A witness in a trial is asked to tell “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” That’s what most of us want in our relationships with others.
In Acts 5, the apostles were jailed for preaching the message of Jesus. An angel freed them and gave them God’s message, “Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.” (v. 20) This is consistent with Jesus’ words to the apostles in Matthew 28:18-20, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; teaching them to observe everything that I have taught you.”
The apostles could not compromise God’s message. They knew that preaching “all the words” could land them in jail. They could even die for preaching the whole truth. The high priest reprimanded them because “you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching (doctrine.)”
In Acts 20:27, Paul tells the elders of Ephesus, “I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.” Second Peter 1:3 says God “has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness.”
In religion today there are differences. Different churches. Different messages. Different ‘truths.’ Different ways of salvation. These differences cause confusion among honest, searching people. The apostles’ preaching left no doubt about the message. All preached the same thing. They didn’t each form their own opinions. They preached “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth” – to borrow a phrase. That’s what the world needs today. That’s what the church should be doing today. That’s what people really want to hear today.
God has not given freedom of choice in religion – except to accept or reject. He has offered what will save. If we preach it, it will get the same results in the twenty-first century as it did in the first century. People need to hear the simple message of Jesus.
It never ceases to amaze me to see the reaction of someone who has never really thought about God seriously begin to see, with an honest, open heart, the beautiful simplicity of God’s Word. We should each try to read it with that kind of freshness. Approach the Bible each time you read it as if you were reading it for the first time. Look for and appreciate the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
Proverbs 23:23 says, “Buy the truth and do not sell it.” That’s what we must do.
See you when the Saints meet, Lord willing.
Love, Tony
Weekly words of encouragement, devotional thoughts or calls to action from God's word by Tony Lalli. These posts can also be found in print weekly in the Dewey Church of Christ bulletin.
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