When Truth Sets You Free

Truth is a word we use a lot.

We talk about telling the truth. Knowing the truth. Standing for the truth. Defending the truth. But lately I’ve been thinking about how many things try to present themselves as truth that are not truth at all.

news, gossip, rumors, opinions, assumptions, half-stories, things said with confidence by people who only know a piece of what happened

If we aren’t careful, we start reacting to everything as if it deserves the same weight. But not everything that is spoken is true. Not everything that feels personal deserves a battle. 

A few years ago, my beanpole son got into a battle of words with another kid at camp. This child called him fat. 

Now listen. šŸ™„ There are plenty of things someone could have called Wyatt that might have at least made us pause and consider if there was a little truth buried in there somewhere. But fat was not one of them. This child had clearly chosen the wrong insult for my kid. šŸ˜‚

But even though it was not true, Wyatt was offended. And because he was offended, he threw an insult back. 

Unfortunately, his insult was the one heard by the adults. Isn’t that always how it goes?He did not get kicked out of camp or anything dramatic like that, but he did get in trouble. Enough that he felt ashamed. Enough that he felt the punishment. Enough that he also felt the injustice of the other kid’s insult going unnoticed.

But that night, our conversation was not about the insult or the words... It was about truth. 

I asked him, “Wyatt, are you fat?”

He said, “No.”

And I said, “Then if you had let the truth be enough, you could have been free from the fight that followed.”

Whew.

That was a big lesson for a ten-year-old.

Honestly, it was a big lesson for me too.

How often do we hear something untrue and still let it pull us into a battle?

Someone questions our motives.

Someone misrepresents what happened.

Someone makes an assumption.

Someone repeats a rumor.

Someone says something that hurts, even though deep down we know it is not true.

.... And suddenly we are defending ourselves against something that was never truth to begin with. We hear the lie. We feel the sting. We react. And now we are tangled up in a fight that truth could have set us free from.

Jesus said:

“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

— John 8:32

I think sometimes we read that verse and make truth sound like information.

Facts.

Correct details.

Proof.

Receipts.

The full story laid out in a way no one can argue with.

And yes, truth matters. Facts matter. Honesty matters. But truth is not only a concept.

Truth has a name.

Jesus said:

“I am the way and the truth and the life.”

— John 14:6


Truth is not just something we gather. Truth is Someone we follow. And when we know Him, we do not have to live enslaved to every lie, every rumor, every opinion, or every false accusation that gets thrown our way.

That does not mean lies do not hurt. They do. That does not mean injustice does not matter. It does. That does not mean we never speak up, set boundaries, correct what needs correcting, or stand for what is right. There is certainly a time for that too.

But there is a difference between standing in truth and scrambling to defend ourselves from every lie.

One is freedom.

The other is exhausting. 

Scripture says:

"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

— Exodus 14:14

That verse does not come naturally to me. I am much better at preparing my argument than being still. I can replay the conversation. Gather my evidence. Organize my thoughts. Imagine the perfect response... Often three days too late.

But sometimes the Lord’s invitation is not, “Defend yourself harder," but rather, “Stand still and remember what is true.”

Who does God say you are?

What does He know that others do not?

What has He actually called you to do?

What truth has He already spoken over your life?

Because when we know the truth, we do not have to be ruled by the lie.

Jesus also said:

"So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

— John 8:36


Free indeed.

Not free because everyone understands us. Not free because every rumor gets corrected. Not free because every person sees the full picture.

Free because our identity is not held together by other people’s opinions. Free because Jesus knows the truth. Free because He is the truth.

I think back to that camp conversation with Wyatt more often than I expected to. A little reminder forever etched in my mothering as a lesson we both learned that day!

A skinny little boy offended by an insult that did not even fit him, drawn into a fight because he reacted to a lie instead of resting in what was true.


And I know I've fallen into the same thing...

Maybe not with the word fat.

Maybe with something heavier.

A misjudgment. A criticism. A whispered assumption. A story that is not the full story. A label that does not belong to me.

And I have to ask myself the same question I asked him:

Is it true?

And if it is not, am I willing to let truth set me free from the fight that follows?

Because not every lie deserves my energy. Not every accusation deserves my peace. Not every battle is mine to fight.

Sometimes the most faithful thing we can do is stand in the truth, trust the One who is Truth, and let Him defend what needs defending.

The truth sets us free.

But only if we are willing to believe it more than we believe the lie. 


What lie, rumor, opinion, or assumption has been pulling you into a fight that truth may already have set you free from?


Lord, help me know the truth and rest in it. When lies, rumors, or false assumptions try to pull me into battles You never asked me to fight, remind me who You are and who You say I am. Teach me when to speak, when to be still, and how to live free because of Jesus, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Amen.


Until next time, keep following the Plott, and I will be praying for us all. šŸ’›

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