Is Telling the Truth Important to You?

Compelled to Tell the Truth

Barbara Henderson

In today’s world the truth and nothing but the truth seems to be only important to those attempting to discredit, change, and ridicule the actual pure truth.  Everywhere, from the highest authority to the lowliest human being, the truth will always be ‘spun’ in a particular direction. It is adjusted in a way to make someone look better than they are and someone else look worse than they are.  It is frustrating to those who love the truth.  Ultimately, the truth makes life simpler for everyone. If the unvarnished truth is told in the first place there is no need to revise statements or even remember anything except the truth.  The truth is important to everyone, but it is especially important to Christians.  Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life.  No one gets to God the father except through Jesus Christ the Son.  We are compelled to speak this truth because:

1.  People are in danger of hell.  If they don’t hear the truth about the situation how will they come to understand their danger? How will they come to understand that they personally have a choice. The power to cast a soul into hell belongs to God Almighty alone.  God has given His authority to no earthly spokesperson, teaching, or so-called holy book.  Scripture is very clear on that matter.  The truth of the Bible is far more important than ‘getting along’ with those who either reject the Bible and its teachings, those who wish to blend the Bible teachings into other theologies, or those who have never heard the gospel preached or taught.  People are still in danger of hell. The most compassionate thing for those who know the truth is to tell the truth.

2.  Telling the truth reinforces the truth.  Those who know the truth need to hear it often.

3.  There is danger of error slipping in when Christians don’t know the truth.  The danger is always with us because Satan (or his followers) is always with us.

4.  The baton of faith must be passed on to the next generation.  It begins in the family, but it is not excluded to the family. 

5.  The truth compels Christians to speak.  The mouth of a true believer will ultimately not be silenced. 

6.  God requires us to speak the truth. Obedience demands that we speak up.

7.  The world is full of deceivers.  They speak lies boldly.  Sometimes they speak lies not only boldly, but also knowingly and willingly.  The balance to their lies is for Christians to tell  the truth. 

8. Unsound doctrine leads to unsound living.  When even small things that offend God are accepted as permissible in a church, then members of that church will incorporate those things into their personal lives.  When liberal lines are drawn between avoiding certain things of the world and accepting others, people will take it seriously and actually do what they want to believe is allowed.  I won’t get into immodest clothing, gutter language, or alcohol use, because I think these things stem at least in part from unsound doctrine.  Unsound doctrines being taught currently include errors in the Bible, accepting traditions of man above scripture, new ‘revelations’, and results prove success.  I especially hate the ‘results prove success’ error because it leads people to believe that if a church is growing that it is automatically doing the will of God and preaching the truth.  The social gospel currently being preached by so many churches sets transforming society above preaching the absolute truth of scripture.  I would ask these so-called preachers of the gospel to please admit they are not working for Jesus Christ and call themselves something else. Surely they could come up with some sort of noble sounding name, get tax exemptions, and openly adore their god of humanism without dragging Christianity through the sewer with them.  Of course they aren’t going to do that because they are undercover operatives for their father the devil. Their job is to make their false gospel appealing to whatever people are wanting.  For those who want earthly prosperity there is the prosperity gospel.  For those seeking a path to God that doesn’t involve the work of Christ at Calvary, there is the salvation by works gospel.  Entrance into heaven through rituals and traditions is offered in many varieties, so people wanting to get to heaven that way have lots of choices in the actual rituals or traditions from which to choose.

9.  Error builds on error.  It is sort of like fungus and mold growing on top of rotten vegetables.  It is not trivial when you are trying to find an edible potato, and there is no trivial error in doctrine. 

Charles Spurgeon said, ‘Discernment is being able to tell the difference in right and almost right.’ (paraphrased).    

10.  Christians should find themselves compelled to live the truth in addition to being compelled to tell the truth.  The honest truth can be spoken continually, but it will have little effect when the speaker is obviously not living according to what he/she is speaking.  I have seen some people who are able to speak the truth live utterly degenerate lives.  It is almost as though they believe they have the right to break a few rules because of their ‘service’ to the Lord.  They are reprehensible, and the damage they do is incalculable. It is blasphemy to claim to be a Christian and not act like a Christian!

