Truth Provides Protection
How does truth protect you?
Verse of the Day
‘Every word of God proves true. He is a shield to all who come to him for protection.’
Today’s Devotional
Imagine that you are going into battle. You are given the knowledge that your task in this battle will mostly be defensive. Before you head into the fight, you are given the opportunity to choose your battle gear. You could choose nothing, braving the battle on your own strength. You could choose something flimsy that will likely not provide the kind of protection you will need. Or…you could choose something that has been proven to be made of the strongest material available. What will you choose?
The problem with this fictional scenario is that when we apply it to our life, we often don’t recognize that we are in a battle zone. Many times we might realize that we need some kind of protection, but we don’t know that we have protection available to us. Other times, we doubt the protective value of what is available to us.
But this makes me ask, what does any of this have to do with truth?
If God truly is God, and He is a good God, and truth begins and ends with Him, then we should be able to trust Him. If we trust Him, we should believe whatever He has to say. In today’s verse, God is telling us that there is an absolute purity in His words. There is no defect or flaw in His message. It stands the test of time, pressure, and conflict, the same way gold does in a refining fire.
Once we have accepted the truth of God’s word to us, it is then up to us to ACT AS IF we trust the truth of His words. When we begin to do that, God is offering us protection, the same way a shield offers protection on the battlefield.
Humans were never meant to study and know the Bible for mere knowledge. We are meant to read it and act upon it. I can order a piece of furniture from IKEA, open the box, and then read and study the instruction manual. I could cite page numbers for each different step in the process, to the point of memorizing the whole thing. But until I actually follow the instructions, I won’t have a functioning piece of furniture. I will only have a box of pieces and some knowledge. But what good is that?
The truth is that God loves us enough to give us an instruction manual. Once we start following the instructions, He offers us protection. We might not know exactly what that looks like or even be able to see what we are being protected from, but the truth stands. Our shield of protection is available. Will you pick it up and use it?
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
What battles have you survived in your life? How do you see God’s protection in that battle as you look back on it?
How can you more actively engage with Scripture?
What instructions from God do you need to actively follow today? How might that shift your perception of truth?