““I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear [to hear] them now. But when He, the Spirit of Truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth [full and complete truth]. For He will not speak on His own initiative, but He will speak whatever He hears [from the Father—the message regarding the Son], and He will disclose to you what is to come [in the future].”
John 16:12-13 AMP
People can be ready and willing to weigh in on all sorts of things. However, a hastily spoken word, can be very destructive.
We know that as followers of Christ, our speech should always be what is pleasing to the Lord. As such, we know that words must not be used as weapons. We must not lie. We must not mislead.
“Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.”
Ephesians 4:29 NLT
“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.”
Colossians 4:6 ESV
Words of truth should be the only words we speak. And words of truth may fall into the category of instruction and/or discipline. However, instruction and/or discipline must be spoken at the right time, and must be spoken out of the motivation of God’s love (agape).
“But speaking the truth in love [in all things—both our speech and our lives expressing His truth], let us grow up in all things into Him [following His example] who is the Head—Christ.”
Ephesians 4:15 AMP
Consider this scenario: Someone (with whom you have a relationship) is distraught because their spouse has left them. In this hypothetical scenario, you have observed some of the very dysfunctional ways this person has dealt with that spouse. So, the spouse finally getting enough of the treatment and leaving, comes as no surprise to you. But you are now being faced with someone completely torn apart, and they are sharing the contents of their broken heart with you.
Unless the Lord directly leads otherwise, this would not be the time to share with this person that you’re not surprised their spouse did what they did. In this moment, what that person needs is hope and comfort and is probably incapable of receiving a word of correction.
Now, no matter what the circumstance, we don’t speak words that are not genuine or are insincere. For example, you shouldn’t say something like “I can’t believe they did this.”
However, there is plenty of truth in the word of God that would be appropriate at such a time to help the person—in this moment of despair—to regain their footing and access the comfort of the Lord. Words of instruction can be left until another time as the Holy Spirit directs. Only the Holy Spirit knows when the wounded heart is ready to hear it.
“Kind words are like honey— sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.”
Proverbs 16:24 NLT
In our opening scripture we see Jesus explaining to the disciples that there was more for them to know, but He knew they couldn’t receive it at that point in time.
Jesus then went on to explain to them that the Holy Spirit would lead them into the additional truth they needed to know.
It’s also important to note that Paul, speaking to people who did have the Holy Spirit, still could not speak to them concerning certain things because of their spiritual immaturity.
“Dear brothers and sisters, when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people. I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in Christ. I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren’t ready for anything stronger. And you still aren’t ready, for you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn’t that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren’t you living like people of the world?”
1 Corinthians 3:1-3 NLT
Paul, knowing that the people could not hear more advanced spiritual instruction, continued to feed them with the milk of foundational truths.
The bottom line is that whether a person SHOULD be able to hear something or not, if they’re not prepared to hear what you have to say, even if it’s the truth, it can do more harm than good.
Friend, let’s listen to the Holy Spirit, letting Him control what we say, AND when we say it.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!
“Then he said, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but now I will go and wake him up.” The disciples said, “Lord, if he is sleeping, he will soon get better!” They thought Jesus meant Lazarus was simply sleeping, but Jesus meant Lazarus had died. And for your sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there, for now you will really believe. Come, let’s go see him.””
John 11:11-13, 15 NLT
A while back, the Lord gave me a message on the “Hope Rope.”
You see, because Jesus has already entered into the Holy of Holies, into the inner sanctuary of God, hope in Him assures us that we too, will one day follow Him into that glory.
Jesus is our Anchor. He is already there at the right hand of all power and authority, holding our place for us. Our hope in Him, connects us like a rope, to His finished work.
“God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind. So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary. Jesus has already gone in there for us. He has become our eternal High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.”
Hebrews 6:17-20 NLT
Holding on to the hope rope, enables us to walk through whatever we must, as we follow after Jesus.
Now, I know denial when I see it. People who seek to “make it through the night,” so to speak, by doing things to divert their attention from their present situation, are using denial as a strategy for survival. Sadly, it’s ultimately a strategy for despair.
Having hope in what God has promised through Jesus Christ, is not denial. Far from it, our hope is based on what faith has already “seen.”
“Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.”
Hebrews 11:1 NLT
As we see in our opening scripture, when Jesus’ friend, Lazarus, died, Jesus initially told the disciples that Lazarus was “sleeping.” Then He plainly told them that Lazarus was dead.
However, Jesus’ first statement about Lazarus being asleep, was not initial denial of the fact that Lazarus was dead. Indeed, that statement was based on the fact that Jesus knew that He is the resurrection and the life. And as such, Lazarus would be raised!
Child of God, our hope is in Christ. By faith, we believe that we will follow Him all the way into the glory of God. Just as He was sure of His ability as being God, we must be sure of His ability in us. That is to say, we believe we will receive all that God has promised. After all, He has given us His precious Holy Spirit Who will keep our hope renewed, day after day.
Denial brings no permanent relief. Eventually, reality will permeate the smoke and mirrors, and we will be left staring down the barrel of the very thing we feared.
Hope is a permanent solution for navigating this weary land. As we hold on to that rope connecting us to what Christ has already done, we can stay the course until we walk into the glory awaiting.
Christ has already won the victory for us, becoming the Way for us to be where He is. But until then, hope is our rest NOW. And, it will sustain us all the way home.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!
“Spouting off before listening to the facts is both shameful and foolish. The first to speak in court sounds right— until the cross-examination begins.”
Proverbs 18:13, 17 NLT
Politics can be very dirty. One of the most egregious practices employed in political rivalries is that of looking for a “soundbite” to be repeated out of context to convey a different meaning than the person speaking intended. Of course, the purpose of this practice is often to smear the opponent’s character, intentions, beliefs, etc.
Not seeking the truth of a matter, of any matter, by those forming an opinion, particularly a negative or hostile opinion about anyone, can be extremely detrimental.
Among children, there is often the phenomenon our family has come to call the “mumble-scream.”
To explain: Some children learn how to provoke other children without being obvious about it.
The one “mumbling” does something sneakily to the other child, provoking the other child to “scream,” that is, do something obvious, such as hitting them. In this scenario, the “screamer” is often the only one punished.
Now, it’s not surprising that children do such things to each other. But it is very sad, and is often very destructive, when adults engage in such behavior. And make no mistake, it is very displeasing to the Lord.
Going back to our first example (information taken out of context), whether readily believing something without personally seeking out the truth about it, or being the one presenting a half truth, it is wrong.
As well, to be part of a mumble-scream scenario, where there is the deliberate effort to cause someone to react in a negative way, is also wrong.
In our scripture, we see that the proverbial writer makes clear that it is foolish to hear half of a story and pass judgment, or to hear some of the facts without searching out the whole truth.
I will caution you that when we hear something that fits into our own agenda, fits into the narrative we want to believe, it is very tempting to immediately grab onto what’s being presented, accepting it as truth. We might even spread it to other people.
This being a real temptation, let us make sure to seek the whole truth, before accepting anything as truth.
Lazy thinking and hasty conclusions can lead to a world of hurt. And often, that world may be our own.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!