I remember when I was in 6th grade I lied to my mom. I told her that the purple teddy bear that I had taken to school was NOT to give to my girlfriend Sara. That was not true. It was for Sara...and she loved it...and I did like 5 more pull-ups in gym class I was so pumped up.
But mom found out...not good...not good at all.
Sara was a good girl, don't get the wrong idea. She was a choir girl for crying out loud. No seriously we were in choir together so that makes her literally a...oh never mind.
The big deal was that I lied to my mom about something stupid. It wasn't that the truth was a bad thing it was just I was embarrassed about telling my mom so I lied. I was afraid of what the truth may get me.
In our society, truth is a rare gem hidden in the middle of the filth of deceit. Tucked down between the couch cushions of the world that tells us to "win at all costs" and “not to worry about who gets hurt in your pursuit of #1”...is the truth.
Ironically we all want the truth. We all respect truthful people not liars. We all want an honest doctor, not one that bends the diagnosis. We all want an honest teacher that tells you how your child is doing, not one that says everything is fine even when they are in the 2nd grade for the 8th time. We all want a spouse that you can trust and not have to wonder where he or she is at night. We all desperately want truth, but yet we still run from it.
- The truth is eating too much will put strain on your heart, but we still over eat.
- The truth is smoking is almost guaranteed to give you lung cancer, but we still puff.
- The truth is divorcing your husband to be with your boyfriend won't bring you happiness, but many still do it.
- The truth is that rooting for Cubs will give you an ulcer, but we still cheer for them.
Sometimes the truth hurts, but so does getting a shot at the doctor. Sure you could avoid doctor, but you also will pay the price for that decision.
Recently, in my personal study in the Gospel of Matthew I became more and more aware of the phrase "I tell you the truth". It is a phrase that Jesus uses 78 times in the Gospels and He uses it without any prejudice to the audience He was speaking to. Whether it was a gathering of people, the Pharisees, scholars, Sadducees, criminals, or His very own disciples, everyone was subject to a Jesus "truth bomb" from time to time. It seems that truth is truth regardless of who Jesus was talking to.
So over the next few blogs I'm excited to take some time to walk through the "I tell you the truth" portions of the Gospels. It will take some time and I'll most likely throw in different stuff because of course Aniston is a walking source of material, but I'm anxious to see what God will do through our journey.
All of us, including me, will have two choices when we unpack the truth Jesus teaches.
- Accept it and uncomfortably grow
- Ignore it and comfortable stay the same.
Regardless of how we respond...the Truth is still the Truth.
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