Unity Without Truth is a Lie

What a year we’ve lived through. Death has been the dominant narrative. The fear is palatable. An election is upon us.

There’s a song I’m loving lately that captures the tension I’ve been feeling between my own sadness and God’s goodness in the midst of these bizarre circumstances. 

Listen here:

The song emphasizes an imperative: worship. 

God is worthy of our worship. It’s what we’re made for.

It’s interesting that when Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, he went after his worship.

The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. If you worship me, it will all be yours.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”

Luke 4:5-8

Worship and God’s Word are powerful weapons.

When Satan attempted to subvert God’s salvation plan through temptations and lies, Jesus spoke truth from scripture — and Satan had to flee. Jesus was one with his Father. He knew the truth and what he was on earth to do.

Truth is precious. Truth is objective. For some, it’s offensive. And it definitely doesn’t progress based on fleeting feelings or modern ideologies.

Only God, the Author of Life, has the authority to define truth. His written word, the Bible, always has the final say.

Sadly, our society has removed God and moved far away from a biblical worldview. Many people have embraced a postmodern mindset that elevates subjective experience and rejects (or ignores) objective truth.

On trial before Pilate, Jesus was clear: “…the reason I came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me” (John 18:37).

“What is truth?” retorted Pilate (John 18:38) — the Roman leader caving under political pressure and conceding to the Son of God’s crucifixion.

Today, not only is truth made relative but also words are redefined to fit misguided agendas. Current buzzwords include justice, love, racism, oppression, and “whiteness” … to name a few.

The masses, many of whom I assume are well-meaning, have recently rallied around popular movements (BLM, for example) that appear righteous on the surface, appealing to our morals, but are actually divisive, dangerous, and antithetical to the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

These social movements fueled by crafty ideologies such as “white fragility,” critical race theory, and other “woke” terminology are infiltrating churches, Christian colleges, and seminaries across the country, and they must be exposed and publicly opposed. 

(For example, it’s encouraging to see this statement on racism and social justice from Southern Evangelical Seminary.)

We must ensure our language and definitions are grounded in truth and reality. Again, it’s the Bible — the flawless and eternal Word of God — that sets the standard.

I believe we’re witnessing wild attempts to destroy America and silence the Church. It pains me to see the deep division and deception in our nation. And even more so in our churches. 

The moral decline of our country is obvious. Millions of our unborn have been murdered. Politics are toxic. Violence is ongoing and unhindered in many cities. Tyranny and lawlessness are on blatant, unabashed display.

Pastors, ministry leaders, and all believers must have the moral courage to stand for truth and fight against this demonic assignment. 

The apostle Paul gives us clear instructions:

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5

We live in an age when sin is celebrated, good is mislabeled as evil, and evil acts are disguised as good and increasingly allowed to ensue without punishment.

Instead of allowing ourselves to get caught up following the crowds and taking our cues from culture, we must wake up, stay vigilant, and think critically about the messages we’re consuming and the mindsets we’re adopting.

As Christy Johnston in her book Releasing Prophetic Solutions puts it, “We are here to affect culture, not to be infected by it.”

We must fix our eyes on Jesus — praying, thinking, applying, and acting on the truth and wisdom that God has made available through his written Word, his Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Before Jesus was arrested, he prayed for the unity and oneness of all future believers. I love how The Message version paraphrases his intimate, fervent prayer:

The goal is for all of them to become one heart and mind—just as you, Father, are in me and I in you, so they might be one heart and mind with us. Then the world might believe that you, in fact, sent me.

see John 17:20-23

Unity is an important and urgent goal. According to Jesus, it’s what will cause the world to believe.

My concern, though, is the current trend and error of pursuing unity at the expense of truth.

Pastor, teacher, and writer A.W. Tozer offers a helpful illustration:

Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which one must individually bow. So one hundred worshipers meeting together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be were they to become “unity” conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship. Social religion is perfected when private religion is purified. The body becomes stronger as its members become healthier. The whole church of God gains when the members that compose it begin to seek a better and higher life.

A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God

Jesus Christ, who is himself the truth (see John 14:6), provides the only foundation for true unity. Together, we stand on the truth of his life, death, resurrection, and ascension to the highest place of authority. 

Jesus became a perfect, sinless sacrifice to satisfy God’s justice and pay the penalty for our sins so that we can find forgiveness and a place in God’s family (see Acts 26:18).

We can only be one with each other to the extent that we’re one with God through faith in the finished work of Jesus and the presence of his indwelling Spirit.

We must cling to historic Christianity, rallying around common belief in God’s truth, and strongly reject all lofty ideas and worldly philosophies that purport to provide a path toward “unity” and “reconciliation.”

Jesus is the only way. The gospel is all-sufficient. We’ve already been reconciled to God through Jesus (see 2 Corinthians 5:16-21) and therefore are reconciled to each other through our identity as new creations in Christ (see Ephesians 2:11-22).

It’s not enough to feed on leftovers from popular pastors on YouTube or attend “online church” periodically. You’re created to study the scriptures for yourself with the help of the Holy Spirit, spend quality time with Jesus, and be a part of a committed community of believers.

Most of all — an intimate, authentic, and surrendered relationship with Jesus is paramount. Have you given your life to Christ? Are you fully committed to following him, no matter the cost? Today is a great day to place your faith in King Jesus.

It’s an urgent hour in America. Evil is raging, but God is moving much more powerfully. He’s jealous and mighty to save souls and bring them into his eternal, unshakable kingdom. He offers forgiveness, righteousness, and wholeness through the blood of Jesus. 

We must repent and return to the Lord, asking him to heal our land. The time to seek a better and higher life is now. Casual Christianity won’t cut it.

The Church is God’s solution for a lost and hurting world. That means believers must grow in maturity and devotion to Christ, resist deceitful teaching, and speak the truth in love (see Ephesians 2:14-16).

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

1 Corinthians 13:6

So what are some practical things you can do?

Worship. Pray. Surrender. Listen. Learn. Speak up. VOTE. 

Tuesday is a critical election. Vote for good policies and biblical values that honor life (including the unborn), uphold truth, protect religious liberty, and preserve freedom and flourishing for all Americans.

We are ONE nation under GOD.

Finally, do your own research and stay hungry to learn. 

Don’t rely on the corrupt media to tell you what to think. The censorship of conservative voices right now is alarming and downright criminal. Ask the Lord for discernment and use critical thinking to weigh the voices speaking into your life.

Regarding policies, everyone should understand the dangers of the “Equality Act.”

Here’s a quick list of sources that have helped me this year. They are tackling tough topics that all believers need to understand.

• The Center for Biblical Unity — founded by racial unity advocate Monique Duson. She’s active on Facebook, publishes helpful content on her blog, and hosts a podcast.
• Neil Shenvi — an apologist who writes comprehensively on social justice, critical theory, and Christianity.
• Just Thinking podcast — features Virgil Walker and Darrell Harrison, who address contemporary issues from a biblical worldview.
• Allie Beth Stuckey — hosts the Relatable podcast. I recommend her interview with Dr. Voddie Baucham about the issues with social justice theology.

I’m by no means an expert here, but I have a burden to share what I’ve been learning in hopes of helping others make sense of what’s happening in our culture and in many churches. 

Please share this post with your pastors, friends, and family, and feel free to reach out with additional resources, comments, or questions.

If you’re still with me down here, thank you. I believe the Lord is calling an army, a remnant, to rise up right now, including you. If God is for us, who can be against us?