5 Minute Read

Prepare Your Heart

To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.

Read God’s Word

1 Chronicles 7-8
John 17

A Verse for Today

Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.

John 17:17 (CSB): “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.”

Reflecting on God’s Word

There is so much in John 17 that is worthy of our attention. But John 17:17 is right up there at the top.

Jesus was praying for Himself, His disciples, and all believers. And as He prayed, He asked that God would “sanctify” His disciples. That means that He would make them holy. This happens in two general ways: First, we are made perfectly holy (we are actually saints) by being credited with the righteousness of Jesus. But, secondly, we must also pursue personal holiness. In other words, we should act like who we are. We are holy, so we should act holy.

But, where does this ability to become holy come from? The primary and ultimate way that God brings about holiness in us is through the application of God’s Word. By God’s grace, we get into God’s Word, it gets into us, we strive to obey it, and we repent of every instance where we fail to do so.

I want you to notice something Jesus said in John 17:17. He didn’t say that God’s Word is true. He said it is “truth.”

That means that God’s Word isn’t merely true; it is the standard of truth.

Have you ever used a plumb line? A plumb line can simply be a piece of string with a weight on the end of it. Imagine that you have gone to the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. You can see that the tower is leaning, but you are a bit disoriented and cannot tell how badly it is leaning. So, you pull out your piece of string with a weight on the end of it (a plumb line) and drop it over the side of the tower. After the string stops swaying, it will show you exactly what angle is straight up and down. As you compare it to the tower’s angle, you can measure exactly how badly the tower is leaning.

The Bible is a plumb line. It isn’t merely true; it is the standard of truth. When something else purports to be true, we measure it against God’s Word. The measure of something’s truthfulness depends completely upon how closely or far it rests when compared to the standard of God’s Word.

For instance, suppose someone claims to believe in evolution and that we all came from monkeys. All we need to do is compare that claim to God’s Word. When we read in Genesis 1-2 that God created all things and that a perfect man and woman started the line of humanity, we soundly reject evolution as a valid claim. It doesn’t align with the standard of truth, the plumb line of God’s Word.

Imagine that someone is transgender and claims that they have prayed about it and God approves of them living their “authentic self.” All we need to do is put that claim up against the standard of God’s Word. When we observe how God made men and women and calls them to live within the roles that align with their genders, we realize that it is impossible for God to change His mind and affirm a lifestyle that rejects the standard He has set in His Word.

There are also plenty of “Christians” who love to judge others and even hate those who are involved in certain types of sins. Is it appropriate to treat others that way? All we need to do is put that response up against the standard of truth to see that it is totally wrong. When we look at Jesus, we observe that He was “a friend of tax collectors and sinners!” (Matthew 11:19). Jesus certainly didn’t affirm their sin. But He did hang around sinners to show them God’s love and show them a better way (the Gospel). The only people Jesus really had trouble with were self-righteous, judgmental, religious folks.

Do you see why it is so important that we need to get into God’s Word and get God’s Word into us? It’s the standard of truth by which we measure everything! We MUST grow in our ability to understand it, use it, and apply it.

Spend Time in Prayer

  • Ask God to help you get into His Word and get His Word into you.
  • Ask God to help you cultivate an ever greater ability to measure everything against the standard of His Word.

Going Deeper

If you want to dig a little deeper into God’s Word being the standard of truth, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:

“What did Jesus mean when He said, ‘Your word is truth’ in John 17:17?”

Sharing

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Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com)