!
I’ve even seen the chilling term “Ministry of Truth” referring to something that might be established by Congress. That should scare us all! It’s straight out of Orwell’s book 1984 and here is a description: The Ministry of Truth (Newspeak: Minitrue) is the ministry of propaganda. As with the other ministries in the novel, the name Ministry of Truth is a misnomer because in reality it serves the opposite: it is responsible for any necessary falsification of historical events. However, like the other ministries, the name is also apt because it decides what "truth" is in Oceania.
Actually, the Orwellian Ministry of Truth is where lies are manufactured as explained here: “The Ministry of Truth reflects the Party's belief that power is the only truth and that those with the power can make the "truth" into whatever they choose.”
So please do not be fooled when you hear the words “ministry” and “truth” used together by the government!
And please do not repeat or believe anything you haven’t researched or heard directly to be true. I always question: “sources said” or “someone said” or “I read” or especially “I heard on the news!”
We need to be wise and confirm everything before repeating it or responding to it.
My daughter was watching a speech with my 12-year-old granddaughter. A short time later, they heard a newscaster completely misrepresent the speech and even my young granddaughter caught the lie and told her mom, “That’s not what he said.” Then she repeated the exact words used in the speech.
It’s not that hard for us to discern the truth if even a young child recognizes a distortion. But we need to take the time and effort to know the truth ourselves.
The Lord wants us to live by His truth.
Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32
Jesus will help us not only know the truth but share the truth. People are confused, scared, and divided today because they’re presented with mountains of conflicting information and they don’t know who or what to believe. Many will look to those of us who profess to be Christians to help them wade through the information overload.
Our first obligation is to help them draw closer to Jesus and His Words so they can make their own determination of truth. We need to be sure we’re not adding to their confusion. The Bible is clear that it’s up to the church to bring unity and truth to as many as we can in the time we’re given.
Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. 13 This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.
14 Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. 15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. Ephesians 4:11-15 NLT
I hope you have a daily Bible reading plan for 2021 because God's Word is your ONLY source of truth and unity in a culture of lies and division.
I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 NLT
About His Work with you,
Janet
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