Journey To Truth
“The
Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as
of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth”
(John 1:14)
Last week, we looked at “Good
To Great”, by Jim Collins, a book that examines why some
companies do less well, while others become great. It was determined
that the right executive who chooses the right people will make all the
difference. And we saw last week that the Right Executive for us is
Jesus Christ.
In his book, Mr. Collins examines
honesty and openness as keys to greatness. He said, “All
good to great companies began the process of finding a path to greatness
by confronting the brutal facts of their current reality.” I’ll
second Mr. Collins’ observation and add this: DENIAL is at the center
of most human relationships.
We don’t like what happened, so we
daydream that it never occurred. Then we start pretending it didn’t,
and eventually, since it’s out of our thinking and others don’t mention
it, we start to believe it never happened. Years ago, I read the
“Steps” someone said existed in any corporate project. They included:
1) Taking the credit, 3)
Avoiding responsibility, and 4)
Assigning the blame. Similar
attitudes exist in churches, marriages, companies, and every kind of
human relationship.
One of the key reasons why people
have to “assign the blame”, is of course, because the blame might be
fixed on us. With such concerns we stop listening, because others might
say something we don’t like. Not listening becomes a habit of faulty
understanding that can make us unable to recognize the truth.
Mr. Collins spoke of companies, but
his words apply to people: He said “the
question is NOT ‘how do we motivate our people?’ If you have the right
people, they will be self-motivated. The key is to not de-motivate
them. One of the primary ways to de-motivate people is to ignore the
brutal facts of reality.” We are to be a people of truth.
Jesus Christ picked the right people
for the Kingdom of God. Many think they’re, “not good enough”, but
Jesus CHOSE you for the kingdom and it is not the other way around. He
said, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you
and appointed you…” (John 15:16). He chose you, just as you
are. He knows your mind tends to wander in prayer, and He chose you.
He knows how seldom you look to Him, and He chose you anyway.
He has all the brutal facts about
the way we are, and He CHOSE us for His Kingdom. Praise the Lord, for
He LOVES you and me! Considering that He knows everything, be honest
with Him and each other. The wonder is that He loves us, just as we
are. He IS the truth (John 14:6) and He has in mind that you will be
like Him (1 John 3:2).
I awoke in the night with memories
from the past. I could not sleep and could only pray. The incidents
really happened and I was troubled anew, feeling unqualified now,
because of what happened then. It’s OK, by the way, to have honest
doubts about yourself. That’s what it says in 2 Corinthians 13:5 – “Test
yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do
you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you,
unless you fail the test.” Look at yourself in simple honesty,
and also go to Him.
Fearlessly look at who you are. Do
you need Christ? Go to Him, tell Him so, and receive Him! Do you feel
bad? Tell Him, for “He is faithful and
righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Do you feel unworthy of Him and
His Kingdom? He said, “I did not come to call
the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:13). He knows who you are
and called you anyway.
That’s what I was reminded of in the
night. He CALLED me. Am I to say “No” to Him, because I’m not worthy?
He IS worthy, and RECEIVES those who trust in Him. Paul reminded us, “Consider
your calling… God has chosen the foolish things… the weak things of the
world… the base things… and the despised… that no man should boast
before God… Let Him who boasts, boast in the Lord” (1 Corinthians
1:25-31). It is not YOU who will get you through – It’s HIM in you, and
He is highly qualified for the task.
If He has chosen you to go speak or
to pray, or to travel somewhere near or far, or you have another call
from God – pray and trust in Him! Are you unworthy? Yes, you are. Are
you unable to complete His task? That’s true - you’re not. Take your
cares to Him. We DO fall short of the glory of God, but He will get us
through.
As in John 1:14, He came and “dwelt
among us”. He is full of “glory”
and indeed He is the “only begotten from the
Father, “full of grace and truth”.
He loves you and me, and what you can’t do, He can do in you.
We have been spending our Monday
nights in the interesting Book of Leviticus, which we are discovering is
all about Christ. It contains laws for priests and for the people; all
of whom broke His law. If you think about the Sermon on the Mount
(Matthew Chapters 5 through 7), it’s full of laws, too. We’re to pray
in a certain way; to not be anxious, not judge others, not be angry,
love our enemies, and so on. And we have ALL broken the Laws of God.
We have ALL become disqualified before Him.
But praise the Lord, for we are not
only exposed by His truth, but we are also saved by His grace. Thank
You, Lord, that You show us for what we are - Unfit for Your service,
unsuited to even live in Your Kingdom. We confess our inadequacy before
You, and understand You are calling us now. It is YOUR adequacy, not
mine, that I need. I trust in You. Where You lead me, I will follow.
In Jesus Name. Amen.
Ron Beckham, Pastor
Friday Study Ministries
www.fridaystudy.org
ron@fridaystudy.org
P.O. Box 92131
Long Beach, CA 90809-2131
"While
we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8)
