The Truth In Christ

INTRO.- Truth. What is truth? Or where is truth to be found? That depends on the person to whom you are talking.

ILL.- For example, I recently read something about actor Morgan Freeman that caught my eye. It read: Morgan Freeman: I am God. He played the part of God in the comedy “Bruce Almighty.”

He was being interviewed and was asked, “Do you think there is a God?” Freeman replied, “Uh yeah,” but then he paused. He said, “I paused because I am God.” He said, “God is created in my image.” (instead of saying according to scripture that we humans are created in God’s image) Now where in the world did he get that idea? I don’t know but I suspect he conjured it up in his own prideful mind.

Psalm 14:1 “The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”

I would also say that the fool says, “I am God.” I think there are many people who think they are God or are God-like in the sense of being intelligent, powerful, and rich. I think fame and fortune always cause trouble for people, in the sense of perhaps making them think they are smarter than other people. But here is the truth:

John 1:14 “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

John 14:6 Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

I John 2:22-23 “Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist—he denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”

The truth is in Christ, not in Hollywood actors or anyone who think they are wiser than God. Truth is in Christ and in His Word but many people think they are smarter than the Bible.

ILL.- Like that little boy who told his mother he was 7 feet tall. She questioned him and he said, “I am because I just measured myself with my own little ruler.”

Many people have their own rulers in life as to what is good and what is evil. And there isn’t much of anything that is evil to many people in our world. Everything goes. Everything is ok and acceptable. I’m ok. You’re ok. Not so, according to the truth of God’s Word.

ILL.- I loved it when we heard that actor Brad Pitt’s mother disagreed with him about politics and some issues of the day. She wrote in their local Springfield, MO, newspaper.

She also wrote: "I think any Christian should spend much time in prayer before refusing to vote for a family man with high morals, business experience, who is against abortion, and shares Christian conviction concerning homosexuality, etc."

Why would Brad Pitt’s mother write about her opposition to Gay marriage and abortion? Because she is a Christian and is taking a stand on what she believes is the truth of God in scripture!

We all need to take a stand on the truth of God’s Word and even if we are accused of wrongdoing or are persecuted for it.

The problem in our world is that people have no sense of right and wrong or any standard to go by. We believe, however, in the truth of Christ and His Word!

PROP.- The truth is in Christ. And Paul spoke the truth in Christ in this text.

1- The truth of the Holy Spirit

2- The truth of anguish in the heart

3- The truth of separation from Christ

I. THE TRUTH OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

1 I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit.

ILL.- In West Texas is a famous oil -field known as the Yates Pool. During the Depression, this field was a sheep ranch owned by a man named Yates. Mr. Yates was not able to make enough money on his ranching operation to pay the principal and interest on the mortgage, so he was in danger of losing his ranch. With little money for clothes or food, his family like many others had to live on government subsidy.

Day after day, as he grazed his sheep, he wondered how he would be able to pay his bills. Then a seismograph crew from an oil company came into the area and told Mr. Yates that there might be oil on his land. They asked permission to drill a wildcat well, and he signed a lease contract.

At 1,115 feet they struck a huge oil reserve. Many of the early wells on the Yates Field were phenomenally productive; the first five wells, by spring 1927, together produced an average of 9,009 barrels per day, far more than could be stored or moved. Production from the field peaked in 1929, with a total production of 41 million barrels. The field has produced more than one billion barrels of oil, making it one of the largest in the United States, and in 2009 it remains productive, though at a diminished rate.