Category Archives: Truth

Man speaking at a podium with Turning Point USA sign at Freedom Conference
Bible, Scripture, Truth, Evil, Blasphemy, Gospel, Judging, Romans, Good

GOOD IS NOT EVIL

ROMANS 14:16

“Therefore do not let what is for you a good thing be spoken of as evil;”

When I read this verse, I thought of the late Charlie Kirk. He was assassinated for speaking truth – plain and simple. Those who hated his message of adherence to holiness and truth rallied against him and tried to turn his message to one of hatred and intolerance. What was meant as a good thing was turned into something evil. Charlie never wanted this. He only wanted to encourage others to live a life honoring God and His Word.

Paul warns us in today’s verse to not let our freedom in Christ be seen as judgmental toward others, thereby, turning the good news into a message of hate of others who have a different view. Sure, we must stand for the truth. That can alienate some. But we must always share the good news of our freedom in Christ with an attitude of humbleness and love for others.

APPLICATION

The word used “be spoken of as evil” is the Greek word blasphémeói from which we get our word “blasphemy.” We often think that only applies to us speaking against God. The religious leaders of Jesus’ day accused Him of blasphemy against God when Jesus spoke of forgiving sins. They had no idea what Jesus was really talking about. They did not realize they were accusing the Lamb of God of doing the very thing He was sent to earth to do – forgive sins.

We are taught in Scripture that the sin of blasphemy is speech that dishonors, slanders, or demeans the divine character, titles, or works of God. When we flout our spiritual superiority over others, we are blaspheming. We may never speak a word against God, but our attitude goes against everything that honors Him. Paul is warning us to guard against this spirit of blasphemy by honoring all people, whether they are correct in their teaching or not. Honoring does not mean condoning.

Have you ever thought about blasphemy in that way? I sure had not until reading this. When we are quick to judge others, we are in danger of blaspheming the very nature of God Who dwells in us as followers of Christ. There may come a time when you have to draw a line in the sand and defend the truth of the Gospel, like Charlie Kirk did, but we are not called to pick a fight and risk driving people away. We do not want them to call evil what we know is good. We are also told back in Romans 12:19, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all people.” Let’s strive to do that today.

Father, I never want my words or actions toward others to be construed as evil. Forgive me if I ever lean that way and correct me.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Wooden sign with the word TRUTH in capital letters on a pole in a forest
Bible, Conviction, Jesus, Persuasion, Romans, Scripture, Truth

CONVINCED IN THE LORD

ROMANS 14:14

“I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself; but to the one who thinks something is unclean, to that person it is unclean.”

Let me tell you something. It takes a lot to convince me nowadays. With the emergence of AI it’s hard to know what is real and what is not. You can’t tell if that person you know is really in that picture or someone planted them there. And don’t even get me started about the internet. People are fooled all the time by something they find via Google or Safari. We all need to be more careful what we believe is true.

Paul lays those doubts to rest with today’s verse, if we will follow his instructions. Look at just the first part of this verse.
“I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus…” I know he is still talking about the issue of judging others over food and stuff. But that first phrase hit me like a ton of bricks. I asked myself, “Self, do you know that you are convinced in the Lord Jesus?” My first response, of course, was “Yes, I am sure.”

APPLICATION

The Greek word for “convinced” is a primary verb and is used over 50 times in the New Testament. The word is peíthō which is the root of pístis (faith). It means “to persuade; (passive) be persuaded of what is trustworthy. The Lord persuades the yielded believer to be confident in His preferred-will (Gal 5:10; 2 Tim 1:12). Peíthō involves obedience, but it is properly the result of (God’s) persuasion. (HELPS Word-studies)

Remember my opening paragraph? There is a “however” here. If God is the one persuading you can take it to the bank. Why? Because He is trustworthy. He is truth! Anything He says or does is based in truth. God cannot lie. Wouldn’t it be great if you could say that about everyone? And God only wants what is best for you, so if He says for you to do something or go somewhere, He has prepared you for it.

Paul wrote to the Philippian church in Philippians 1:6, “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work among you will complete it by the day of Christ Jesus.” May I repeat those words over you? I am confident that He will continue to work good in you and will complete you one day. I just got word that a good friend of mine saw his sweet bride of 56 years go to her ultimate glory a couple of weeks ago. I had not heard about this, so I instantly called him. He was doing great because he is convinced in the Lord Jesus. He knows exactly where his sweet wife is now. Are you that confident in your belief in the Lord Jesus? I certainly hope so. He certainly believes in you.

