When Truth Draws Enemies Copy
When Truth Draws Enemies
Engaging in a Culture at War with God
Paul asks a timely question then and I believe a timely question today in Gal. 4:16
"Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?"
I and many people are still troubled in spirit since the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
What should be said about this? If we say too much about Charlie, then some would say we are talking too much about the man and not enough about the Lord. On the other hand, if I say nothing or too little of Charlie Kirk, then I'm not being sensitive to the anger, the sadness and the grief that many Americans feel right now particularly among Conservative Evangelical Christians.
So, I'm going to thread the needle today to share what the Lord has put on my heart.
There will be a tribute to Charlie, I want to share about the reality of evil in our world, the importance of truth and how we can engage a culture at war with God.
I suspect that what we are feeling as a nation now was very similar when President John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were assassinated in the 1960's. I've often wondered what the tone and tenor of church was like after those assassinations.
"Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?"
I and many people are still troubled in spirit since the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
What should be said about this? If we say too much about Charlie, then some would say we are talking too much about the man and not enough about the Lord. On the other hand, if I say nothing or too little of Charlie Kirk, then I'm not being sensitive to the anger, the sadness and the grief that many Americans feel right now particularly among Conservative Evangelical Christians.
So, I'm going to thread the needle today to share what the Lord has put on my heart.
There will be a tribute to Charlie, I want to share about the reality of evil in our world, the importance of truth and how we can engage a culture at war with God.
I suspect that what we are feeling as a nation now was very similar when President John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were assassinated in the 1960's. I've often wondered what the tone and tenor of church was like after those assassinations.
What makes the assassination of Charlie Kirk different is that we have technology at our fingertips to capture this horrific event in real time. Which is what happened when thousands of college students gathered on that campus with their phones recording unaware of what they were about to capture. And then once captured, they began posting to social media this horrific atrocity. People have seen something that they cannot unsee. A man brutally murdered because he loved Jesus.
Charlie loved Jesus and he loved people and let others know about his faith.
He was a sharp apologist who boldly defended his faith. He loved America and he loved people enough to speak the truth no matter how unpopular it might be. He was only controversial because his biblical views shaped his political views which confronted cultural views.
He believed in free speech and respectful dialogue but unfortunately his rights were silenced by an assassin who was too cowardly to engage him in a debate, so he murdered him instead.
To fight words with violence by killing them for what they believed or said, is not only Un-American, but also evil and demonic!
Let me tell you what is evil and demonic, the House Democrats objecting and booing prayer for Charlie's widow and kids. You can't put aside your political vitriol and pray, evil and demonic.
What's even more evil and demonic, people celebrating the murder of this man.
All of this to remind us that Satan is always at work to incite people towards evil.
Charlie loved Jesus and he loved people and let others know about his faith.
He was a sharp apologist who boldly defended his faith. He loved America and he loved people enough to speak the truth no matter how unpopular it might be. He was only controversial because his biblical views shaped his political views which confronted cultural views.
He believed in free speech and respectful dialogue but unfortunately his rights were silenced by an assassin who was too cowardly to engage him in a debate, so he murdered him instead.
To fight words with violence by killing them for what they believed or said, is not only Un-American, but also evil and demonic!
Let me tell you what is evil and demonic, the House Democrats objecting and booing prayer for Charlie's widow and kids. You can't put aside your political vitriol and pray, evil and demonic.
What's even more evil and demonic, people celebrating the murder of this man.
All of this to remind us that Satan is always at work to incite people towards evil.
Have you noticed lately that Satan is inciting people to hate Christians and Jews:
Violence toward a synagogue, church, school, the rise of antisemitism. And anti-Christian hatred in our world today. Where does it come from? It comes from the pit of Hell.
Jesus said in Matthew 5:11-12: Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
How did they persecute the prophets before them? They murdered them.
Jesus is saying to his followers, beware there are evil men who want to kill you!
John 3:19-20 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.
Since Satan was cast to the earth, there has been this war between light and darkness, between good and evil, between truth and lie. And every time that we as Christians shine the light, promote godly values and tell the truth, it will rattle the forces of evil and stir up the dominion of darkness.
