Grounded In Truth
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:13-16)
Yesterday we talked about how the Church today should not be considered as irrelevant, but as powerful. So over the next few days, I want us to take a look at what makes the Church powerful and what characteristics Christians, constituting the Church, should be hearing as descriptors of our congregations.
The first thing I want us to understand is that a church of power is committed to truth. Truth is the foundation and the cornerstone of Jesus Christ’s Church, so much so that Jesus told his followers on one occasion that they would know the truth and that the truth would set them free.
The reason Peter’s affirmation that Jesus was the Christ, the son of the living God, is so important is that all of the answers given by the crowd about Jesus’ identity were in the past. Jesus asked them, who do men say that I am? And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
All the people they claimed Jesus to be were dead—no longer living. And so, in saying, “You are the Messiah…the one we have been looking for to rescue, redeem, and restore us…you are the Christ, the son of the living God,” Peter was grounding his understanding of Jesus and the Church on a foundation of truth, and we should do the same.
What we say, what we do, and what we teach should always be grounded in truth, and that truth comes from the Word of God. With that in mind, I would encourage you to take some time this week and meditate on whether or not your words and actions are based in truth or are they bubbling up from your flesh. If you find that the latter is true, pray and ask the Lord to forgive you and to realign your life with His truth so that you can ultimately glorify Him as part of His powerful Church.
Yesterday we talked about how the Church today should not be considered as irrelevant, but as powerful. So over the next few days, I want us to take a look at what makes the Church powerful and what characteristics Christians, constituting the Church, should be hearing as descriptors of our congregations.
The first thing I want us to understand is that a church of power is committed to truth. Truth is the foundation and the cornerstone of Jesus Christ’s Church, so much so that Jesus told his followers on one occasion that they would know the truth and that the truth would set them free.
The reason Peter’s affirmation that Jesus was the Christ, the son of the living God, is so important is that all of the answers given by the crowd about Jesus’ identity were in the past. Jesus asked them, who do men say that I am? And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
All the people they claimed Jesus to be were dead—no longer living. And so, in saying, “You are the Messiah…the one we have been looking for to rescue, redeem, and restore us…you are the Christ, the son of the living God,” Peter was grounding his understanding of Jesus and the Church on a foundation of truth, and we should do the same.
What we say, what we do, and what we teach should always be grounded in truth, and that truth comes from the Word of God. With that in mind, I would encourage you to take some time this week and meditate on whether or not your words and actions are based in truth or are they bubbling up from your flesh. If you find that the latter is true, pray and ask the Lord to forgive you and to realign your life with His truth so that you can ultimately glorify Him as part of His powerful Church.
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