The Truth Will Set You Free
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1 Chronicles 28:9 RSV
"And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father, and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts, and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off for ever.
Jeremiah 31:33 RSV
But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Proverbs 3:1-10,13-15, 19-22, 35 RSV
1. My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments; 2. for length of days and years of life and abundant welfare will they give you. 3. Let not loyalty and faithfulness forsake you; bind them about your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. 4. So you will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and man. 5. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. 6. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. 7. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. 8. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones. 9. Honor the Lord with your substance and with the first fruits of all your produce; 10. then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine. 13. Happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gets understanding, 14. for the gain from it is better than gain from silver and its profit better than gold. 15. She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her. 19. The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding he established the heavens; 20. by his knowledge the deeps broke forth, and the clouds drop down the dew. 21. My son, keep sound wisdom and discretion; let them not escape from your sight, 22. and they will be life for your soul and adornment for your neck. 35 The wise will inherit honor, but fools get disgrace.
John 8:31,32 NIV
Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
I just love this verse from Jeremiah. It’s so poetic and beautiful! “I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” God wants us to make His law a part of our bodies—like an extra internal organ. In so doing, we are to honor, love, and acknowledge it as if it were crucial to our survival. And it is! Proverbs tells us to let our hearts keep God’s commandments.
“Lord you are more precious than silver, Lord you are costly than gold, Lord you are more beautiful than diamonds, and nothing I desire compares to you.” These are the word to a song I find myself humming often—I didn’t know the inspiration for it was 1 Chronicles! Wisdom—God’s law is truly the most precious thing we could ever imagine—especially because of God’s promise when we live by wisdom. When we write God’s law in our hearts, we acknowledge it with every heartbeat. It becomes a part of us.
There really is no other way to live. The righteous of this world struggle, just as they did long ago. God is in heaven. He made the earth—the land, the sea, the air we breathe—all thought of and created by Him, for us. And all He asks in return is that we acknowledge Him in all our ways, and serve Him with willing minds. He will be our God and we will be His people. Jesus was the incarnation of God’s promise. He provided the example to us of what God really was trying to tell us all those centuries! We just couldn’t get it! Not because of a lacking on God’s part, but because we rely on our own wisdom, seek our own truth, search for the easier path. We keep trying to make ourselves like God.
But we can’t even begin to equal Him! We can’t even imagine! Jesus came to earth in the form a man, because that’s all we could understand! And He died a man, not as a symbol, but as the fulfillment of the prophecies. He arose, not symbolically, but literally, on the third day. When we write God’s word in our heart, and put the law within us, we have the promise that we too will arise to a new reality one day: heaven. Eternal life, without the struggles and distractions of this life. Without the burdens and the questions, and the challenges. That will be our reward for honoring God highly and bowing down in humility and gratitude for His faithfulness.
We will dwell with Him and His Son, and the Holy Spirit will be upon us. He will be our God and we will be His people. The path to that paradise is through the truth of Christ risen. Our faith in a living, active, loving and mighty God, was personified in Jesus. He is our truth. And the truth will set us free.
I hope you spend your day writing God’s words upon the tablet of your heart, rejoicing that we have heard the truth. And the truth will set us free!
Mary
