WRECKED BY RUMOR

1 Samuel 18:5-19:24; John 8:31-59; Psalm 112:1-10; Proverbs 15:12-14

“David continued to succeed in everything he did, for the Lord was with him. When Saul recognized this, he became even more afraid of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David because he was so successful at leading his troops into battle.”

“Jesus said to the people who believed in him, ‘You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’”

“Those who are righteous will be long remembered. They do not fear bad news; they confidently trust the Lord to care for them. They are confident and fearless
and can face their foes triumphantly.”

“A wise person is hungry for truth, while the fool feeds on trash.”

Saul had serious jealousy problems. The reality was he was king. He commanded Israel’s armies and people. Then he heard women singing, grossly exaggerating David’s victory over Goliath by giving him credit for killing “ten thousands” instead of one giant. Even though there was not a grain of truth in the praise, Saul became jealous of the falsehood. It quite literally drove him mad. Jealously eventually ripened into outright fear. And Saul was lost, eternally.

Isn’t it astonishing how willing we are to play the hands Satan deals us, without any real regard for actual truth or falsity? We form opinions on hearsay; we speak without knowledge; we become jealous of, and even come to fear, rumors. We are enslaved by innuendo. Like the fools of Proverbs, we feed on trash. It’s no wonder our hearts and stomachs rebel with cardiac arrests, ulcers and other stress-related illnesses. We can’t fight what isn’t real with anything less that the absolute Truth of Jesus Christ. Only the Truth can free us and save us.

A friend I respect and appreciate lives in unfailing adherence to the course Jesus has charted for him, regardless of the sacrifice it requires. Lately, he has been challenged at just about every turn and absolutely assaulted by rumors that would be laughable if they were not taken so seriously by those who are spreading them. One particularly heinous charge began circulating that my friend actually was abusive to an older couple. For several days, the claim circulated unchecked, alienating my friend from more and more people without his knowledge. Finally, one fair-hearted individual questioned the facts, wondering out loud if the supposedly abused couple stood by the story. When the facts were checked and found to be almost precisely contrary to the rumors, the lies stopped.

Jesus understood fully that our only hope for freedom rests in His Truth: truth that we are loved beyond imagination; truth that we can be forgiven; truth that honesty - with others and, most of all, ourselves – is more powerful than any rumor. Christ knows rumors and bondage wither where truth reigns. We, on the other hand, spend much of our lives in unproductive fear of what the truth might be instead of investing ourselves as Christ did in an unflinching dedication to what Truth is. Like Saul, we fear the loss of place and power. Sadly, we miss the truth that our loss of place and power usually has its genesis in a distasteful stew of falsehood and jealousy. It’s not so much that others snatch position from us. It’s that the lies and half truths we allow to govern our lives actually do little more than erode our foundations and security. It takes no intelligence for others to recognize that insecure people make lousy leaders.

Jesus wants to free us from bondage to our impressions, opinions and imaginations. The only requirement is that we have to be willing to accept and confront the truth.  We may believe the truth will hurt. Christ says it will set us free. Who are we gonna believe? Even if the truth does hurt, isn’t freedom worth the pain?