O Lord, I am persuaded fully in Your awesome power and grace in my life. Thank You.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Bible, Knowledge, Romans, Scripture, Truth

TRUE KNOWLEDGE

ROMANS 10:2

“For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge.”

Some things are just not understandable or relatable apart from first-hand experience. Take for example, I cannot explain to you fully the stench and odor of a pig pen. My Uncle Hugh Lee was a farmer and always had a few hundred pigs that he raised for the market and for butchering himself. One particular pen of pigs contained this great fishing pond, but you had to go through that pen to get to the pond. Try dodging pigs, pig mess and mud puddles created by pigs while carrying fishing poles and tackle. And doing that on a hot summer day in South Georgia only raised the stink level.

Now, why in the world would I bring that up? Well, I had to experience that myself to fully understand it. Paul’s verse today says the same thing about the Jews. Listen, they had head knowledge about God. They even had “zeal for God,” but they did not have that experiential knowledge of God through Jesus. To them God was like my father used to describe God – the old man upstairs. It wasn’t until my dad got saved at 80 years of age that he gained that knowledge of Jesus which framed his world his last four years.

APPLICATION

The word Paul uses here for “knowledge” is epignōsis. It “denotes an experiential, relational, and transforming knowledge. It is more than data acquisition; it embraces recognition, acknowledgment, and personal appropriation of truth revealed by God. In the New Testament it is always anchored in divine initiative and always bears moral and spiritual consequences.” (Topical Lexicon)

I love how Peter uses this word right after he goes through that long list of things you should apply to your life (2 Peter 1:5-7). In verse 8 he writes, “For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they do not make you useless nor unproductive in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The TRUE knowledge! That’s epignōsis. You can only gain true knowledge of Christ by getting to know Him personally and intimately. That was something the Jews were against.

In 1 Timothy 2:4, 2 Timothy 2:25; 3:7 and Titus 1:1, Paul uses the phrase “the knowledge of the truth.” This is something we seek and will find. Matthew 7:7 promises that. Seek Him first! He wants to disclose such hidden truths to you, truths which the world cannot understand, and you cannot explain. Just like the stench of a pig pen cannot be put into words until it experienced firsthand, neither can the true knowledge of God until you yield to Him. Keep yielding.

Father God, You promise to disclose more and more to us through Your Word and Your Spirit as we give ourselves completely to You.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Bible, Conscience, Romans, Scripture, Truth

MY CONSCIENCE

ROMANS 9:1

“I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying; my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit,”

We begin the second half of this letter to the Romans today with a confession by Paul saying he is “telling the truth.” It is only appropriate that he brings up his conscience when he says that. Doesn’t your conscience (I hate trying to spell that word, lol) bother you when you lie? And before you get all high and mighty, we have all lied at some point in our lives. God gave us our conscience to help guide us. But if we are not forming our thoughts and intentions according to His Word, our conscience isn’t offended when we lie to ourselves or others.

Paul uses the Greek word syneídēsis which comes from sýn, (together with) and eídō (to know, see). It literally means “joint-knowing.” HELPS Word-studies says it means this. “Conscience which joins moral and spiritual consciousness as part of being created in the divine image. Accordingly, all people have this God-given capacity to know right from wrong because each is a free moral agent.” I like that. We all have this capacity, but do we follow it?

APPLICATION

Paul uses this word earlier in Romans 2:15 and then once again in Romans 13:5, but I really like how he uses it in his letters to Timothy. In 1 Timothy 1:5, Paul writes, “But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from a sincere faith.” Again in 1 Timothy 1:19 he uses it. “keeping faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith.” Once more in 1 Timothy 3:9 we see it used. “but holding to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.” In 2 Timothy 1:3, Paul writes to his “beloved son,” “I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience the way my forefathers did, as I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day,…”

What a display of the use of this word, syneídēsis, to show its importance to us as followers of Christ. We need to be walking in such a way that our conscience is clear and good. When we have a bad or seared conscience, we are taken out of the race. Remember what Hebrews 12:1 says, “…let’s rid ourselves of every obstacle and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let’s run with endurance the race that is set before us,…” Keep your conscience clear and pure.

