Can You Handle the Truth?

Good morning, everyone, and thank you, Carolyn, for that presentation. I love the words that you were singing. Thank you for them. Thank you for your composing. I remember my mother in her old age. My mother, you have to understand, was very much a...she liked to be a poet. Everything she would say, she would make a rhyme. We'd play in cards. She'd say...if she put down gin, she'd say, that's it, Fort Pitt. You know, she ought to have all these little...she dreamed one night that she had this song that she created. It was called, Over Somebody Else's Shoulder. And so she came all these words over somebody else's shoulder. I fell in love with you. So you're dancing with someone else, and you're dancing with this person, or you fall in love with this other guy. So anyway, she had this song that she...that she...and she had all these words that she put together. All these words for her song. They're like, oh, interesting, Mom. So my...my brother-in-law, he took those words, and he put them to music, and they were thinking, this is some unique song, that she made up all these words. Here we come to find out that Bing Crosby sang this same song many years ago. So it wasn't her original, but we didn't have the heart to tell her that afterwards. So she had this song that she had...she had words, and she didn't have music to them, but she had these words that she was...it was kind of cute, those words and everything. But, you know, not nothing. That's not necessarily a good story for the guy who was dancing with you, that you're falling in love with someone else over his shoulder while you're dancing with him. I hope you're having a good day, and wish you a great weekend, and give you an extra day of relaxation, and that's wonderful.

Regiment down there forces in that area as a witness. After sparring verbally with Colonel Jessup, Lieutenant Caffee says, I want the truth about whether Jessup had ordered a Code Red to those two Marines on trial. Colonel Jessup replies in what has been rated number 58 of the 100 most memorable words or lines in movies. He replied this, you can't handle the truth. While he eventually admits to ordering a Code Red, and the two Marines, finally the truth comes out, on trial, are spared the murder charge. But he said, you can't handle the truth. My question for all of us is, can you handle the truth? Or better, how do you handle the truth? Or how will you handle the truth? You see, we had a sermonet remind us about truth. We had a song that even spoke about truth. So I'd like to ask you, how do you handle the truth? Don't be too sure that you handle it. Let me read to you what a definition of truth is. Merriman-Webster dictionary. A simple definition of truth. The truth is the real facts about something. The things that are true. Well, it doesn't give you a lot. The quality of state of being true. Or a statement or an idea that is true and accepted. A full definition of it in that same dictionary puts it this way. The archaic, it means sincerity in action, character, and utterance. It also talks about the state of being. The body of real things, events and facts. Actuality. Talks about it's what is accepted. So again, it has to do that, which is in accord with the facts. With reality.

Do you handle the truth? How do you handle it? Winston Churchill, May 1947's statement appeared in Reader's Digest. There was a quote about what he said about truth. He said, Men, Winston Churchill, quote, Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing had happened. How do you deal with the truth? How do you handle the truth? Or can you handle the truth? Here's how. Let's look at Psalm 31 and verse 5. Psalm 31 and verse 5 gives us a really huge clue as to how to handle the truth, how to have the truth, how to obtain the truth, how to keep the truth, how to be convicted of the truth. Psalm 31 and verse 5.

Into your hand, writes David, it's a psalm of David, into your hand I commit my spirit. You have redeemed me, O Lord God of truth. Where may we find the truth? Where may we have it? How do we know where it is? He says, God is a God of truth.

John 1.14, interestingly, we pass over this a lot when we think about Jesus Christ coming as our Savior. But notice John 1 verse 14. Very interesting verse about Jesus Christ.

And the Word became flesh, and that's usually what we emphasize, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Jesus Christ came into the world. He was full of truth. Jesus Christ is God. So God has truth. Notice also in John 14 and verse 6.

John 14 and verse 6. We read this during Passover as the last words of Jesus Christ. John 14 and verse 6. Jesus said to Him, when He was asked by Thomas, where are you going? We don't know the way. How are we going to get there?

Jesus said to Him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

So now we have a clue as to how we can know the truth. It abides with God. God is a God of truth. Jesus Christ brought truth to this earth. People have not accepted the truth. People can't handle the truth. He was right. People can't handle the truth. They don't want to believe in truth.

Secularism, progressivism, you know what they say? Truth is not absolute. What's true today might not be true tomorrow. Truth varies. You can't hang your hat on truth today because there may be no post to hang it on tomorrow.

