Breaking Apart Façades to Reveal Truth

“The Lord is near to all who call on him,

to all who call on him in truth.”

— Psalm 145:18 (NRSV)

We, human beings, grow skilfully adept at living out lies—some are whoppers, encroaching on full-blown sin, whilst others, most others, persist sublimely under the radar. Like, for instance, when we pretend to be relaxed in anxiousness; many of us are anxious to the core. But it’s only when we consciously agree when we are anxious that we may come close to help—to being helped. God’s Spirit is seen, here, working by truth—when we accept how things are with us, deep in our psyches, we stand prepared to be delivered. Anxiousness, for this example’s sake, is helped through the healing Presence of God, but only when we are aware and honest with ourselves, seeking and therefore positioned to receive God’s help.

When we break apart the façade of the lies we live with, those that are left unchallenged, God can break through.

But we must begin this demolition process. We are demolishing fabrications; the lies we have accepted about ourselves and about our world, grown out of the roots of fear. And as we demolish, we simultaneously construct. We break down the weaker materials, replacing them with stronger ones; lies are taken down for truth.

As we empty ourselves of the façade, we find God honours our reverence for the truth by fitting us with the encouragement of his firmly reassuring and equipping Spirit.

Becoming a Master of Despatching Lies

Upon the craft of discernment we are given both the gift and the opportunity for sifting through our belief systems. Anything we wish to challenge must be brought to consciousness. Once we perceive something consciously, and we are prepared to filter our perception with the boldness of truth, we stand open to receive God’s revelation.

God will show us remarkable things when we are open to his Spirit.

At this point we are to be warned, however. Sometimes the devil gets inside our heads and tricks us, making truths look like façades and façades like truths. We cannot ever be too careful, because, whilst we develop our mastery against Satan, in the name of the Lord, we are battling Satan at the very craft he loves to attack—discernment.

Too many Christians have gone off and done Satan’s work for him, and, in their delusion, have broken up churches and families, and ruined their, and others’, faith.

Truly, the gift of practical discernment is the art of wisdom in coming to no hasty decisions. The more we are to live for truth, the more God will show us the truthful way. Many times it is good to check with trusted others: “Is my judgment for this thing correct?” And we need to be open to what they say!

Despatching lies, once we know about them, is relatively easy. All we need is a pinch of courage to go a new way.

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Lies are the greatest threat to our relationship with God; and, to the knowledge of the good life. Where we accommodate lies, sin germinates and infiltrates our spiritual garden like weeds among the fine grass. The Spirit of God—the provision of blessing through holy revelation—is the only effective weedkiller for this variety of soul-noxious weed.

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In God is truth and the truth is light for life. In truth is growth. In truth is the capacity to love. And in truth is the Way of the Lord. But we all too often live out of lies. God wants to reveal these to us.

When we go to God, seeking revelation of these façades, they are revealed to us, and with courage we may choose another way—the Way of the Lord. In redeeming such truth we grow in truth, and we also grow in love.

Though God is ever close, the Lord comes closer to us, through our felt experience, as we journey with him in truth. The Lord cannot abide in lies.

© 2013 S. J. Wickham.