Back to Galatians 4:16 - "Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?"
If you and I decide to boldly and courageously live the truth and tell the truth, we will have enemies. And it's not that we regard them as enemies, they see us as enemies. Why? Because they don't like the truth. This is what happened to Charlie. This is what we can expect in weeks to come, that people will look at truth tellers as enemies.
Paul asks this question of the churches of Galatia, because he is telling them some hard truths in his day. He doesn't want them to be offended by the truth that he is telling them, because the truth he is telling them comes from a heart of love.
Paul is saying, ""I love you enough to tell you the hard truths'
Which should always be our motivation. We should always want to speak the truth because we love people. Are you prepared to love people by speaking truth even if they dislike you or hate you for doing so?
Listen to what Jesus said in John 15:18-19 18 'If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
Jesus is being vey blunt here, the world is going to hate you for following Me.
The evil in this world can't stand the truth or its light. So, when we turn on the light and tell the truth it makes people angry, but we must be a voice for biblical truth, seasoned with grace, in this world no matter how unpopular or how offended people may be.
Violence toward a synagogue, church, school, the rise of antisemitism. And anti-Christian hatred in our world today. Where does it come from? It comes from the pit of Hell.
Jesus said in Matthew 5:11-12: Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
How did they persecute the prophets before them? They murdered them.
Jesus is saying to his followers, beware there are evil men who want to kill you!
John 3:19-20 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.
Since Satan was cast to the earth, there has been this war between light and darkness, between good and evil, between truth and lie. And every time that we as Christians shine the light, promote godly values and tell the truth, it will rattle the forces of evil and stir up the dominion of darkness.
Back to Galatians 4:16 - "Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?"
If you and I decide to boldly and courageously live the truth and tell the truth, we will have enemies. And it's not that we regard them as enemies, they see us as enemies. Why? Because they don't like the truth. This is what happened to Charlie. This is what we can expect in weeks to come, that people will look at truth tellers as enemies.
Paul asks this question of the churches of Galatia, because he is telling them some hard truths in his day. He doesn't want them to be offended by the truth that he is telling them, because the truth he is telling them comes from a heart of love.
Paul is saying, ""I love you enough to tell you the hard truths'
Which should always be our motivation. We should always want to speak the truth because we love people. Are you prepared to love people by speaking truth even if they dislike you or hate you for doing so?
Listen to what Jesus said in John 15:18-19 18 'If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
Jesus is being vey blunt here, the world is going to hate you for following Me.
The evil in this world can't stand the truth or its light. So, when we turn on the light and tell the truth it makes people angry, but we must be a voice for biblical truth, seasoned with grace, in this world no matter how unpopular or how offended people may be.
If we love people, we will care more about their souls than our own personal popularity!
Do we really believe the words of Jesus in John 8:32?
32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’
Because if we do, we must never shrink back from declaring the truth nor should we ever apologize for the truth. Because we want people to be free from the bondage of sin and death, free from shame, from guilt, from addiction, from identity confusion, from every sinful chain that shackles people.
Jesus said in John 8:36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed
We should want freedom for every soul! So, let's tell the truth and be bold about it!
We must be a voice for biblical truth now more than ever!
Jesus before Pilate, what is truth?
Jesus said in John 18:37 For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son[a] from the Father, full of grace and truth
Jesus is the personification of truth. He is the objective standard of truth. Which means if I am going to follow Jesus, I'm going to follow His truth and I'm going speak His truth as it relates to Sexuality, Marriage, Divorce, managing material things, how you raise kids, how you speak, business practices, as it relates to everything!
The Book of Life is the Word of God!!
So, when God determines the things that are right and wrong, and we come under the Lordship of Jesus, then Jesus is our objective moral standard through whom we evaluate everything in our world.
It's all about Jesus!
But for someone who doesn't know Jesus, what is their objective moral standard? It is Self, Self is God, a very subjective moral standard. "It's all about me."
And people without Jesus will say nonsensical things like, "My truth, your truth."