But how am I suppose to do that, Carl? Glad you asked. Stay on your knees. Pray! Read His Word! Encourage others in their walk. Find an ally to walk with you and hold you accountable when you stray. The devil knows your triggers and will pull that trigger every chance he gets. He knows a bad conscience hinders a believer and sidelines him. Read Romans 12:2 today and do what it says.

Cleanse my conscience today of any intention to do evil. Help me live today to honor You in everything I think, say and do.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Bible, Lies, Scripture, True, Truth

GOD IS TRUE

ROMANS 3:4

“Far from it! Rather, God must prove to be true, though every person be found a liar, as it is written: ‘SO THAT YOU ARE JUSTIFIED IN YOUR WORDS, AND PREVAIL WHEN YOU ARE JUDGED.’”

Telling fibs as a child gets you in trouble. We may think it’s cute, but if we don’t correct this behavior, we will be growing up adults who lie. Telling the truth is so much easier, isn’t it? We don’t have to keep up with what we said to who. Just tell the truth. Today’s verse tells us that God is true, that He is a truth teller. Shouldn’t we follow His example.

The Greek actually reads here, “However, let God be true.” Of course, He is. Paul is saying that no matter what anyone else says, God will always be true. The verb “to be” is ginomai. Vincent says, “Gínomai means to come into being or manifestation implying motion, movement, or growth (at 2 Pet 1:4). Thus, it is used for God’s actions as emerging from eternity and becoming (showing themselves) in time (physical space).”

APPLICATION

So, what is this truth. In John 7:18 John writes, “The one who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who is seeking the glory of the One who sent Him, He is true, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.” Because God is God, He can only speak truth. The thought of saying anything other than the truth has never and will never enter the mind of God. If He is speaking to us, you can bet He is telling us the truth.

Therein lies the problem. We don’t want the truth. The truth exposes our lies. The truth will expose our sins. Far too many people of influence have been exposed lately regarding living another life. They have hidden the truth. Can you imagine living that way, fearful any day that the truth will come out? Whether it comes out now or later, it will be known.

We can rest in the fact that God is true. Everything about Him is true. When He says He loves you, He really does. When He said He is preparing a place for His followers, He is. When He said He will come again, you can believe it’s true. Just rest in His truth, knowing He will never ever lie to you. That should comfort your heart today.

Lord, thank You for always being true. Expose my lies so I can confess those and make things right with you.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Bible, God's Will, Judgment, Right, Scripture, Truth

ACCORDING TO TRUTH

ROMANS 2:2

“And we know that the judgment of God rightly falls upon those who practice such things.”

Often things are not as they appear. That is no truer than right now in our world. AI has changed how we can look at things. We may think we are seeing or hearing something as true, but it is computer generated. We are even using AI in our ministry to make people in our training videos speak other languages. They look like they know how to speak Portugese or Spanish when all they know is English. Looks can be deceiving.

The phrase “rightly falls” is literally “according to truth” in the Greek. Albert Barnes says this about that phrase. “God will judge those who are guilty of such things, not according to appearance, but in integrity, and with righteousness. He will judge people according to the real nature of their conduct, and not as their conduct may appear to people. The secret, as well as the open sinner therefore; the hypocrite, as well as the abandoned profligate, must expect to be judged according to their true character.”

APPLICATION

We cannot doubt God’s judgment. It will fall on the right person at the right time. Job asked in Job 21:7, “Why do the wicked prosper, grow old and also become very powerful?” You may ask the same question. That is not for us to know. We have to trust the One who knows what is right for each individual. The only judgment we can have any control over is our own. We must come to Him and seek His will.

One commentator simply said of this phrase “according to truth” that God’s judgment squares with the facts. When all the facts are laid out, as they will be one day, God’s judgment will fall. Isn’t it nice to know that our judgment has already been taken care of by the Lamb of God? We have been declared not guilty due to the shed blood of the innocent Son of God.

We can guide others to a saving knowledge of Jesus, thus alleviating their judgment, but we can’t save a soul. Some people will still refuse to believe. I know people like that. Their pride will not let them bow before King Jesus. They will hold on to that pride until God’s judgment rightly falls on them. God save their soul! Let’s pray everyone will turn to Him before it’s too late.

