The Invisible Man – John 14: 17b

The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him.

In 1987 H. G. Wells penned a story about a scientist who discovers a way to alter his body’s refractive index, effectively becoming invisible. Unfortunately for the man, the effect could not be reversed, and he remained a kind of monster. In the end, the isolation drives him mad and desperation drives him to crime and to murder.

John writes that the world cannot see or know the Spirit of truth. While this spirit is a wonderful gift, the effect it has on a person is like the potion that made the scientist in the story invisible. A person who knows the truth and acts on the truth will not be accepted by the world. The world does not understand.

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Antidote – John 14: 16-17

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth.

Back in the beginning, way back in Genesis 3, we are told the story of What Went Wrong. In verse 5 we hear the Serpent telling Eve that if she ate the Forbidden Fruit, “… you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” What the Serpent didn’t tell Eve was that she would not be able to tell the difference. It is a small detail, but very important.

Jesus calls the Serpent, “…a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44) The purpose of a lie is to deceive. Not being all-knowing like God, we are easily deceived. We see the lies, we just can’t tell the difference between what is true and what is not true.

For us to be able to know the difference between truth and lies requires that we look to God. Proverbs reminds us:

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