You only say that when you have no objective moral standard by which to determine what truth is!
When you step forward as a follower of Christ and speak about what is right and wrong, truth versus falsehood, good versus evil, as God defines them, it will inevitably confront and convict those who have placed themselves on the throne as their own god. It will rub them the wrong way, and that’s okay. Our calling is to remain bold and unapologetic in proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ. If they need to hear it, where else will they hear it? As someone once said, you may be the only Bible someone ever reads.
Be the light and life of Jesus even when it irritates, even when people hate you, even if people want to kill you. Don't shrink back, be bold for the Glory of God!
Denzel Washington said it best, yes, the actor, and yes, the licensed minister, "Some people will never like you because your spirit irritates their demons."
1) Love Jesus and Love People More Than You Love Your Life
Paul said in Philippians 1:20-21 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
That was not a death wish, Paul was saying that as long as God gives me breath, I want to be fruitful for the kingdom of God. So, it's all good whether he lived or died, he was going to his part in advancing the kingdom of God. But if I'm taken early or late in life, it will be that much better to be with Him. It's a win-win.
Death is not the end for the believer it's just a change of address!
We have to love Jesus and love people more than we love our own lives and we can't let evil or fear intimidate us. Be bold and courageous in loving others into the kingdom.
That was not a death wish, Paul was saying that as long as God gives me breath, I want to be fruitful for the kingdom of God. So, it's all good whether he lived or died, he was going to his part in advancing the kingdom of God. But if I'm taken early or late in life, it will be that much better to be with Him. It's a win-win.
Death is not the end for the believer it's just a change of address!
We have to love Jesus and love people more than we love our own lives and we can't let evil or fear intimidate us. Be bold and courageous in loving others into the kingdom.
2) Do Not Make Idols Out of Men
Charlie Kirk or anyone else living or not. Don't make idols of men but do let their lives inspire you to a deeper walk with Christ. That should be true of everybody If more people are drawn to Charlie more than to Christ, Charlie would say I have failed.
In Acts 14, when Paul and Barnabas healed a man crippled from birth, the people wanted to treat them as gods and even offer sacrifices to them. But Paul quickly stopped them, saying, we are mere men, like you, and we bring the good news that you should turn from these vain things to a living God.
Don’t idolize people, worship the Lord.
In Acts 14, when Paul and Barnabas healed a man crippled from birth, the people wanted to treat them as gods and even offer sacrifices to them. But Paul quickly stopped them, saying, we are mere men, like you, and we bring the good news that you should turn from these vain things to a living God.
Don’t idolize people, worship the Lord.
3) Be Bold Ambassadors for Christ
I want to address this to the younger generation but it's true of all of us.
But my heart goes out to the younger generation, many have felt stunned and shocked by what had happened, and they should, it is a stunning and shocking thing. But my encouragement to you and all of us is to be bold ambassadors for Christ, unashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
That is your charge, young people, be bold for Jesus Christ!
Paul writing to the Ephesians from a prison cell -- (6:19-20) and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak
Paul was asking them to pray that he would be a bold ambassador for Christ until his dying breath!
Be fearless and bold to the glory of God!
Stand unashamed!
Step forward with confidence!
Face fear with faith and courage!
But my heart goes out to the younger generation, many have felt stunned and shocked by what had happened, and they should, it is a stunning and shocking thing. But my encouragement to you and all of us is to be bold ambassadors for Christ, unashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
That is your charge, young people, be bold for Jesus Christ!
Paul writing to the Ephesians from a prison cell -- (6:19-20) and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak
Paul was asking them to pray that he would be a bold ambassador for Christ until his dying breath!
Be fearless and bold to the glory of God!
Stand unashamed!
Step forward with confidence!
Face fear with faith and courage!
Charlie Kirk was interviewed by a podcaster recently and he asked this question of Charlie, 'If everything goes away, what do you want to be remembered for the most?"
Charlie said, "I want to be remembered most for the courage of my faith."
I pray all of us would want to be remembered for the courage of our faith
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