Father, thank You that my judgment has been paid for and I am free from the penalty of sin.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Bible, Dishonoring, Glorify, Lies, Scripture, Sexuality, Truth

DISHONORING

ROMANS 1:26

“For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged natural relations for that which is contrary to nature,”

This is a tough verse and one that easily ignites strong feelings, either way. But let me remind you that I did not write this. Nor did I pick it out of the air to write on today. In the course of taking Romans verse by verse, we had to come to this verse. So, without trying to enflame people, let me address God’s Word on this subject which must be talked about in light of His truth.

You really need to go back and reread verses 18-25 to remember who Paul is talking about here. This was a behavior prevalent in the pagan world. Even back then people were deceived regarding their sexuality. What He had intended from the beginning when He created man and woman was dishonored. That’s the word Paul uses here – degrading or dishonored. It’s the Greek word atimia which can be translated as dishonor, reproach, shame or vile. In this verse, Paul writes that it is a shame or dishonoring for women to turn the natural order upside down.

APPLICATION

Nothing has brought as much division in the body of Christ in the past few decades as this topic. Some churches embrace the freedom of sexuality. Others try to shame people into repentance. We must remember that the sin of rejecting God’s plan for sexuality is no bigger sin that adultery or drunkenness or…you feel in the blank. I know Jesus embraces those who practice this lifestyle but does not condone their behavior. You can truly hate the sin but love the sinner.

This word is also used in Romans 11:14 when Paul addresses the length of a man’s hair. “Does even nature itself not teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him,…” We don’t talk about this, do we? Paul is simply addressing the natural order compared to what has been perverted by man. We have to remember that our purpose is to bring glory to God. Anything that goes against that is dishonoring and shameful.

The main point of this verse today is not the particular sin Paul points out. It is the fact that God will not force us to comply. He will give us up to our passions and allow us to reap the consequences. He is able to spare us this suffering, but He will not make us do anything. What are you bucking God about right now? We all need to yield to His direction. We all can be more obedient in our walk with Him, can’t we?

O Lord, help me to not point fingers and accuse others of their sin while at the same time wallowing in my own.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Bible, Gospel, Motive, Rejoicing, Scripture, Truth

REJOICE IN CHRIST

PHILIPPIANS 1:18

“What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in this I rejoice. But not only that, I also will rejoice,”

Sometimes people’s motives for doing something is outweighed by the result they have. Case in point – today’s verse. We’ll get there in a second or two. “The end justifies the means” is NOT what Paul is saying here. That is an unbiblical statement. We can’t do anything we want any way we want as long as we point to God. I could name examples I know about, but I shall refrain from doing so. That in itself would do exactly what I am saying we should not do.

Many scholars say this about what Paul says here. “Of course, this rejoicing does not refer to the impure intention of the preachers, but to the objective result.” These Jewish believers in question were preaching Jesus but were holding the Gentiles to the Mosaic Laws regarding festivals and ordinances. They were attempting to “steal away” Paul’s followers and build their own. BUT they were preaching Jesus as the Messiah Who had come to save all mankind. For that, Paul is rejoicing.

APPLICATION

Matthew, Mark and Luke all use the word for “pretense” when they quoted Jesus as He taught against the Pharisees and Scribes. Luke 20:46-47 says, “46 ‘Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love personal greetings in the marketplaces, and chief seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets, 47 who devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers. These will receive all the more condemnation.’” (See also Matthew 23:14 and Mark 12:38-40)

Notice Jesus wasn’t condemning their prayers. He was condemning their motives for the prayers. Perhaps there were those in the synagogues who were moved by their prayers, the mentioning of the name of Yahweh or the recitation of God’s Word in their prayers. Jesus didn’t say they shouldn’t pray. He warned of their motives.

How can we apply this to our lives? Don’t judge the eternal results of someone’s ministry. That’s for God to decide. We should be careful whom we support to ensure they are not teaching false doctrine or anything that would lead someone away from Christ. We have way too many Christian denominations with way too many traditions and teachings. Not all line up with the Word. But if someone of another denomination leads someone to Jesus, let’s celebrate that. Let’s rejoice in Christ as Paul did.

Father, help me ensure that I focus on the eternal results of anything I teach about Jesus.

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Bible, Falsehoods, Genuine, Scripture, Truth

WITH MY OWN HAND

COLOSSIANS 4:18

“I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Remember my imprisonment. Grace be with you.”

Forgeries are commonplace today. People forge checks to steal money. Others will forge someone’s signature to gain access to property or even a company. And even though it is not technically a forgery, the auto-pen has been used for politicians to sign documents. Someone else is signing for them, though usually this is with their permission.