The world in which we live is becoming more and more anti-Christian/anti-Christ.  I believe part of the nature of a practicing Christian is to want peace.  We want peace with those around us.  We want world peace.  Confrontation is hard, because confrontation is definitely not peaceful!  The Bible actually says, ‘Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.’ (Psalm 34:13)  Christians need to remember that this is speaking within the context of things allowed and dis-allowed in the instructions given to us in the Bible. 

Ezra 9:12 gives us definite instructions when it comes to actually joining with those who are not followers of God Almighty. It says, ‘Now therefore give not your daughters unto their sons, neither take their daughters unto your sons, nor seek their peace or their wealth for ever: that ye may be strong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children for ever.’  The Bible could not be any clearer on this subject. Christians are not to join with the ungodly even though they live amongst them!

However, God understands that we live in the world and in places that are certainly not considered godly.  In Jeremiah 29:7 we are told, ‘And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.’

We are not to become part of the world.  We are not to join ourselves with the enemies of Christ in order to make peace or to do good or to make our own lives easier.  We are to seek the peace of the place where we live, because when there is peace in our land, we the people of the land are also at peace.  The best possible way to seek peace where we live is to pray that individuals including national leaders personally make peace with God Almighty.  We are also to speak out regarding Jesus Christ and the peace that passes understanding through Christ alone.  Obviously, those who reject Christ are not going to be peaceful with those who choose Him!  However, peace between Christians and non-Christians based on ‘mutual likes and things in common’ is not true peace.  It is a prelude to war.

Those who follow false religions are always someone other than meets the eye.  The leaders especially are going to talk one way and live another way.  You cannot trust them.  They do not love the truth.  They love their own way.  To these people you should speak the truth when the opportunity arises.  However, it is not your job to become associated with them in any way other than evangelism. Don’t hang around with them in the hope of converting them. Don’t listen to their counsel because they are not wise.  Don’t join with them in ‘worthy causes’.  In other words, we are not to attempt to find common ground with false teachers and religions; because there is no common ground.  Finding common ground with Christianity and false religions is an attempt to find commonalities between heaven and hell.  There are no commonalities.  It is also cowardly.  Fear of peer censure is not an excuse to go along with what God clearly states as wrong.  The desire to ‘get a job done’ or ‘make a difference’ on your own time table is not a valid reason to join forces with someone attempting to accomplish something that sounds like a good idea to you. 

Never forget the first book of Psalms.  The blessed man does not ‘walk in the counsel of the ungodly’ – he doesn’t even go near enough to them to pay attention to what they are saying.  If they are scorning God Almighty there is nothing worthwhile that they can say.  There is not ‘good in all religions’.  All people are not ‘going to the same place’. The blessed man ‘does not stand in the same place as sinners’ – he doesn’t stop to chat with them.  And the blessed man never sits down with the scornful.’  He never gets comfortable with the enemies of Christ!

Up to this point all of history from creation to this very hour and second could be called a ‘prelude to the final battle’.  We are not going to change the fact that Armageddon is coming, but when that mighty and horrible day of battle arrives, there will be specific individuals on God’s side who are there because specific Christians spoke honestly and freely when an opportunity to tell the truth arose. Every soul is important to God. Every Christian is important to God.  The actions of every individual believer matters to God and they matter to those they know, love, and even those they only know causally.  How we behave matters.  What we say matters.  We are compelled to tell the truth because the truth matters. 

Thank you for reading my article.

Barbara

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What is Your Favorite Line in the Lord's Prayer?

What is Your Favorite Line in the Lord’s Prayer?

