God's Abiding Truth

I see the world being slowly transformed into a wilderness; I hear the approaching thunder that, one day, will destroy us too. I feel the suffering of millions. And yet, when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better, that this cruelty too shall end, that peace and tranquility will return once more.  ~Anne Frank

A young Jewish girl named Anne Frank witnessed much destruction before she died in the midst of extreme hatred. Yet in the middle of her holocaust, she held onto hope for something better. What about us? Do we cling to hope when everything around us screams devastation? 

Our world looks no different than the days of World War Two. Perhaps it’s worse because crowds of people use tolerance to deflect wrongs. They turn blind eyes to truth, choosing to believe lies. Rather than tear down walls of deception, people all over the world hide behind fortresses of lies. Satan, the father of lies, appears to be winning the battle of good and evil.

The collapse of truth began in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. Satan deceived God’s new creation, causing sin to enter the world. God planned a path of salvation for His people and fulfilled it through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ. Even though victory is gained through Christ Jesus, battles continue to be waged in this world.

Our modern-day world resembles the time of the Old Testament judges when a generation arose that did not know the Lord or the work He had done for the Israelites. They were plunged into darkness as they continually did what was right in their own eyes, resembling the world around them rather than living as children of God. Instead of obeying God’s truth, they acted in accordance to their own truth. They spiraled out of control into a cycle of sin. When bad things happened, they cried out to God for help. He sent a judge to lead them and for a time all was well. Then the sin cycle would begin again until another judge prevailed. This occurred for over 300 years until God granted the Israelites a king. 

For more than 300 years, the morality of the Israelites deteriorated as everyone did what was right in their own eyes. Wickedness increased as they relied on individual truths instead of the certain truth of God and His Word. Sound familiar? Is the modern era spiraling out of control into sin’s darkness like the Israelites in the time of the judges? 

Yes I believe so because truth appears relative instead of absolute. The footing of age-old foundations is crumbling as people refuse to stand firm on God’s holy Word. His Word has remained consistent for millennia. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). Yet some believers of Jesus look no different than non-believers. Many church-goers allow the changing culture to shift their belief system to popular opinion. Truths continue to change with the times as everyone does what is right in their own eyes. Is there no stability? Where is God’s truth in society?

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.  James 1:17 (NASB)

God’s holy Word answers our instability. The Father of lights, Jesus Christ, doesn’t vary or shift with the wind. His truth doesn’t fluctuate with changing ideas. He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. His Word stands the test of time. 

Yet society disregards His morals and changes the long-standing rule of law. We are literally spinning out of control from the dizziness of different “truths” that constantly change. What can we do?

We can follow Jesus’ teachings, His Truth. In one of His parables, Jesus described what happens whenever one builds either on shifting sand or solid rock. He said,

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.  And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”

When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.  Matthew 7:24-29 (NASB)

When we walk away from God’s solid Truth and choose to live in contradiction to His Word, we’ll eventually find ourselves on shaky ground, conforming to anything that feels right. Biblical history confirms the lack of a godly firm foundation during the time of the judges. The history of World War Two demonstrates how the neglect of God’s absolute Truth created the unstable ideas of a murderous madman and his followers. Our modern era is spinning out of control in a cycle of sin because everyone is doing what is right in their own eyes. In times like these, people lose hope. Only by adhering to God’s Truth can we stand firm on Christ, the solid rock.

Whose truth do you follow—the majority, your own, or God’s? Jesus is the only way, the only truth, the only life. His Word stands forever—it never changes. Find hope in Jesus and follow Him for a better way. 

The grass withers, the flower fades,

When the breath of the Lord blows upon it;

Surely the people are grass.

The grass withers, the flower fades,

But the word of our God stands forever.  Isaiah 40:7-8 (NASB)

Heavenly Father, draw us closer to you and your will for our lives. Let us plant your Word in our hearts in order to stand firm on your perfect principles. Keep our feet from slipping and may we faithfully follow you forever. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.


Reba McEntire - Back To God....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9q-08aTNh8

Prayer does not change God, but it changes the one who prays.  ~Soren Kierkegaard