This last verse of Colossians has Paul confirming his authorship of the letter. He wanted to make sure they knew it was from him and not from someone pretending to be him. Many scholars believe Paul used an amanuensis, which is someone hired to write what you dictate. Matthew Poole says, “The apostle having them on his heart, and here (as elsewhere) likely having used an amanuensis to pen the body of his Epistle, to prevent fraud and forgery he doth subscribe his salutation and apostolical benediction with his own hand, which was well known (Romans 16:22 1 Corinthians 16:21 Galatians 6:11 2 Thessalonians 2:2, 3:17 Philemon 1:19).”  

APPLICATION

How do you apply a verse like this to your own life? What can you possibly get out of this? May I stretch the truth in this verse today? I don’t mean I am going to betray the text. But I have to ask the Lord why this verse is here. I believe he wants us to be genuine in our speech. Truth telling is important. It’s so easy to lie and mislead others. But telling the truth, no matter what, can be costly. Paul knew that. He had not pulled any punches with the Colossians in this letter. He wanted them to know he had penned these words.

Proverbs 12:22 says, “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who act faithfully are his delight.” (ESV) How about this one? “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15. I could go on and on listing verses on truth telling. In fact, do some digging yourself. The Open Bible gives a list of 100 verses on this topic:

https://www.openbible.info/topics/telling_the_truth.

Make sure people know when you speak, they can count on it being the truth. Like Paul, pull no punches, but do it with gentleness, always pointing them to Scripture. Don’t be afraid to affix your signature to anything you have said or written. That way you stand before the Lord as an approved workman too.

Lord, give me only the truth today. Let my words speak of You.

(Today is the last day in Colossians. Tomorrow, we start the book of Philippians.)

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Armor, Bible, Righteousness, Scripture, Truth

THE FIRST TWO PIECES OF THE ARMOR

EPHESIANS 6:14

“Stand firm therefore, having belted your waist with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,”

Before we dive into the parts of the armor Paul describes here, we need to look at that very first verb, “stand firm.” It is the only action verb in verses 14-18. All the rest are participles that tie back to the main verb, “stand firm.” But there is an order here. You can’t stand firm until you have put on all the armor. We can’t run out into battle putting on our gear. No! It has to be on and fixed properly.

Paul lists the first two pieces of the Christian’s armor in today’s verse, truth and righteousness. He compares them to the girdle that was worn over the loins or waist area and to the breastplate that covered from the neck to the top of the thighs. There may be no particular reason why he compared these pieces of armor to these two areas, but that hasn’t stopped scholars from speculating. I want to share some observations from Albert Barnes’ commentary on this verse, but there many others out there with excellent descriptions of this armor. Check them out on www.BibleHub.com.

APPLICATION

The first thing a soldier would put on would be his girdle. Barnes says this about this piece of the armor. “The idea here may be, that as the girdle was the bracer up, or support of the body, so truth is suited to brace us up, and to gird us for constancy and firmness. The girdle kept all the parts of the armor in their proper place, and preserved firmness and consistency in the dress; and so truth might serve to give consistency and firmness to our conduct.” I have often said that truth is the glue that binds us all together. 

Then we have the breastplate. I absolutely love Barnes’ discussion on this. “The king of Israel was smitten by an arrow sent from a bow, drawn at a venture, ‘between the joints of his harness’ or the ‘breast-plate’ (margin), 1 Kings 22:34; and many a man who thinks he has on the ‘Christian’ armor is smitten in the same manner. There is some defect of character; some want of incorruptible integrity; some point that is unguarded – and that will be sure to be the point of attack by the foe. So, David was tempted to commit the enormous crimes that stain his memory, and Peter to deny his Lord. So, Judas was assailed, for the want of the armor of righteousness, through his avarice; and so, by some want of incorruptible integrity in a single point, many a minister of the gospel has been assailed and has fallen. It may be added here that we need a righteousness which God alone can give; the righteousness of God our Savior, to make us perfectly invulnerable to all the arrows of the foe.”

That was long, I know, but wasn’t it a great thought? I have personally known men who had a chink in their armor which allowed the enemy’s arrow to pierce. Make sure your armor is fitted properly and is being maintained. Don’t get caught off-guard.

Lord, we praise You for outfitting us so well.

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