So they have this sliding truth. What's true today might not be true tomorrow. But God tells us there is truth. Jesus Christ brought truth into the world, something you can sink your teeth into.

I remember in Toronto, Canada, when I was up there, we were getting letters like several every week of new people asking for visits.

And the one thing they said to me that they found unique about our church was we preached the truth. They said, you know, I go to church and I come out of there. I don't even know. One lady told me, she said, I went to church for 60 years. I said, oh wow, 60 years you went to this church? Yes. You liked him? Oh, I love the minister there. He's a nice minister.

So what's the gospel mean to you? She didn't know what the gospel was. What is sin? She said, he gave a really good sermon last week. I said, that's great. What did he say? What was the subject? What was the topic?

She didn't know. That lady and her sister, older people, they came to the Toronto church because they recognized truth. When God calls us, he calls us by his truth. That's what convinces us. That's what the broadcast is about. That's what the telecast aims to bring out to people.

Here's truth. It's crying aloud and telling people. Here's the difference. There is a difference. That's what rings true.

Because you see, I was a little 18-year-old when I was hearing the broadcast in Claysville, Pennsylvania and Bridgeville, Pennsylvania.

Mr. Armstrong was a lot older than I was. I wasn't of his generation. But you know what struck to this 18-year-old? Truth.

When truth comes, if your God is calling you, you hear it. It does make a difference.

So, what can we do? What can we do about the truth? How can we handle it? I've got five points.

Five points. Number one, seek the truth. You've got to be a seeker of truth. If God has called us, you've got to pursue truth. You've got to look for it. You've got to search for it. 2 Timothy 3, 7 gives us a description of our current day and age of our world today. 2 Timothy 3 and verse 7.

Here's what Timothy said in verse 1. He talks about, in the last days, perilous times will come. What would they be doing? Verse 7.

Always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Always learning.

I get books like books of... I could get so many journals of counseling. I can't keep up with them. I can't even keep up with the ones they send me.

I look them through. This is interesting. That's interesting. But I can't read them through thoroughly. I don't have time. There's so much information being churned out there. So many magazines. So many books. So many journals. So many new books. So many novels. So many historical facts. So many biographies.

Always coming out. Everybody's got a new book. Lots of knowledge. But where's the truth?

You know, the little lady for the Wendy's ad? She's got a shop window. Where's the beef? You know, she wants to know where's the beef.

I want to know where's the truth. You should want to know where's the truth and you should be seeking it because the world does not. They're ever learning and not able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Why? Because they're not learning from the word of truth. We'll see that in a moment.

John 1717. What did Jesus Christ say? Very short statement. John 1717. I love the when they when the verses, the chapters and verses are identical. It makes it easier to remember, to memorize. Like Jeremiah 31, 31, Hebrews 8, 8. Both talk about the covenant. John 1717. We read this from Jesus Christ, his final prayer. He said, Sanctify them through your truth. Set them apart. What sets God's people apart? They are people of truth. Why? Because they are people of God. Why? Because they are brothers, potentially, of Jesus Christ.

Sanctify them through your truth. Your word is truth. You want to know what's right or wrong? Here it is. For life. These are nuggets of life in here. Truth. You want to discern what's right or wrong when you're being told something?

I remember when I was contemplating going to Ambassador College, I had an uncle who was becoming a priest. He had been a basketball player, a professional basketball player, baseball player. He had served in the armed forces. He had been a school teacher and a coach of a basketball team in high school.

His dad was in the Greek Orthodox Church, and my uncle wanted to become a priest. So he was becoming a priest. He wanted to help me not go to Ambassador College because he knew I was going to go out there to this organization that was somewhat unknown to them.

He said to me, well, you should listen to this person. We need to listen to that person. In my mind, I said, how do I know? How do I know a true minister from one who's false?

It's easy. Isaiah 8, 20. To the law and to the testimony, if they speak not according to this word, it's because there is no light in them.

If they don't speak of the word of truth, if what they say is not grounded and founded in the truth of God, don't listen to them. That helped me immeasurably.

We need to seek the truth, and God's word is the truth. Jeremiah 5, 1. Jeremiah 5, 1. Jeremiah went throughout the city. What was he seeking?

Jeremiah 5, verse 1.

Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, see now and know, and seek in her open places. Look around. Go to the secret places. Go in the open places. And see, he said, seek in her open places if you can find a man, if there is anyone who executes judgment, who seeks the truth, and I will pardon her. See if you can find just one person to whom the truth really makes a difference, and I will pardon her.

Brethren, do you seek the truth?

Isaiah 55, verse 6, tells us we need to seek God. Isaiah 55, verse 6.

Seek the Lord while he may be found.

How many young people have I talked to and counseled for baptism and told them, the fact that you're being moved to come and ask about this now tells me God is working with you.

It tells me that because you're wanting to change your life. This is a major step, the most important step you ever make.

And you need, he's calling you now, you need to seek him while you can.

While you may, we need to seek God. So he says in Isaiah 55 and verse 6, Seek the Lord while he may be found. Call upon him while he is near.

Then he talks about let the wicked forsake his way and embrace God's way. Because God's way is so much better than ours, higher and better than our way. Because it is the truth.

In the Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes, he talks about, Blessed are those who seek after righteousness.

What is righteousness? Right doing, right living, right thinking.

And of course in the Psalms we know, Psalms 119 verse 172, All your commandments are righteousness. If we seek the truth, we will be seeking to understand God and the way God prescribes for us.

So again, seek the truth. Go to God, ask him. God, give me the truth. Help me to find it. Help me to study. Help me to understand. I'll tell you, I've been so blessed since I've been retired. I sit in the morning. I don't have to be rushing out anywhere. And I send my wife off to make some money for us. It works part time and keeps me in the lap of luxury. But she goes out and works part time at the office, taking care of the prisoners. I call her Warden Antean because she looks after all the prisoners' mail. But I sit at home and I'll just read the Scripture. And before I might study my Bible real quick, I've got to get going. Now I say, hey, what does that word mean? What does that mean? Let me see this. God, help me see the truth. Help me to understand. It's been very revelatory for me to be able to do that. And as I say, I've got about 16 sermons on the go from that. Just from the study, doing my own personal study. This will come up, oh, that's a good idea. I want you to discover that. Oh, I should do this. So I've got them in line. I'm trying to work on them. They're not all perfected yet, but there are various ones in line. And one great one, just to give you an example, and I'm... Excuse me for those who are translating. I am digressing for a moment. I was reading about Cornelius, and he was an amazing man. So you might hear a sermon one of these days entitled, The Leader of the Band, because in Old King James, he calls him the leader of the centurion of the Italian band. So I'm going to call him the leader of the band. And that he was an amazing man. You read what God says about him. I mean, she's ready to be ordained already, this guy. And he hasn't even converted yet. It is amazing. But I see I took time. I just didn't read over it quickly. I took, what does this mean? And it's been amazing. God's Word is amazing. Seek the truth. That's point number one. Number two, you can seek it, but now you need to know it. Now you need to know it. How do I put it together? I find this information. I find this truth. I find what's reality. And I find what's factual. But what do I do with it? How do I handle it? You need to know it. Psalms 119, verse 142. Psalms 119, I'll have a couple of verses here. Psalms 119, and verse 142, we read this.

Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and your law is truth. So as we study God's Word, and as we learn His laws, His rules, His way for us, we are learning truth. And to know it is to do it. Like it was said, it was sung, to know it is to do it. It's not enough just to know it. That's a step that we need to take. Psalms 151, as well, punctuates it with this. You are near, O Lord, and all your commandments are truth. Where they found in the Word of God. All your commandments are truth. So if I'm going to know God's Word, I need to know what He has asked for me. I need to know what He commands me to do. Know the truth. John 16, verse 13. How do we know these things? John 16, verse 13. You can't find it yourself. You can't find it yourself. God's Spirit has to lead you and guide you into the truth. What makes the difference in a person's life? God's Spirit working with them until it can ultimately be in them. John 16, verse 13. Just one scripture on this. He says, How be it when he or it, the Spirit of truth, has come. It will guide you into all truth. What leads us into the truth? God's Spirit! When you know the truth, you know the difference between truth and lies. You see politicians that are constantly giving you a lot of what I call baloney. I call it baloney sausage sometimes. It's baloney. It's not true. They just tell you stuff that they can't possibly deliver by themselves. But they can say it. You want...and I hear people dancing around, you know, do the dance. You know what? That dance does not sit with me. It does not sit well with me. Why? Because that dance is not the dance of truth. You begin to see the difference between truth and baloney in our society. Truth. You want truth. And it helps you because God leads you into the truth, His truth.

