I'm Back! Let's Talk Truth...

Maybe not, but let's say you did. Umkay?

It really feels good to blog again. Aside from the one I did yesterday, I hadn't blogged since October. So much has transpired in my life since then - the natural ups, downs, and sideways (or indifferent). Through it all, Yahweh (Yah or as some know Him - God) has been faithful. And He has taught me many lessons over the passing time. I wrote about one lesson, edification, just yesterday. Today, I want to talk about something I wrote on Facebook as well. This writing talks about Yah's way of uniting His people. However, I also believe that this writing can be shared with unbelievers. Simply because Yah is the truth, and His way will always prevail and stand. If they ever want peace, unity, and brotherly love, it's best to do it His way....and I'll explain below.

For the sake of keeping true to the Facebook post, I will just copy and paste....

I've had some discussions lately with some I consider friends. The discussions centered around the fact that there was obvious tension that "needed to be resolved". There were obvious division within the group, and there were good intentions to bring unity. But this is where we failed and things went awry. 

This stat is not meant to be passive aggressive in any way - all who know me know I absolutely loathe underhanded jabs and passive aggressiveness. So, please if you are thinking "ooo, Deidra is givin someone the business", I want to correct you and say that is *not* true. And for anyone I spoke with yesterday that might read this, please know and understand, I am not speaking in code, or "at" anyone. But I am writing this stat as a lesson for us all about seeking unity. 

The world is making a big push for us all to be united and seek unity. For Christians it is especially hard because we are being asked to push aside our convictions that we know to be truth just to "get along". For those of us who study, we know this is for an obvious and foretold end. Now, here is the thing - we should not be seeking "unity" but we should ALWAYS seek **truth**. 

Some may say that this isn't biblical. How dare I say that we shouldn't be seeking unity! But I should remind you, the same Christ Christians say they love said "Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other! From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against—or two in favor and three against." (Read Luke 12) However, that same Christ said that the only way to achieve unity is to seek truth through Him and His word (see John 17).

There is an important lesson here for all to see. This world promises a false peace. People will promise you a false peace. Your emotions will promise you a false peace. False ministers will promise you a false peace. In doing so, they all promote a false unity. It is false because the "goal" is not to establish peace and unity based off of truth, but off of emotion. Going this route will keep your emotions stirred and keep you blind from seeing the truth. And if you can't see and come to truth, there will be no unity. 

So, when we find ourselves in conflict or trying to resolve it, we should ask ourselves two things:

1. Are my emotions leading my quest for "unity" and "peace"

2. What is the truth, am I allowing myself to see it and do I want to? (ok, that was really like 3 questions, but I made it one so I can keep in line with the "two" things we should ask ourselves LOL) 

I admonish my Christian brothers and sisters keep your focus on truth. Stand fast in it. Make that your goal. Make that your prayer - that *TRUTH* shall prevail, not unity. Speak it when Yah allows, for His timing is perfect. And remember along with truth comes the peace and unity we seek. 

Thank you for reading....

From this writing, I received one response from a brother in Christ. This is his response and my clarification. I will make my point after this.

I believe a misunderstanding of the Father's will is where things went awry. 

The "world's" push for unity calls for compromise. Unity within His body requires obedience and humility. 

The Scripture that was referenced above is about separation from the world not separation within His body. Christ did not come to divide His body. 

Seeking unity is very much biblical. Here are a few of many examples;
You mentioned John 17 so I'll start there. Christ prayed to the Father for unity amongst us...... 

And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
22The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,
23I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. 

1 Corinthians 1:10 KJV
Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. 

Colossians 3:13-15 KJV
Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. 

1 Peter 3:8, 1 John 4:12, Eph 4:3, Romans 12:16, Matt 23:8, etc., etc. There are so many more examples! 

I will now attempt to answer the 2/3 questions you believe one must ask oneself whilst in this conflict.
1. Whether one is emotionally driven or not, the orders are very much plain that we are to seek unity and peace within His body.
2./3. What is the truth? He is the Truth and His Word it's true. One is allowing himself to see by going to His Word and allowing it to have the final say.
I appreciate any lesson that is based upon Truth. This one does not hold up to biblical standards. 

My response:

Hey ____! Hope you are well. The fact is this truth still remains - Yah will never put anything above truth - as, He *is* the truth. We are to always seek Him, His truth and His kingdom above *all* things, the rest - unity, peace, "brotherly love" will be added unto us. 

Oh and one more thing. I apologize to you (and others) for not being clear in my interpretation of John 17. I didn't go into too much depth because it was suppose to be a short stat and not a long blog entry (hence the reason I didn't give all of the verses I was referring to, but the chapter. Besides, the whole chapter is great to read in context anyway). Come to think of it, I think I will make this into a blog entry... 

You are correct in that to *be* in His body requires obedience. But, regarding John 17, we all know that is Christ's prayer both for His disciples that were given to him as well as those who will eventually come to be a part of His body that won't be taken away from Him. The one thing they/we *all* had/have in common was all sought and accepted the *truth* first - for no one can come to Him unless they do. So, while He never explicitly says it, it is understood that His prayer for unity of the body was predicated on the fact that those in Him sought and accepted truth *first* above all things and *then* were united in Him. I hope I cleared where I was coming from with that scripture as I am hoping that anyone reading our discussion will have clarity on both of our parts.Have a good one!