Barbara Henderson

I know some of you will immediately either have a favorite line, or you will want to tell me that it isn’t really the Lord’s prayer.  It is the ‘Disciples Prayer’, or the ‘Model Prayer’.  For the point of this article you can name the prayer whatever you feel is correct.  Regardless of what we call it, it is an incredibly important passage of scripture.  Matthew 6:9-13 gives us a wonderful marvelous example of how we are to pray.

.  : Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

10 Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

11 Give us this day our daily bread.

12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

(Don’t you sometimes wonder how God can say so much with such a small number of words?)

Whether you are reading these words or have them memorized, I am sure you know what a wonderful gift this example prayer is to all mankind.  Every phrase is precious and filled with comfort and hope.

It is marvelous that Christians can call Almighty God ‘Our Father’.  It is proper to hallow His name.

To pray ‘they kingdom come’ is exciting and peaceful at the same time. 

‘They will be done in earth as it is heaven’ reminds us that God knows what to do all the time.

‘Give us this day our daily bread’ is probably the line most fervently prayed most of the time. 

I love the ‘forgive us debts,’ but the part that says ‘as we forgive our debtors’ is harder to love. 

And then the last part, ‘lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,’ covers everything regarding safety, health, prosperity, and the welfare of our souls.

‘Thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory for ever.  Amen.’  This reminds us that God has the power, the authority, the resources, and everything else He needs to provide for us and keep us from falling.

So, what is your favorite part?  As it turns out ‘thy will be done’ is my favorite line.  I think people in general are somewhat afraid of this line because it seems to bring thoughts of suffering.  Christ prayed ‘not my will but thine’ before He went to the cross. And sometimes God’s will takes one of His children through some horrific suffering, pain, and sorrow.  On the other hand, God’s will often takes His children to wonderful blessings.

Jeremiah 29:11-13  says, ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

12. Then shall ye call upon Me, and ye shall go and pray unto Me and I will hearken unto you.

13.  And ye shall seek Me and find Me when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.’

It is never God’s will that one of His children is hurt or suffers simply for the sake of hurting them or causing them to suffer.  There is always a purpose and a plan in what we are going through.  I will be the first to admit that in the midst of a trial I seldom see the purpose, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a purpose. 

God know how to give good gifts.  Luke 11:9-13 says,

‘9.  And I say unto you: ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

10.  For every one that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

11. “If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?

12.  Or if he shall ask for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?

 13. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the holy Spirit to them that ask Him?”

2 Chronicles chapter 20 tells the story of a mighty army advancing against Jerusalem.  The king proclaimed a fast and begged God for help.  And he said, ‘neither know we what to do, but our eyes on upon thee.’

That seems to be the state in which many of us find ourselves on an almost constant basis.  Yes, we do know to live within the boundaries set by God, but we often don’t know exactly how to respond to particular situations.  We just don’t know what to do.  That is the time we look to God and say, ‘Thy will be done.’ 

Bless the Lord; He does know what to do all the time.  There are many things we don’t know how to do, but we trust others to know how to do them.  We don’t worry about it.  Most of the time we don’t even think about it.  Specialties include doctors, dentists, plumbers, electricians, mechanics, bakers, carpenters, pilots, programmers, and many other professions.  At some point we trust the professionals to do specific jobs for us and to keep things running smoothly in general.  These people know what to do.  They know how to get the job done.  We don’t have to give them instructions.  In fact, if we do attempt to give them instructions we usually just slow down progress.  We also trust people who may not be called a specific professional to get a job done.  These are just people who get things done.  You simply delegate authority and let them worry about the details. What a relief that can be!  How much more should we be willing to turn things over to God and let Him take care of the details?

When we pray ‘They will be done’ we are acknowledging that God actually knows what to do in all situations and in particular situations.  Finally – Someone knows what to do.

We are acknowledging that God knows how to give good gifts to His children.  That means to each of His precious children.  His will brings you to the best outcome with the least amount of stress possible.  Obviously this doesn’t prevent trouble. 

Job 14:1 “Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble.

Psalm 90:10 ‘The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off and we fly away.’

