Just Tell the Truth
Be honest. We don’t much like being told to repent. And we like being told that we need to repent even less. In a society that promotes unrestricted personal freedom, the suggestion that the way we’re living our lives might be something that needs to be repented of chafes at our consciences. But as Christians, we know that the call to repentance is a primary part of the message of the Gospel. It’s only when we repent of our sins and turn to Jesus that we can be forgiven and saved.
In Mark 6:14-29 we see people who, like today, are all about just living for the moment. At the heart of the story is a king who’s in an illicit relationship, and who’s called to repentance by John the Baptist. We also see the deceitfulness and destructiveness of sin and get a stark reminder of the opposition we face when we stand for God in world that’s in rebellion against him.
It isn’t easy to be someone who’s preaching about the need for repentance and God’s forgiveness. It threatens those in power, and it threatens those who don’t want to give up the false freedom of an immoral lifestyle. That makes it dangerous to proclaim the reign of God and speak the truth.
Part of what made John so dangerous was that he was single-minded. He was committed to being God’s prophet. But how did he keep from getting distracted? And how do we stay focused on being the person that God has called us to be?
The Bible plainly tells us that as followers of Jesus we’ve been given a mission. We’re called to live a righteous life, but we’re also called to spread the Good News, seek justice for the poor, and bring hope to the hopeless. When we aren’t actively using our gifts for God’s service it’s much easier to become distracted from our mission and led astray. And once that happens, we can get turned around in our values and judgement.
John the Baptist told the truth no matter how dangerous it was. Jesus told the truth, too, even though He knew it would lead to His death. And today Jesus is calling us to tell the truth despite the risks. To try to protect us, many of the people around us will advise against our revealing uncomfortable truths. They’ll also advise us not to hang around those who do, because it’s dangerous. They’ll tell us to just keep our heads down and our mouths shut, or we might get hurt.
But we have to make a decision. What does it mean to follow Jesus? Can we look the other way from things that are sinful, hurtful, or both? Can we be silent in the face of wrongdoing? Or is the safest thing just to avoid hanging around with any truth-tellers, and not become one?
Jesus makes the answer clear. Just tell the truth.
