Walking with the Wise #141: An Illegitimate Kingdom

“The righteous hates falsehood,
 

but the wicked brings shame and disgrace.” 

—Proverbs 13:5

Lies. Lies are an attempt to create an alternative world where the lie is true, and truth is a lie. A lie is a satanic device injected into the world of truth, in an attempt to give Satan a hold on the world. It is a slap in God’s face, and one way that Satan attempts to plant his illegitimate flag of his reign in God’s kingdom. The more lies there are, the more flags are planted on the soil of God’s kingdom. The more lies there are, the more that people will turn to Satan, because they wrongly believe that he is rightly in charge.

The antithesis of lying is truth, because God is not only the source of truth, but the very standard by which all truth is judged. He is the one who created the world for Himself, He is the one who has established what right and wrong are, and He is the one who will judge every single person for what they have done. So, in the knowledge that all will have to give an account, it is vitally important that we tell the truth. Those who are righteous hate falsehood because we know that falsehood is a rejection of who God is and an embrace of who God is not.

Not so for the wicked. The wicked do not care about God, and would rather He not exist. They will do anything to deny or reject His existence so that they can live without a condemning conscience, and the terrifying idea that they will be judged for the sin that they love. They would rather live in a world of falsehood because of their love for their sin, than live in the wonderful grace of Jesus Christ and all that He has given to them because that would require them repenting and forsaking of their sin, something that they cannot and will not do.

The only treatment for such futile and foolish thinking is to repent and believe in the Gospel. When one considers the sacrifice of Christ for their sin, then they can see all that their sin merits—suffering and death. The divine Son of God took our sins upon Himself, and the punishment that was due us, He took. Such love is beyond our ability to fathom. Even if we were to see to the farthest recesses of the universe, we still would not be able to see an ending to the love of God. Ours is to accept and live in the wonderful good news of Jesus Christ, knowing that if we come to Him in humble repentance, He will by no means cast us out. He will enable us to live the righteous life God desires and requires, and it will be a joyous thing. There will not be the sense of loss over the consequences of sin, nor condemnation for past actions, but a loving sense of adoration and thankfulness that comes from being fully aware of the mercy and grace bestowed by God.

May the Lord our God enable us to be sons and daughters of light, living with clean consciences because of the Spirit’s application of His resurrection life to our own, given for us to live as the children He desires that we be. Amen.