He said, for you will not speak of His own authority. Whatever He hears, He will speak, and He will tell you things to come. God's Spirit will lead you to understand more because it is the Spirit of truth. 2 Timothy 2 and verse 15. To know the truth means you've got to study. It means you've got to work. I've got to work. We've got to study the Word of God. We've got to have our noses in it because it is a cleansing effect.

In some of my counseling, I'm doing some people after they've sat with me for a few times, because I'm a licensed marriage and family therapist, and people from the world will call me for counseling. And so when they come to counsel with me, I'll sit down with them and talk to them about things. And one person said to me, can you help me be more spiritual? No, I don't tell them about our church yet. They know where I'm a part of, but I don't try to push them in.

So you know what? It would be really good for you to read your Bible. Just read one chapter. I try to point them to truth. And if truth becomes important to them, guess what? They will find the truth being taught and words taught. But in 2 Timothy 2 and verse 15, we read this.

This is Old King James says, study. But this has the same sense.

Now how can we be approved? How can God say, that's my boy or that's my girl? I really like them. How can we be approved? He said, The worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing what? The word of truth.

Now, as was said years ago, I can prove to you you should not dye your hair. Why? Because the Bible says you cannot make one hair black or white. See? I can tell you you can't put your hair up in a bun. Why? Because the Bible says, top not come down.

I can prove to you that God doesn't exist from the Bible because he says, there is no God. Of course, the fool has said in his heart, there is no God. So you can take the Bible and wrongly divide it to suit your purposes. But to rightly divide it is to see the context, is to understand that particular thought and idea in the context of other scriptures, in the light of other scriptures too. So study, work hard, be diligent, to study the word of God. Now that doesn't mean you get unbalanced. You study 23 hours a day and sleep for one. You become weird. Okay? You don't want to do that. But you do want to study, spend time knowing the truth. And of course, if you know Jesus Christ, you know the truth. Remember in 1 John 2, verses 3 and 4, he says, Hereby we know that we know Him. How can you know if you know if we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight? Here's how we know that we know Him. How can you know the truth if you know God, if you know Jesus Christ, if you know how He lived, if you emulate how He lived? You will know the truth.

So the second one is, know the truth. And of course, He came into the world. He was full of truth, as we saw. Point number three, live the truth. Live the truth. It's not enough just to seek it. It's not enough just to know it. Why? Well, I can know it so I can argue with Jehovah's Witness, who comes to my door the next time, and goes, boy, Armstrong or the Church of God united, gives me a lot of good ammunition. Boy, give me all that literature, so they can't read it. Take them down. I had an aunt, or distant cousin, who actually got our literature years ago, in the 50s. The only reason she got our literature, not so she could know and live and understand the truth, but so she could argue with it. She could have a really good argument with a Jehovah's Witness. You need to live the truth. It's not just to have. It's not just to judge other people with. It's for us to live. Leviticus 18 and verse 5. Leviticus 18 and verse 5. We read this scripture. Remember the book of Leviticus is talking about different offerings, but it also talks about some of the laws and morality. But Leviticus 18 and verse 5. Here's what God says to his people. Tells Moses to tell the people. You shall therefore keep by statutes and by judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them. Or live in them. I am the Lord. It's not enough just to know the statutes and judgments. It's a matter of doing them. Living them. If a man knows these things, he shall live in them. It's not enough just to seek the truth. It's not enough just to know the truth. You must apply the truth, and that's living it. It must be a part of you. It must be in your thoughts. Philippians 4.8 says, Think on these things. That which is true is one of the things you should be thinking about. Think about the truth. You should walk in the truth. Matthew 4.4, Jesus Christ in his defense against Satan the devil. What did he say? Matthew 4 verse 4, very meaningful scripture for us in this light of this sermon. Jesus answered and said, we told him, you know, you're hungry now. Command that these stones become bread, and you can have a piece of bread. You're hungry. Bread was a staple of life. Matthew 4.4, and he answered and said, it is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. And what is every word that proceeds from the mouth of God? Truth. He's a God of truth. So we have to live by that. Jesus Christ's own word. Man's not just to live by bread alone. He's not just food. He has to live by every word of God. That's important for us to note. We need to have that truth inside of us. Psalms 51 and verse 6, David prayed this prayer after he had sinned against Bathsheba, thought he was finished pretty much. He said in verse 6, Behold, you desire truth in the inward parts. You want me to have truth right down to my toes. Do you believe the truth right down to your toes? If you believe it down to your toes, guess where your toes are going to take you? In the way of truth. From your head to your toe. And of course, where does God position the truth on us? When you put on your armor this morning before you left, I hope you didn't forget the belt. I was good at forgetting belts when I was a young minister. I was slimmer then. I didn't need to hold up my hips. Usually I could hold up my pants. And I didn't need to worry about belts. But I should have worn belts. I go to clip on my... my... what is it? Lavalier? My mic? My go to clip? There's no belt. I forgot my belt again. I forgot my physical belt.

