Bag of apples

I stumbled upon a great verse of Scripture today. In 1 John 2:21 the Bible says “no lie is from the truth”. John says this as he is reminding the readers that they know the truth and as such no lie comes from the truth. It is a fascinating study to look at this word ‘truth’.  The same author quotes Jesus in John 8:32 when Jesus says, “know the truth and the truth will set you free”.  Many people know this verse. It’s often found or quoted in our own legal system. Jesus is talking here of eternal freedom. It also has meaning for freedom in this life as we serve Jesus. Freedom to worship Jesus, freedom to discern His will, freedom to live in His truth. 

So, if it is the case that no lie comes from truth, how do we find this truth?  How do we take hold of this truth that can and will set us free?  Jesus tells us in John 8:31 and 32. He says IF we abide in His Word, we are His disciples. And IF we abide in His Word we will know the truth. And If we abide in His Word, the truth will set us free. So the key to unlock this freedom is to abide in His Word. Abide means to stay, reside, and take up residence. Do you abide in His Word?  Do you abide in this truth?

1 John 2:21 says that this truth, that we get from His Word, contains no lies.  I am reminded of buying a bag of apples at the store. If my wife asks me to buy a bag of apples, and I buy a bag of apples, she can be sure if she pulls out a piece of fruit for the kids, it will be an apple.

  
On the other hand, if my wife asks my to buy a bag of apples and I buy a bag of apples and oranges, she can’t be sure when she reaches into the bag that she will pull out an apple. She might grab an orange. It’s still a small, round fruit that grows on a tree…but it isn’t an apple. If we are not basing our lives on the truth of Scritpure, we cannot be sure we won’t follow after lies. Lies often masquerade as truth. Lies often contain some truth. But they are not truth. If we have a bag that isn’t all truth, we may pull out some truth, but we will also pull out some lies. 

You and I must abide in His Word. It sets us free, it keeps us from lies.  We won’t grab an orange when we’re looking for an apple.