“Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?”
Galatians 4:16
We live in a time when a great many people are searching everywhere for a reason to be offended. Sadly, offenses are sought out not to rid the world of them but as an opportunity for the one offended to feel superior in their reprimand of the offender. It’s the secular version of “holier than thou”.
Christians and churches have been only too willing to play along, running like scared rabbits, rather than standing for the truth. Testifying to The Truth is not the way to win friends—however, one way or another it influences people. The question then becomes, is winning friends what Christianity is all about?
James, not one to pull his punches says, “…know ye not that friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” If you’re an environmentalist, relax. The world in this instance does not mean the Earth, but society.
The world is not irredeemable. It is inherently evil in that it is at war with God. Though God has offered terms of peace, they are generally refused as too narrow and too costly. As we have seen, surrendering to God will cost a person the friendship of those around him. To be a Christian one must be willing to be a pariah. It doesn’t make the names and charges thrown at Christians true. Nevertheless, it is a certainty that they will come. Honestly, most people are not prepared to pay the price regardless of how they boast about not caring what others think.
Have you ever been turned down for a job because you didn’t have experience? If so, you probably also know how difficult it is to get experience without a job. The Truth leads to peace with God.
Unfortunately, a person’s initial reaction to The Truth is to be offended and walk away. The world wants the Truth to be subject to its will and everyone have their own version of the truth.
When you mature enough to realize that you can’t always get what you want, you might be ready for objective truth. Peace with God comes on His terms—and only His terms. You may craft your own set of terms. People do it all the time. God is not obliged to accede to them.
What are God's terms? Unconditional surrender to the lordship of Jesus Christ.
Maranatha
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