Every time the church speaks truth two realities collide. Firstly, God moves to uphold those who speak it, and secondly, Satan moves to attack them.
The devil cannot destroy truth, but he will fight to destroy your faith in it. For the last 6000 years, he has successfully tempted billions to deny, abandon, or oppose the truth before their eyes.
The Christian soldier keeps Satan at bay by resisting him (James 4:7), or, when need be, fleeing from his assaults on our fleshly desires (2 Timothy 2:22).
The faith and commitment of whole congregations have been sifted by the devil. Like the apostle Peter, they have found themselves feeling isolated and harassed by unbelievers. But unlike Peter, after denying The Truth, they have never returned to strengthen their brothers (Luke 22:32).
There is no part of the church of Christ that is not invested in truth. We seek it, imbibe it, speak it, live it, defend it, and spread it. Without it, we are but another social club, but with it, we are “the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15).
Moses’ father-in-law knew that truth could get buried under an avalanche of petty squabbles. He told Moses: “You shall select out of all the people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain; and you shall place these over them as leaders” (Exodus 18:21).
These Old Testament “men of truth” were no different to the New Testament men who aspire to be Elders in the Lord’s church. Men who are “holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict” (Titus 1:9).
All the Lord’s church does is “for the sake of the truth which abides in us and will be with us forever” (2 John 2).
John Staiger