Brethren, we do not ever want to forget the spiritual belt. Where does God say in Ephesians 6, 14, where does He say truth should be in our lives? Should it be a handkerchief here in our pocket as a decoration? Should it be in our ties? Should it be in our vest? Should it be in our handkerchief? Is that what God says? Where should truth be? Should it be in a scarf for a lady's? Is that where truth should be? Notice what He says in Ephesians 6, 14. Where does truth go? Where does God want truth in our lives? Ephesians 6, 14, He says, stand therefore the way we're able to stand, the way we're able to fight off the wiles of Satan the devil. Stand therefore having girded your waist with truth. I don't know about you, but my waist is pretty close to my tummy. In fact, mine goes across my tummy. My waist. God wants truth at the center of your being and my being. He wants that to be the core, the center of our lives. So, live the truth. If it's at the core or the center, that's what we're going to do. Third John, Third John, verses 3 and 4. John writes more about truth than any other of the writers in the New Testament. In fact, more than all of them combined, he uses the word truth. Third John, verses 3 and 4. John writes to Gaius, who was kind of like the bologna in the sandwich because you had diatrophies pushing him from one side. John pushing him from the other side. And poor Gaius is in between. Gaius was a good guy. A hospitable, I don't know, it could have been a deacon, but certainly a hospitable man in the church that John was writing to. And John said to him in verse 3, So it's not enough just to know it. It's not enough just to seek it. We have to live it. We have to walk in it. And after all, if you walk like Jesus Christ, where will you be walking? In truth. Point number four, tell the truth. One proverb says, if you tell the truth, you better have one foot in the stirrup.

Your left foot, you know, if you ride a horse, you put your left foot on first. At least, that's the way I rode my bike, because I pretended it was a horse. And I still, to this day, if I ride my bike, I always get on the left side. Put my foot on the left side and sling my leg over the top. Okay, so if you're going to tell the truth, you better have one foot in the stirrup.

Because people don't want truth. They want you to give them a lot of angling, a lot of dancing around, a lot of spin. They don't want truth. Third John says, walk in truth. And if you walk in truth, if you live the truth, you may not be like the times, but people say there is a man of integrity.

Because truth and sincerity are very close. There's a man who's sincere. So, tell the truth is the next one. You tell the truth. Proverbs 8 and verse 7, several of the proverbs deal with this. We'll have a few verses in proverbs.

Tell the truth. And that's a truth when you talk about godliness and righteousness, but tell the truth. Be sure to not hold back. Tell the truth. Proverbs 8 and verse 7. For my mouth will speak truth. Does your mouth speak truth? Do you sometimes fudge a little bit?

And of course, children are known for the defensive lie. Don't pick on them too hard for that. Because if they feel threatened, they will lie. Did you do that? Yes. No, no. You scare them into a no. That's called a defensive lie. Now, it's not right. I grant you that. But it's not a deliberate lie. Not that they connived and figured out how they could... But oftentimes they will say a defensive lie. Did you do that? No, no. Yes. You lied to me. No, that was a defensive lie. You scared them into that.

But tell the truth. Christians, like their Savior, like their Master, like their Lord, have to be people of truth.

Can people believe you when they talk to you? Are you a person of truth? Proverbs 12. Proverbs 12, verse 17, we'll look at first in 19 and then 22, if you want to write it down. Proverbs 12, 17, 19, and 22.

He who speaks truth declares righteousness. That's an honorable person when you speak the truth. Of course, one of the Ten Commandments is, you shall not bear false witness.

One of the Ten Commandments is, you better speak the truth.

