God Is The Only Witness That Ever Matters
For our appeal does not spring from error or uncleanness, nor is it made with guile; but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please men, but to please God who tests our hearts.
Every Sunday I publish yet another sermon sharing my thoughts on Scripture and how to live out the teachings of Jesus in our daily lives. I have been blessed with a loyal base of readers who enjoy reading what I have written, and I am eternally thankful for each and every one of them.
Not infrequently I am also challenged both by other Christians and by non-believers regarding the substance of what I write. I get told I am wrong. I get told my logic is faulty. I get told, in so many words, that I am a heretic and blasphemer, or that I really do not believe in Jesus Christ.
I would be lying if I claimed to be completely unfazed by such challenges. No one relishes being called a liar, or anything else which is pejorative. No one enjoys people stating publicly that they might have a major flaw in their argument.
The challenges, particularly the more aggressive ones, are uncomfortable for another reason: Doubt.
What if they are right? What if I've overlooked something crucial in Scripture?
Doubts are vicious that way. They do not let you rest easy.
If I were to guess the most common thorn in the flesh, I would say it was doubt without hesitation.
Who has not felt that pang of dread in a particular moment?
Who has not felt that tug of fear that they might not be enough, or that they might be wrong, or that they might have made a completely boneheaded mistake?
Who does not cringe at the thought of others laughing at them?
I will confess I have felt such fears, and more frequently than I would like to admit. I like being right. I hate being wrong.
Is that my ego at work? Probably. Certainly I have never been accused of being short on ego!
Yet even without ego coming into play, being right matters. Being right matters because truth matters.
We are called to bear true witness in all things. We cannot do that and say things which are wrong. If we strive to tell the truth, we must also make it our priority to have our facts straight, our thoughts organized, and our words carefully chosen.
When someone challenges a particular point of logic, or a particular assertion, the clear inference to be drawn is that we might not have our facts straight. We might not have our thoughts organized. We might not have our words carefully chosen.
Sometimes that is the case. Sometimes we get the facts wrong. Sometimes we get our thoughts jumbled. Sometimes we do not choose our words carefully.
Sometimes, however, that is not the case. Sometimes people object to what we say not because we are wrong. Sometimes people object to what we say because we are right.
How should we respond to those who are offended when we speak the truth?
I know that often I am tempted to argue and debate, to prove with additional logic and reasoning why my words are true. I know that, when I am so tempted, there is usually a bit of defensiveness involved. Insecurity and doubt drive me to prove ever more emphatically that I am in the right.
I also know that my insecurities and doubts are unjustified.
If I discover I have said something wrong, I need only make corrections. I need only update my facts, revise my reasoning, edit my words.
If I have not said something wrong, what do I need to change? Nothing.
If I have spoken the truth and it is the truth which is giving offense, there is nothing for me to fear from those who are offended.
If I have spoken the truth and it is the truth which is giving offense, there is nothing about which I should feel defensive.
If I have spoken the truth and it is the truth which is giving offense, there is nothing I need to prove.
The only question that ever matters is whether or not I have spoken the truth—and that is not a question that will ever be answered by any other than God.
God alone judges what is true and what is false.
God alone sets the marker between what is right and what is wrong.
God alone is the only witness that ever matters, no matter what we say.
If God approves of what I have said, then the mockery of men is of no consequence.
If God disapproves of what I have said, then the praise of men is also of no consequence.
Saying this is easy. Remembering this is hard. Living this is harder still.
Living this means not being defensive simply because I am challenged. Living this means having the confidence to stand on whatever facts, whatever reasoning, whatever words I have brought to bear on the topic at hand.
Living this means not getting caught up in a contest of egos, where “proving” that I speak the truth becomes more important than simply speaking the truth.
Living this means letting my testimony stand on its own, and giving others the grace and the space to make of it whatever they will.
Living this is never easy.
Yet if we are sincerely bearing true witness to the world, if we are truly committed to speaking the truth in all things, then living this is what we must do.
If we are sincerely bearing true witness to the world, if we are truly committed to speaking the truth in all things, then we must always be mindful that God is the only witness that ever matters.
My prayer this day is that I will always be filled with confidence to stand by whatever I have said, that I will always be sure that what I have said is enough. My prayer this day is that I will always remember that “winning” an argument, either online or off, is never a priority. My prayer this day is that I will always simply shrug off the mockery and the ill humor of others, that my focus will always be on God, and on speaking the truth, without worrying about what others think or say.
My prayer for you this day is that you also will always be filled with confidence to stand by whatever you have said, that you will always be sure that what you have said is enough. My prayer for you this day is that you also will always remember that “winning” an argument, either online or off, is never a priority. My prayer for you this day is that you also will always simply shrug off the mockery and the ill humor of others, that your focus will always be on God, and on speaking the truth, without worrying about what others think or say.
The only question that ever matters is whether or not we have spoken the truth—and that is not a question that will ever be answered by any other than God.
God alone judges what is true and what is false.
God alone sets the marker between what is right and what is wrong.
If God approves of what we have said, then the mockery of men is of no consequence.
If God disapproves of what we have said, then the praise of men is also of no consequence.
God is the only witness that ever matters, no matter what we say.
Very true, Peter, and your stance on this truth is one of the many reasons I admire and respect you so much.
Most people will back down and shut up, because they have their internal doubts, and, in any case, they don’t want to offend anyone. The great evil that is “cancel culture” exploits these civilized thoughts. People have been afraid to speak up, for fear of being called a horrible, offensive person, and in fear of being “cancelled”. This must never again be allowed to happen in America! We must speak our truths, and stand up for our First Amendment rights. God’s judgment is the only one that matters, and you know in your heart when you are speaking the truth.
I have confidence that if you had lived during the Middle Ages, Peter, you would have maintained publicly that the sun revolves around the earth - UNTIL you learned otherwise. Then you would have been brave enough to speak up and try to educate everyone that we were in error. You are courageous, Peter. Bless you always for being just as you are!