Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Can You Handle the Truth?

Several months ago I had to message one of my former students and ask her, "What does LMS and TBH mean?  I keep seeing these abbreviations on people's statuses and I'm apparently not cool enough to understand what they are talking about.  Can you help me out?"  Kala was super nice and didn't make me feel old or ignorant.  She kindly informed me, "LMS is 'like my status' and TBH is 'to be honest."  Once you explained that to me, these junior highers' statuses made so much  more sense to me!!!

You see, if you LMS, then I have to tell you something I think about you.  It's basically the same thing for TBH, only I would post that on my status and you would comment something you think about me.

I probably have that all wrong, but that's not the point anyway.  The whole idea is the concept of being open and honest with each other, actually telling your friends the TRUTH.  So often, we sugar coat a situation or try to avoid having to share our true feelings or revealing what we truly think about something or someone.  Honesty is hard.  It can be difficult to swallow.  BUT, it can also be freeing.

I have been reading in the gospel of John and seeing firsthand that Jesus didn't mince words.  He came right out and said what He was thinking.  He didn't care if people hated Him because of it, either.  In fact, I think He often tried to stir up people's emotions, just to reveal the truth about them.  They may have been able to hide their thoughts and ideas and feelings from each other, but their hearts and minds were laid bare before their Creator.  And when He exposed them for their falsehood and hypocrisy, the religious leaders weren't too happy with Jesus.  In deed, they came to hate and despise Him to the point that they plotted His murder.

Jesus knew His time on earth was drawing to a close, and He was doing His best to prepare His disciples for the time when He would no longer be with them.  His closest friends had committed their lives to following Jesus everywhere He went for the past three years.  They had left their families and homes and jobs.  They had dropped everything - literally - to be with Him as He traveled throughout the area, teaching and healing and turning the world on its head.  And now, Jesus tells them He is leaving them to return to His Father.  They are devastated.  Yet, Jesus promises them, "But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don't, the Advocate won't come."

Who exactly is this Advocate and what makes Him so great?

Jesus had an answer, "But I will send you the Advocate -- the Spirit of truth.  He will come to you from the Father and will testify to you about Me."

That sounds really nice, and it is.  As Jesus explains, "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate,[e] who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.... No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you... I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you."

Wonderful, the Holy Spirit will come and live with us, IN us.  He will guide us into the truth, showing us how to live for God, how to obey His commands, how to enjoy a deep, close relationship with Him day after day after day!

However, it's not all roses when you love Jesus and commit to living your life for Him.  The truth is: it's going to be hard, the hardest thing you have ever done.  Jesus doesn't hide this reality from His disciples and flat out warns them that having the Holy Spirit will set them apart from the rest of the world, "The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you."

That doesn't sound all that bad.  Oh, we're not done yet.  Can you handle the truth?  Not only we will be different, we will be HATED.  I told you the truth can be hard to swallow.
If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. 
The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, 
but you are no longer part of the world. 
I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.

But it makes sense.  
Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. (1 John 2:6)
If people hated Jesus, and we claim to love Jesus and seek to live as He did, then we too will be hated.  

Jesus knew the truth would be hard for His disciples to accept.  He somewhat encourages them, "I have told you these things so that you won’t abandon your faith. For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God. This is because they have never known the Father or me. Yes, I’m telling you these things now, so that when they happen, you will remember my warning."

He gives us plenty of advance warning.  When we decide to embark on the journey of faith, when we chose to follow God, when we lay down our hopes and dreams to allow God to accomplish His plans and purposes for us, it isn't easy.  That's just the truth of the matter.

Thank goodness Jesus wasn't done yet!  Thank goodness there is another side of the coin.  
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.

You see, the truth is that following Jesus is worth it, no matter how hard it may be, no matter the cost.  The reward is far greater than any loss we will experience here on earth as a result of our love for Jesus.  Paul knew something suffering for Jesus, and yet he was able to encourage other believers:
I once thought these things were valuable, 
but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 
Yes, everything else is worthless 
when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. 

For his sake I have discarded everything else, 
counting it all as garbage, 
so that I could gain Christ 
and become one with him. 

I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; 
rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ.
For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.

I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. 
I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death,
so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!
 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things
or that I have already reached perfection.

But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.
No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it,
but I focus on this one thing: 
Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead,
I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, 
through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

And while we are pressing on, fighting for our faith, standing up when no one else is...
When we are knocked down, persecuted, discouraged, frustrated, and want to throw in the towel...
Jesus reminds us of one final truth:
I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart
And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. 
So don’t be troubled or afraid.

That makes me think of the daily verse on my phone earlier this week, 
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. 
Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
Then you will experience God’s peace, 
which exceeds anything we can understand. 
His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. 
Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 
Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—
everything you heard from me and saw me doing. 
Then the God of peace will be with you.

As I remind myself of all the things I have just written, I have to ask myself, "Am I willing to live like this?  Am I ready to lay it all on the line for my Jesus?"

Because the truth of the matter is that it's going to be hard, very hard.

BUT, it's also so so so so so so rewarding!

So, yes, yes I am ready to live out my faith, no matter what.  But, TBH: I am really scared!

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