Defense of the Truth

Leaders come under fire. Late president, Harry Truman once said, 'If you cannot stand the heat, get out of the kitchen!' Those in leadership get heat. There will always be critics who disagree and who are out to destroy those in leadership. But equally tough is the task of defending oneself against false allegations. At times, it is best to ignore critics and concentrate on the work at hand or on being the best person possible. But there comes a time when one has to stand up and defend oneself, and that is when the truth is at stake. Truth is worth defending! The Apostle Paul is under siege from those attacking him so that they can discredit his message of salvation by God's grace through faith plus nothing. They were claiming that Paul was a people-pleaser, a compromiser, who preached one message among the Jews and a different, watered down version among the Gentiles. And they were claiming that Paul's message came from men rather than God, and that they have the latest revision of the gospel. Paul desires to make it perfectly clear that as far as his motivation, he is bondservant of Jesus Christ, intent on pleasing Him and not man. And as far as his message, it was not devised by man, nor did he receive it from man, but he received his message directly from Jesus Christ! Thus his version of the gospel is normative, the standard by which all others are judged for deviation. The truth, indeed, is worth defending!