The God of the Bible is a God of truth. On the other hand, the Devil is the great enemy of truth. The Bible says of him, “there is no truth in him.”
Bible-believing Christians in their desire for independence have sometimes been characterized as rebels disapproving of most authority. This characterization should not be the case and our lives should reflect just the opposite mind-set and approach. Those who know the Lord should be the first to obey, submit to (Hebrews 13:17), and pray for (1 Timothy 2:1-2) those in authority. Those who walk in the flesh are the ones who“despise government” and “are not afraid to speak evil of dignities” (2 Peter 2:10; Jude 1:8). There are times when man’s authority comes into direct conflict with God’s authority. In these cases, men must choose to obey God (Acts 5:29). Yet, there are plenty of other times when the people of God need to learn a greater respect for authority.
The world often accuses faithful believers of being arrogant or simply narrow-minded because of the believer’s unwavering certainty concerning the things he believes. Although there are times when believers reveal an unchristian arrogance, the godly believer is simply certain of his beliefs because he is certain of the authority substantiating those beliefs. According to Titus 2:15, the believer canand should “speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority.” Why? Because the Bible is the word of the God that has all authority and it offers to the believer that level of authority. It is not, therefore, arrogance which causes a godly believer to be unwilling to waver on what he believes, but faith in the written word and words of his God.
Our previous study revealed that kindness refers to treating someone as a cherished member of the family. The Bible proclaims that God is great in kindness (Nehemiah 9:17). It also reveals that kindness is marvellous (Psalm 31:21) and full of mercy (Psalm 117:2). Believers should be thrilled to know that God demonstrates this kindness toward His beloved creation. By nature, men are the children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3). Yet, each person has the opportunity to be treated like a beloved member of God’s family as a result of Christ's sacrifice on the cross (Titus 3:4). Those who have trusted Christ as Saviour have been granted the inestimable privilege of being “heirs” of God (Titus 3:7) and “joint-heirs” with Christ (Romans 8:17). This blessing, generally intended for and limited to family, is extended to those whom God counts as family.
