… people of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth…
Summary: No one likes the idea of being robbed, but what if what the robbers took was worth more than all the money in the world?
“Help! I’ve been robbed!!”
“Oh — wait. I let it happen…”
Paul’s statement that some people have been “robbed of the truth” is thought-provoking. How do you “rob” someone of the truth?
Does someone sneak into your mind at night and find where you have hidden the truth and then take it?
The human mind is a funny thing. It is a bit like a leaky bucket. People are always putting things into our minds, wagging their finger at us, and sternly warning, “Now remember what I told you!”
Sometimes, instead of waiting for whatever they put in our minds to leak out, we just toss it as soon as they are out of sight. We know what we like, and we know what we don’t like.
Unfortunately, hanging on to the truth is hard.
One reason is our tendency to forget. Those are the “leaks” we were talking about. Another is that when people come along and start pouring words in our ears, it messes with our thinking. Certain words are especially effective at stirring our mental pot and making it hard to hang on to the truth.
The Good News for believers is that we have the Holy Spirit. Jesus promises that the Holy Spirit will help us stay grounded in the truth:
”But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:26)
For those who are unwilling or unable to listen to the Holy Spirit, the truth is sometimes pushed out by other “truths” that people claim are real.
I’m not suggesting that people who are easily confused are rejected by God. We are, after all, his sheep (John 10:14). But confusion about the truth can render us ineffective in our work for the Body of Christ. That is why it is important for believers to read the Bible every day; we need to stay grounded in the truth.
Application: Read your Bible every day.
Food for Thought: How do you know what the truth is, and how do you guard against losing it?
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I think your application point kind of answers the question. Jesus is the way the truth and the life (John 14: 6). The Holy Spirit will illuminate God’s truth as we read His word (John 14: 26; 16: 13). And His word is truth (John 17: 17). So we need to get in and stay in His word daily.
Thanks, Brother!
Amen!! 🙂
I agree with Rich’s answer. My thoughts as well are:
We can know the truth and guard against losing it if we earnestly seek the truth.
Proverbs 2:1-5
2 My son, if you receive my words
and treasure up my commandments with you,
2 making your ear attentive to wisdom
and inclining your heart to understanding;
3 yes, if you call out for insight
and raise your voice for understanding,
4 if you seek it like silver
and search for it as for hidden treasures,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
We can know the truth and guard against losing it if we abide in the Word.
John 8:31-32
31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
We can know the truth and guard against losing it if we look for it’s fruit, commonly called the test of time. We can look at secular history, and very much so, Biblical history, to see how those who followed Christ followed the truth.
Matthew 12:33
33 “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit.
Thank you, Chris!
I hadn’t thought of this as a “test of time,” but you are right. When it comes to fruit we have to be patient.
How do you know what the truth is, and how do you guard against losing it?
John 14:15-18. 15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”
John 16:8–11&13, And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world s judged.
13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
The truth is being made known to all people on this earth. There will be no excuse.
Guess I’m late to the party. All great answers.
Thanks for stopping by! 🙂