Testifying to the Truth (Lent Devotion) - Friday, March 15
Testifying to the Truth
You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. (John 18:37)
Chief Joseph (Hinmanton Yalatkit) of the Nez Perce once said, “We were taught to believe that the Great Spirit sees and hears everything, and that hereafter He will give every man a spirit-home according to his just deserts…. This I believe and all my people believe the same.”
Chief Joseph was testifying to the truth, as he had come to know it; a truth that spoke of an all-knowing and all-seeing God and the promise of Heaven. But, his truth lacked the message of salvation that can only be realized through faith in Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world and Lord of all.
This is the truth that Jesus was speaking to before Pilate on his day of judgment.
If we were to be judged according to our “just deserts,” we would be found inadequate and undeserving of the spirit-home (Heaven) that awaits those who come to the knowledge of real and total truth. By our “just deserts,” we are condemned. But our victorious Lord and Savior came into the world and died for our sins so we would, instead, be forgiven and redeemed.
This I believe, and it is my prayer that all of God’s people will come to believe the same. This is why we work so hard every day reaching our Native brothers and sisters with hope and healing.
Lord, we thank you for your Son, Jesus, who washed clean the filthy slate of our “just deserts” and whose life, death, and resurrection gives us confidence in the promise of a "spirit-filled home" - eternal life with you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.