Mark 9:31-32 “for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, ‘The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.’ But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him.”
Whenever I read this passage, I am puzzled as to why the disciples would be “afraid to ask Him” for an explanation. They had been walking with Jesus for some time and had witnessed first-hand His supernatural love and patience. Were they worried that He was going to react out of character and yell at them or denounce their Apostleship for simply seeking clarification? What were they truly afraid of? I asked God this question and He answered; they were afraid of the truth. They neither wanted to hear nor truly understand what Jesus had to say about His impending suffering and death. We do this a lot. We hide from the truth, pretending that we neither see, hear, nor understand it, because the truth is often painful.
In last month’s (June 2021) blog, One And The Same, we discussed a painful truth about all believers in Jesus Christ; “we are both devoted servants and wretched sinners- one and the same”. It is imperative for God’s children to humbly accept the truth about self, others, the Lord, and His plan, so that we may live honestly before Him.
Pilate asked Jesus before His crucifixion, “What is truth?” (John 18:38a). The Bible answers this question simply and clearly…Jesus Christ is truth:
John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’.”
John 1:14, 17 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”
Revelation 19:11 “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.”
…God’s Word is truth:
Psalm 119:160 “The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.”
John 17:17 “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”
… and the truth is what sets us free:
John 8:31-32 “So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, ‘If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free’.”
So, with all of this in mind, why were the disciples and why are we so often afraid of the truth, doing whatever is possible to avoid facing it?
Ephesians 5:13 “But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible,”
Whenever the light of Truth is directed towards something or someone, it is illuminated and exposed for what it actually is, leaving no place for lies and fantasy to hide. Those things that are of God are shown to be righteous and beautiful, while the things of the world and our flesh are shown to be unrighteous and detestable. If we happen to be clinging to “truths” that are not of God, we fear this exposure because the illusion of life that we have created would be shattered by it. Then what? For unbelievers, the result is a crippling loss of stability and confidence. For the humble believer, this shattering of self-constructed illusions results in freedom (John 8:32). Once the lies in our lives are exposed, along with our individual fears, sins, and weaknesses, we can then seek deliverance in His Word and in prayer.
Psalm 34:4 “I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.”
1 Corinthians 15:56-57 “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
We are to seek the Truth, not hide from it, just as we are to seek and not hide from the Lord. If you happen to be feeling convicted right now, take heart, you are not alone. Hiding from both our Creator and the truth about who we are has been a tendency of mankind’s flesh since the beginning.
Genesis 3:8-11 “Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, ‘Where are you?’ And he said, ‘I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.’ He said, ‘Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?’”
God already knows all that there is to know about us, so there is never a need to hide from Him or fear the exposure of our sin. God loves us and has promised to neither leave nor forsake His own, under any circumstance.
Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”
Psalm 139:8 “If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!”
We must learn to trust our Lord and His promises and we must decide to face the Truth; only then will we experience His promised freedom.
Love in Christ,
Monica Ledford