ARTICLES FROM THE PERSUADER
VOLUME VI (2003-2008)
Why Do "Good Men" Reject Truth?
To answer this question I must first describe what I mean by “good men.” The Bible is very clear that there “is none that doeth good” not even one. (Rom. 3:12: “They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” Psa. 14:1: “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.” Psa. 14:3: “They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” Psa. 53:1: “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good.” Psa. 53:3: “Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”) Therefore, I use this term “good men” from the standpoint of the world. A good man is one who has character, is honest and dependable, pays his bills on time, is good to others, has a tender heart, and is looked up to by others around him as being a “good man.” Now the question--why would such a man reject truth? Many do, but why? There are several reasons but I just want to mention a few.
1. Captured by Tradition.
“Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” Col. 2:8 Tradition is defined as that which is handed down from generation to generation. Tradition can be good or bad and most of the time when the Bible mentions this word, it is used in a bad sense. Therefore, we are warned to beware of the traditions of men lest we be captured (spoiled) by them. Our Lord told the religious crowd that they rejected the commandment of God to keep their tradition. (Mark 7:9:”And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.”) Thus, they made the Word of God of none effect because of their tradition. (Mark 7:13: “Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.”) Tradition captures “good men” and causes them to reject truth.
2. Blinded by the Devil.
“But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” II Cor. 4:3-4 The devil, who is the god (note: little “g”) of this world, blinds a person’s mind so that they cannot see (spiritually) the truth of the gospel--the way of real salvation. Also the devil controls those he blinds, which is true of every person before they are saved. This is plainly stated in Eph. 2:2. (“Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.” Eph. 2:2) Because of this condition, when truth is presented to “good men,” it is rejected.
3. Void of the Spirit.
“But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” I Cor. 2:14 The natural man is one who is not saved, thus, he is void of the Spirit--does not possess the Holy Spirit. (Rom. 8:9: “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.”) The Bible is clear that one who possesses the Holy Spirit will be guided into all truth. (John 16:13: “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.”) Many “good men” receive the things of God but not the things of the Spirit--stated in I Cor. 2:14. Thus, they are void of the Spirit and reject truth when it is presented to them.
I know of “good men” who practiced easy believism (another gospel) in the past and now they realize that easy believism did not work and also they state that now they have come to an understanding about the truth of the things of the Spirit--the truth of real salvation. You might say “that is great.” But let me ask you a question, “Why did they go for years practicing easy believism if they were saved?” Does not the presence of the Holy Spirit guide one into truth? (John 16:13) Yes, He does! Thus, we would have to conclude that a person who practices easy believism for years is not saved. And if he embraces the doctrine of the truth of real salvation without a complete work of godly sorrow and reproval (Holy Ghost conviction) he is still not saved--void of the Spirit. A mental change of doctrine is not evidence of a heart reception of the Spirit.
Then, there are “good men” who are adamantly against the 1-2-3 repeat after me type of easy believism and plainly state that it takes the Holy Spirit to work salvation in a person but they reject the truth of the need of completed work of Holy Ghost conviction which included repentance and faith. It is true that what the Lord Jesus did at Calvary was complete but that work has to be completed personally in every person for them to be saved. Therefore, a person who rejects truth is void of the Spirit--he is not saved.
We conclude by saying the main reason that “good men” reject truth is because they are not saved. Many “good men” we have encountered know that if what we preach and practice is truth, then they are not saved and they will not even consider that possibility. Thus, they reject truth instead of examining themselves (“Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” II Cor. 13:5), getting honest, and allowing the Holy Ghost to complete a complete work in them. They had rather die and go to hell than admit they were lost. So they reject truth.
Why do “good men” reject truth? The main underlying reason is that they are not saved!
If you are in this condition, I beg you to find truth, embrace truth, continue in truth, preach truth, and practice truth instead of rejecting truth. Jesus said if you would continue in truth (Word) you shall be saved--know the Truth who is the Lord Jesus. (John 8:31-32: “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”) For a person to be saved he must call in truth (Psa. 145:18: “The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.”) Therefore one who rejects truth will never be saved if they continue to do so. I care for you and understand how easy it is to reject truth because I did it for years, ignorantly. But the Lord was longsuffering and good to me by giving me understanding of truth. Therefore, I will love you in the condition you are in and stay with you by the grace of God, until you are enabled to embrace truth.
THE PERSUADER - July-Sept., 2006