When we pray ‘Thy will be done’ we are taking the path of least resistance as we go through this life.  We are also taking the best path.  Our perfect world is not on this earth, so no matter what we pray perfection is not going to be the outcome.  However, there will be blessings and joy.  It makes very good sense to surrender our lives to God’s will.  He loves us, and He doesn’t make mistakes. 

Rejoice in the Lord – He makes no mistakes (Ron Hamilton)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iJLgasicRI

 God never moves without purpose or plan

 When trying His servant and molding a man.

 Give thanks to the LORD though your testing seems long;

 In darkness He giveth a song.

I could not see through the shadows ahead;

 So I looked at the cross of my Savior instead.

 I bowed to the will of the Master that day;

 Then peace came and tears fled away.

Now I can see testing comes from above;

 God strengthens His children and purges in love.

 My Father knows best, and I trust in His care;

 Through purging more fruit I will bear.

O Rejoice in the LORD

 He makes no mistake,

 He knoweth the end of each path that I take,

 For when I am tried

 And purified,

 I shall come forth as gold.

‘Soul Wars Trilogy’ books one and two are now available on Kindle.  I need six kind reviews.  Thank you.

Are you an 'Outstanding' Christian?

The Outstanding Christian

by Barbara Henderson

All people have at least some desire to ‘stand out’ from among the crowd.  They want to be seen as smarter, prettier, more handsome, wealthier, more intelligent, more gifted, more talented, and generally just better than average.

I have news for Christians.  ALL Christians are outstanding.  Some just stand out in different ways than others.  I want to mention 3 types of ‘Outstanding Christians.’

Number one are the Christian who stand out because of their obnoxious, overbearing, bossy, demanding, ‘holier than thou’ attitude.  They are quick to call other Christians names like lazy, ignorant, backslidden, and even claim to know others are headed for hell because they attend the wrong Christian church, or haven’t been ‘baptized correctly’, or they are engaging in sinful activities such attending movies or wearing makeup.  These Christians are worse than legalists.  They follow to the letter the things that can be seen on the outside. They add their own brand of morality to the rules God has set. I have personally known women who will not wear makeup or cut their hair, yet they make gossip and dissension their daily business.  I have known men who demand utter submission from their wives and children, yet they themselves have not submitted anything of their own life to the God who created them.  There are Christians who live in the pride of what they have accomplished and do not give God the glory.  They are quick to condemn other Christians in need, or who are facing illness or trouble as ‘out of the will of God’.  They are without humility.  They see the small sin in their brother’s life, but ignore giant sins in their own lives.  They are proud, without thankfulness, without forgiveness for others, without humility, and without repentance because they cannot see their own sins.  They would not help a brother or sister in need if their lives depended upon it, because they see God as punishing those in trouble.  In fact, they condemn those in need as though they themselves were without sin or need. They are hypocrites.

My son Jay defines a hypocrite like this; ‘A hypocrite is someone who – seeing an illness or trial in YOUR life says, ‘well – there is sin in you life and God is punishing you.’  BUT, when they face the SAME illness or trial themselves they say, ‘The devil is persecuting me.  That proves I am doing the will of God.’

Believe me, these Christians are really outstanding.  They stand out in any crowd.  They make God sick.  They make fellow Christians sick, and they make the whole non-Christian population despise God’s gift of salvation.

Number two are the worldly Christians.  They are so much like the unsaved that they blend in completely until someone finds out they are Christians.  Then the people of the world say, ‘What is the point of Christianity?  It requires nothing.  It is no different than anything else.’  In a world constantly seeking satisfaction through something ‘new’ and ‘different’ worldly Christianity has no appeal.  The worldly Christian is a beacon leading nowhere.  They are lukewarm at very best.  They make God vomit.

Number three are the Christians who show their heart felt commitment to God in how they live their personal lives.  They apply Bible teachings to personal actions.  God can use such people to turn the tide of battles, both great and small.