It always galls me that people stand now they don't put their hands on Bibles anymore because we're a Christian nation, but can't do that because they're Muslims that might complain about you not putting your hand on a Koran or the Shittuis might complain you're not putting your hand on their books, sacred books, or others.

But they raise their hand. You swear and tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. The person says yes. And then what does the defense attorney or the prosecuting attorney proceed to do? Question everything they do, everything they say. Because people can say they're going to tell the truth, but they don't. Proverbs 12 and verse 17, he who speaks the truth declares righteousness, but a false witness, deceit. Verse 19, the truthful lip shall be established forever.

I remember in my freshman class at Ambassador College, Herbert Armstrong was teaching us, and he said one of the greatest character flaws a person can have is to lie.

One of the greatest character flaws is to lie. The damage that does to you as a person is incalculable.

Tell the truth. Speak the truth. Verse 22, lying lips are an abomination to the Lord. He doesn't like them.

But those who deal truthfully are his delight. God wants us to tell the truth, and he wants us to tell the truth from the heart. He wants us to be involved in it. But telling the truth does not mean you hurt people.

Assertive people know they have a right to speak, to share their ideas and their thoughts, and they also respect others' right to share their thoughts and their ideas.

That's being assertive. But you know what? You never use your assertion privileges to hurt people.

Because you can say what you think or feel, it doesn't mean you use that to hurt people.

You also learn truth is like a two-edged sword, right? Hebrews 4.12. It's like a two-edged sword. It can, you know, Zorro people, you know, give them a little Z.

You don't want to be doing that. You're not intended to use the truth to cut people down. Use the truth to live by. Use the truth to preach if you're a preacher.

But you don't use it to slice people in pieces. That's not what the truth is about.

If you tell the truth, the truth will do its job for you. The truth will do its job for you. You don't need to.

Again, do use it to judge people. Do use it to buff yourself up. I know the truth, and you don't.

Not a good thing. Tell the truth, but don't tell it to hurt other people.

Ephesians 4, 15 tells us to tell the truth in love.

As Christians, we need to speak the truth in love.

Ephesians 4, 15. Motivation. Why am I telling the truth? Why am I telling you this? Because I love you.

Why am I telling you this? Because I want you to have a good advantage.

I'm not telling you this because I'm trying to get back at you or hurt you. I'm telling you this because I want to help you when you tell the truth of Egypt.

Ephesians 4, 15. He says, "'Till we all come into the unity of the faith, the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect,' Let's see, is that the one I want? Yes, verse, that was 14. Verse 15. "'But speaking the truth in love, am I doing this out of love for that person, or am I doing this because I want to slice into pieces?

Tell the truth, but be careful how you tell it.'" Be careful how you tell it. Finally, Zechariah 8, 16.

What a wonderful world it would be when everybody tells the truth, when you go to buy a used car, used washing machine, or used toaster, that those people will tell you the truth about it. Won't that be wonderful? Zechariah 8, 16. What a great millennial scripture this is that God prophesies, because Zechariah was trying to stir up the people to build the city again, and telling them what a great time it was going to be when they rebuilt the city. But he says, "'These things, these are the things that you shall do. Speak each man the truth to his neighbor.'" Won't that be a great time? You know what words like, "'Really' or "'Are you kidding me?' Those who go out of style.'" Barbra, as my mother used to say, this is the honest truth. Say, Mom, is there any truth that's not honest? Now, this is the honest truth, Gar. And, of course, the people tell you, What do you say? Really? What would it be nice if people would just tell the truth? You don't have to have prosecuting or defense attorneys. People will tell the truth. Again, tell the truth. That's point number four. Number five, love the truth. Love the truth.

If people don't love the truth, they will fall away. 2 Thessalonians 2, verses 9 and 10. 2 Thessalonians 2, verses 9 and 10. It behooves us to make sure the truth is important to us, to make sure the truth we know, the truth we live by, truth we tell, and truth is held near and dear to us. 2 Thessalonians 2. When ministers repeat themselves, it's because they haven't gotten there yet. So, 2 Thessalonians 2, verses 9 and 10.

The coming of the lawless one, I'm breaking into a thought, is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders. People are going to be bamboozled and deceived by Satan the Devil in the future. Verse 10. With all unrighteous deception among those who perish. Why? Because they did not receive the love of the truth. They don't love the truth. So, truth doesn't really matter to them. It doesn't matter. Tell me lies. That's okay. In fact, they even say, tell me smooth things.

