And they sing the
song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb: “Great and amazing are your deeds,
Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways,
King of the nations! Lord, who will not fear
and glorify your name? For
you alone are holy. All nations
will come and
worship before you, for
your judgments have been revealed.” Revelation
15:3-4
(NRSV)
The Revelation of Jesus Christ contains many scenes of
worship in heaven. This one has seven
angels poised to deliver the final seven plagues of judgment on earth. The angels are standing-by as martyred saints
praise God for His holiness. And that
holiness is extoled on the basis of the “justness” and “truth” of God’s
character.
The holiness of God is framed by these two powerful words, “just”
and “true”. Both of those words are
forever on trial among humans. It’s not
just that human beings doubt a truly just God; humans also accuse Him of
trickery and sadism, torturing us for sport.
If that were so, it would be the opposite of righteousness and truth.
In the final analysis it matters little what humans hold as
an opinion
of God, for God is who He is, just and true. Scripture declares he is just (righteous,
always acting within the loving confines of pure motive) and true
– always consistent with his loving nature.
An old expression I count true is you have to choose what hill you’re
willing to die-on. There are a few
things worth dying for; among them is truth.
Many years ago a man whom I did not recognize came to me
after a worship service and told me he was considering joining the church. He invited me to visit at his home that
week. We set a time and I went that next
day. Upon entering the home he welcomed
me and gave me the grand tour of his “wall of fame”. On the wall were no less than 50 pictures of
himself and important people – government officials, sports figures and well-known
preachers. Next to each picture was a
letter of commendation or certificate of completion, accreditation or high praise
from music seminars or churches where he had “run” the music program.
Having been duly informed of just what a magnificent person I
was privileged to be visiting, the man launched into his agenda for our
meeting. He told me that with all his
musical training and awards he was just what I needed. He knew our music person had left the church
and we needed his help. He told me that
he and thirteen other families had just left another church and they liked our
church; they would all be willing to join if I guaranteed that I would make him
the music director.
I could probably write a book on the feelings and thoughts
that raced through my mind at that moment.
But the one thing that stands out vividly after all these years is a
picture I had of a smoke-filled back room where booze flows, deals are cut and
careers launched. It is the place where,
political agendas are underwritten and power is wielded. It is the place where deception meets
opportunity and the truth is murdered.
I’d like to tell you I told the man to “stick it in his ear” –
but all I could think of to say was “I’ll think about it.” In reality, I think that’s what I said; I just
wasn’t at all prepared for what I saw and heard, and all I wanted to do was go
home and take a shower.
I did call the man the next day and told him I thought he had
the wrong church in mind. He muttered
something about my heritage as he slammed the phone in my ear. I never heard from him again.
Needless to say, none of the other thirteen families joined
our church either. And the only bad
feeling I had about the whole experience was I was certain that group would
join (and probably wreck) some other church.
It wasn’t hard to come to that decision; some other decisions
about truth are harder.
For You Today
You will be faced with a truth-decision today, just like any
other day in our deception-filled and fallen world.
Make sure you side with the One who is righteousness and
truth!
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