I just watched ‘The Patriot’ again.  Toward the end, the armies of the Colonies are beginning to retreat.  The hero, seeing defeat as unacceptable, raises up the flag of the United States, and runs against the tide of the retreating army shouting ‘HOLD THE LINE’.  The soldiers stop to watch him run in what appears to be the wrong way.  Then some turn and began to follow him.  Then the entire army turns around, charges up the hill, and wins a decisive victory.

My Christian brothers and sisters, today is such a day for Christianity.  Christians are running in retreat instead of charging to victory.  The armies of darkness are crushing the freedom to worship our God and our King throughout the world.  ‘Outstanding Christian’ types one and two are aiding and abetting the enemy!   America, the beautiful, bastion of freedom, is gasping for breath.  Yet there is hope.  Out God is a God of victory, not of defeat.  He is willing to help those who are willing to change their lives to suit God.  Will you be such a Christian?  Will you be a light that leads the lost to God?  Just by claiming the name of ‘Christian’ you have become an ‘Outstanding Christian’.  The question is , ‘Which type of Christian will you be?’

Will you be:

a Christian that stands out as obnoxious? (type one)

a Christian that stands out as nothing special? (type two)

a Christian who charges up the hill to victory? (type three)

Whether you make a choice or not, you will fall into one of those categories. 

To be a ‘Type 3 Outstanding Christian’ begins when a Christian becomes willing to change what is bothering God in his or her own life.  Just do a quick self check and see if you find pride, lack of thankfulness to God and forgiveness to others,  gossip in the place of help, lies in the place of truth, lack of honor where honor is due, wicked thoughts in place of Godly thoughts, or lack of reverence and awe for the God who created you.

The Type 3 Outstanding Christian wants to please God more than they want anything else.   Hebrews 13:16 says, ‘but to do good and communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. 

In the movie ‘The Patriot’, the hero charging up the hill wasn’t really looking to see who followed him.  He was looking forward to victory.  That is what every Type Three Christian needs to do.  Christians need to fix their eyes on Victory in Christ Jesus our Lord.  They look beyond the day and even the years.  Type Three Christians understand they are not playing a ‘numbers’ game.

Let Christians be like the Psalmist in Psalm 57:6-7 who says, ‘They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves.  Selah   (7) My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.

Type Three Christians must remember that those who seek our destruction will dig a well for their own destruction.  Fix your heart on God.  Sing and praise God louder than the doubt that troubles your mind.

Isaiah 50:7 says, ‘For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.

Isaiah 49:23b says, ‘for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.’

Actually, in the movie the hero who charged up the hill was not really going at a fast pace.  He was exhausted.  He had short legs and probably couldn’t run fast even when he wasn’t ‘plum tuckered out’.  (‘plum tuckered out’ is mountain folk talk meaning really really tired.)  The point is, he went forward against the tide in spite of physical exhaustion and without visible hope of victory or making a difference.  The hero gave his all to getting up the hill to victory.   That is the job of Christians today.  Ignore what you see; fix your gaze on Calvary’s Lamb; go forward to victory.

The song for this article is ‘Follow On’. It takes a Type Three Christian to follow Jesus. If you are following Jesus – you are always going in the right direction! 

God bless you.  Thank you for reading my article.

Barbara Henderson

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http://cyberhymnal.org/htm/f/o/followon.htm
Down in the valley with my Savior I would go,
Where the flowers are blooming and the sweet waters flow;
Everywhere He leads me I would follow, follow on,
Walking in His footsteps till the crown be won.

Refrain

Follow! follow! I would follow Jesus!
Anywhere, everywhere, I would follow on!
Follow! follow! I would follow Jesus!
Everywhere He leads me I would follow on!

Down in the valley with my Savior I would go,
Where the storms are sweeping and the dark waters flow;
With His hand to lead me I will never, never fear,
Danger cannot fright me if my Lord is near.

Refrain

Down in the valley, or upon the mountain steep,
Close beside my Savior would my soul ever keep;
He will lead me safely in the path that He has trod,
Up to where they gather on the hills of God.

Refrain