Don't preach the truth to me. Tell me smooth things. I don't believe a minister should stand up and condemn a congregation up one side and down another. I don't believe they should do that. I believe there's a time for correction. I believe there's a time for rebuking. I believe there's a time for sending things straight. But to stand up and rebuke the whole time. When you go to a congregation, all you feel is beaten down.

Every week, something's wrong with you. Every week, there's something's wrong. You'll find a congregation that's very lackluster and very lowly motivated. They need to be uplifted with the Word of God, with the truth. But he says, we should love the truth. Do you love the truth? If you love the truth when you hear it, what are you going to do with it? You're going to accept it, and you're going to try to apply it in your life.

That's what we do. Psalm 119, verse 97, we're told to love God's law. David, the psalmist, said this. Psalm 119, verse 97. O, how I love your law. O, how I love your law. Anything God tells us, and young kids, I hope you hear me. God never tells you to do anything that's going to hurt you. God never tells you anything that's not going to help you. And neither will your parents, if they're godly.

Everything they do, they do to help you. Everything that God does, he does because he wants to help us. He wants us to stay on the straight and narrows. He doesn't tell us these things to burden us.

He doesn't tell us these things to make life hard. He tells us these things because they're right and true. And so, again, do you love God's law? Because God's law is found in the Word of God. Psalm 119, verse 140. Psalm 119, verse 140. Your word is very pure. Therefore, your servant loves it. Do you love God's law? There's some scripture. I love them. I love those scriptures. I love Philippians 1.6 that says, you know what? Having confidence, you're going to make it.

I love 1 John 3, verses 1 and 2. You know, we don't know yet what we're going to be, but we do know. We'll see Him as He is. We'll be like Him, because we'll see Him as He is. 1 John 3, verses 1 and 2. Beautiful scriptures. They're awesome. Philippians 2.5, let this word, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. What a beautiful scripture. I love the scripture.

I think it's in Corinthians, where the Apostle Paul talks about, you are my credentials. I don't need this credential on the wall. You're my credentials. Seeing you. And what is his joy? To see you in God's kingdom. To see you make it. Boy, that's going to be a beautiful time. Again, do you love God's law?

I'll tell you, I love this scripture. I try to inspire them. I love this scripture. I love all the scriptures, but I love certain ones more, perhaps, than others. But do you love the law of God? Do you love the Word of God? First Corinthians, I'm sorry, let's look at Zechariah 8.19 first. Zechariah 8 and verse 19. This is the one where people tell you the truth. Zechariah 8.19.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the fast of the fourth month, the fast of the fifth month, the fast of the seventh month, the fast of the tenth month. All those had to do with various activities of things that had happened to Judah. Various things that happened to them as a nation that they fasted because of this. But notice what he says. There shall be gladness, joy and gladness, instead of fasting and cheerful feasts. Why? Because I'm here for the house of Judah. Therefore, love, truth and peace. Love, truth and peace. And in the chapter 13 of 1 Corinthians, which we would always call the love chapter, verse 6, 1 Corinthians 13 and verse 6. In this love chapter, the Apostle Paul reminds us all about the truth. 1 Corinthians 13, verse 6. Going through and talking about love suffers long, love does not behave itself unruly, love does not seek its own. Verse 6, love does not rejoice in iniquity. Love doesn't—oh, one of those people did wrong. Look at that. They're really bad people. Love doesn't rejoice in iniquity, but notice what it does rejoice in. But rejoices in the truth. Do you love the truth enough to rejoice in it? Do you love the truth enough to speak it, to know it, to live it, to seek it? So brethren, those are the five points. Seek the truth, know the truth, live the truth, tell the truth, love the truth. During the Days of Unleavened Bread, we learned about one great lesson— not the only lesson—was sincerity and truth. We've come from the Days of Unleavened Bread as we move toward Pentecost, which pictures the coming of God's Holy Spirit to this world and to Christians. What is it a spirit of? Truth. What do we want to live by? Truth. What do we want to follow? Truth. What should we people like? People of sincerity and truth. So let's keep seeking, knowing, living, telling, and loving the truth. If somebody says to you, you can't handle the truth, you can say, oh yes, I can.