Do You Suppress the Truth?
Do You Suppress the Truth?
Today’s Verse and Thought
“ For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.”(Romans 1:18-20).
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Yesterday we looked at what it takes to create trust in a relationship. One of the keys to trust is living a life that is consistent with our words. This consistency keeps us from being hypocritical. But what about hiding the truth? Or what if we stay silent about evil, does this build trust?
Not everyone is open to hearing the truth. And we can sometimes “tell the truth” in ways that cause more harm than good (rather than speaking the truth IN LOVE). But how often do we keep silent about truth because we are too afraid to speak up or we are more concerned with how someone will react to us? How often do we stay silent because we don’t want to create waves; or stir the pot’; or create an uncomfortable situation; or not speak up because people won’t like us (or perhaps vote for us) if we spoke truthfully?
Hiding the Truth is Like a Lie By Omission
Romans 1:18-20 begins by stating that God's wrath is revealed against all the ungodliness and unrighteousness of people who “suppress the truth”.
Suppressing the truth seems to be a common occurrence in our society today. In fact we just went through one of the greatest worldwide campaigns of suppression as global governments hid the truth from citizens on a mass scale during the Covid pandemic.
Factual information was constantly restricted by “the experts” for reasons and motives that are just now beginning to surface. Their actions made it nearly impossible for people to know what the best course of action was.
Due to the way this crisis was handled, fear and confusion grew rampant and caused so much grief for people around the world. Those who knew the truth for the most part stayed silent, or declared an incomplete, or even false picture of what was happening.
“For God is not a God of confusion but of peace…”(1 Corinthians 14:33)
Suppressing the truth implies a conscious effort to hold back, deny, or ignore the truth. When it comes to the truth about God, His character, and His expectations regarding our lives, do we hide the truth?
Even if we are silent, God’s Creation isn’t
In this passage, God’s revelation is seen throughout all of His Creation. This passage emphasizes that God has made His existence known to humanity through the natural world. Creation itself serves as evidence of God’s power and divine nature.
Because people can observe creation, they are without excuse for not recognizing the existence of God. The argument is that the visible world points to an invisible Creator. Colossians 1:16 states that “all things were created by God and for Him,” suggesting that Creation is ultimately intended to lead us back to Him.
There are many verses that highlight the idea that we have a responsibility to respond to the knowledge of God. No one will be excused. It underscores the relationship between Creation and faith, suggesting that ignoring this truth has severe consequences.
Ephesians 4:17-18 - This passage describes people who walk in the futility of their minds, darkened in understanding, and alienated from the life of God due to their willful ignorance and hardness of heart.
Romans 1:25 - Specifically mentions those who exchange the truth of God for a lie and worship created things - like nature or anything in nature - rather than the Creator. They chose to believe in lies, rather than humble themselves before God.
Galatians 6:7 - It states that people will “reap what they sow.” This is a sobering verse as it suggests that rejecting the truth has consequences that we bring upon ourselves. Thankfully, we serve a patient and merciful Savior, We who call on His name will ultimately be forgiven. But there still may be natural consequences in this world for the choices we make.
2 Peter 2:1 - This warns about false teachers who secretly bring in destructive heresies, denying the truth and leading others astray. If we don’t speak out against deception, does our silence equal approval of their lies?
1 John 1:6 - If we claim to have fellowship with God while walking in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. How can we be good ambassadors of God’s truth if our lives don’t match with what we claim to believe?
John 3:19-20 - This passage explains that people love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil; they may avoid the truth to protect themselves from judgment, but they won’t escape in the end. Do we avoid the truth because it might reveal our own sins?
2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Here, Paul talks about people who refuse to love the truth and are led to believe lies, ultimately facing judgment for their rejection of God.
1 Timothy 4:1 - This verse warns about those who will depart from the faith and follow deceiving spirits and teachings of demons, indicating a willful rejection of truth.
Romans 2:8 - It states that those who are self-seeking and reject the truth will face wrath and indignation.
Do Not Harden Your Hearts
In passages like Exodus 4:21 and Romans 1:24, God allows those who reject Him to follow their own sinful desires, leading to a hardening of their hearts. We see many examples of hardened hearts throughout scripture and God warns us against it.
When we are constantly confronted with God’s truth, and we purposefully reject it, each time we do this our hearts get a little harder. Before long, people build up a fortress that the Spirit of Truth can no longer penetrate.
Suppressing the truth leads to spiritual blindness, judgment, and a distancing from God’s presence. As God’s children, we are to be the light of truth in a fallen world. We may not be like many heretical teachers today who are blatantly lying, but staying silent about the truth is really no different.
To be continued…
Today’s Question
Verses to Explore
‘“Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.’”(Jeremiah 32:17)
“Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity, and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.”(Psalms 26:1)
“And the woman said to Elijah, ‘Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.’ ”(1 Kings 17:24)
Today’s Prayer
Father, today I pray the words of the Psalmist - “Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.”
I pray that I will always listen when you prompt me to speak up. I pray for courage to be the light of your truth, even if it may offend someone.
I don’t want to fear men and women who may have a bad opinion about me if I say something that they may not like. Help us today to stop being cowards and suppressing your truth. Help us to speak up and stand for your righteousness with a gentle and strong conviction. And also help us have the power to live consistent lives so that we never defame your name or reputation. I want people to know you Father. And I want those I love to live in your peace and eternal glory. May I never be guilty of suppressing that.
Help us today to live a Spirit-filled life of courage and conviction. Help us to care enough about others who are on the wrong road to try and pull them off the path of destruction.
I pray for the men in our country today that they stop listening to the lies about who the world claims they are, and become the Joshua and Elijahs of our day. I pray that they become men of God; not wimpy boy-puppets of Satan.
I also pray for women to become the heart of the home again. I pray that they stop listening to the tik-tok lies of a wretched demonic selfish harpy who lies about the true beauty of a Godly woman. Open our eyes to see their lies.
And I pray that you keep us on the right path. Keep us focused on the blessed life you promised when we stay humble at your feet. We pray that our lives bring you honor and glory every day. Amen.❤️
The medical industry promoted smoking (source)