The brother had a good point. Christ never preached against unity. The scriptures don't speak against unity. And quite frankly, neither am I. As with everything Yah does, He sets things in place and in order. While unity isn't preached against, it is taught that we should seek first the truth. The truth is what unifies us. If you should ever find yourself in conflict with someone or people, the questions I posed were meant to help you take your focus off of your emotions and look for the truth. 

And I also understand his point in that He, Yah, is the truth. But, I also want to clarify that if you have children and one breaks a lamp, while Yah and His word is the truth, one of those children still broke the lamp - that is the truth. What happens when the one who did it lies and says the other did? Conflict arises (I DID NOOT! YES YOU DID!! DID NOT!! DID TOO!!). It's best to get the children out of their emotions and come to truth quickly so that there can once again be peace and unity in your home. If you try to make them make up without coming to or seeking truth first, you may be able to make them do it by force, but you better believe there will still be resentment. And the next time the slightest thing happens (HE'S LOOKING AT MEEEE!), you will once again have conflict. So, I said all of that to say, once you find truth, then you will find peace and brotherly love. If you attempt to find unity and love before you find truth, you will always be in conflict.

I also wanted to clarify the statement I made about the "world's peace". I understand that concept is different, but I believe the point I was making was overlooked. Many people want peace - from the secular world to the various denominations (yes even "non-denomination is a denomination) in "church" to what some call the "true body of Christ". And the way that many are trying to achieve it is through human efforts. Often these efforts do involved conformity or not allowing truth to flow freely.

"What do you mean, Deidra?" Well, I'm glad you asked. I will give you two examples, one that I have witnessed personally, and one that I read about:

1. Worldly example - I read about a fire chief in a major metropolitan city in our country. He was a believer and wrote a book that glorified our Father. Within the whole book, there was a very minuscule portion that spoke against the gay life style. He was given the option to recant or resign/be fired. The mayor of this city didn't try to gain peace the way that Yah would have us which is through truth, but he did this through his own human efforts by trying to make this man conform and push aside his convictions.

2. "Church" example - I once belonged to a few different churches, different denominations. Each time I left was due to a church split because there was deceit going on whether it be stealing, manipulation, false doctrine, or basic immorality. Each time during the "church meetings", truth would try to be shared, but emotions ran so high that no one wanted to see it. And each time, those in favor of "unity" urged us to "be quiet" and shove aside our convictions, discernment, even outright evidence, and "stop causing trouble". Unless you have been in the situation, you have no idea how hard it is to share the truth with those who don't want it. But here again, we have a mass of people trying to achieve unity not Yah's way, but theirs. The inevitable happened, and the church split or people left.

Our emotions are very fickle because we are human and imperfect. When we let our emotions get in the way, we don't want truth. Maybe we don't want it because if we have the truth, we have to face ourselves. Or maybe it's because if we accept the truth, we have to get rid of what we thought we built. Or maybe it's because if we accept the truth the very thing we hoped and dreamed for we now perceive can no longer be. Or maybe it's because if we accept the truth we have to admit wrongdoing and say "I'm sorry".

Case in point, I have had talks with atheists before. As long as we didn't talk about Yah (the weather, how's the family, how's the job?) all was well. But as soon as anything pertaining to the personhood, grace, mercy etc of Yah comes about, their emotions quickly get the best of them becoming angry and not wanting to see truth.

Another case, co-workers may get along, and have a great working relationship. But, as soon as a lie is told, recognition isn't given, or feelings are hurt - things spiral out of control. The boss can do all he can to bring unity to his group. He can hold socials, meetings, team building conferences, but unless he gets down to the truth and the group sees and accepts it, he'll just be blowing his "team social budget".

These are two "worldly" examples that I'm using, but the point is still the same. When we let our emotions get the best of us, we become blinded. And unity will never form until the truth can be seen and shared. And if the truth can't be shared freely or seen, then a greater wedge (satan) will come to continue to divide and conquer. I hope you caught that "will come" - sometimes it is not satan at all that starts things, but it is us who gives him the open door. I think of the conversation that Yah had with Cain before he killed his brother Abel. Yah told Cain to get a hold of his emotions and do what is right otherwise sin would be waiting for him. Cain never did what Yah told him - anger was still in his life and he left the door open for sin to come in.

I didn't get to write all of this before because like I said, it was suppose to just be a Facebook stat. But, I will close with this last reminder:

If there once was peace and unity as a result of everyone operating out of the truth then a conflict and confusion arose, somewhere and somehow a lie entered the scene. It is wisdom to not prejudge, but watch, pray, confirm and when the Spirit of Truth (The Holy Spirit) says speak, then speak. If you ever want peace and unity again - don't chase after it until you first seek and accept the truth. And don't be afraid of where the truth may lead you. Our plans are not Yahweh's plans. Don't blind yourself in emotion trying to hold something together that could be the opposite of what Yahweh wants. Truth is truth - no matter where it lands. We as believers need to understand that where ever it lands, Yah is faithful to keep us just as He has before and He will keep us on His path of righteousness and truth. It is there while walking with Him on that path, you will once again find peace, unity and love.

I hope that all made sense. :-)  Good night everyone!