Sanctify them by Your truth; Your word is truth.

(John 17:17 NIV)

At the start of a rehearsal, the conductor stepped up to the podium and said, “Everyone, get your pencils out. We have some corrections to make in the score:

* The first two bars should be in 3/4, not 4/4.
* In the fifth bar, switch to 7/8 and keep that pattern to the end.
* In bar seven, lower the pitch by a half step.
* In bar thirteen, lower it by a whole step, and that will carry through to the finish.

Thank you. Let’s begin.”

A soprano soloist raised her hand, looking confused. “Excuse me, Maestro,” she asked, “what changes would you like me to make?”

The conductor smiled. “None at all, madam. Just sing it exactly as you did yesterday.”

It’s a humorous scene, but it illustrates something profound: When we deviate from the standard, we have a choice: we can either adjust ourselves to match the right standard, or expect the standard to bend around us.

Spiritually, that’s an important truth. God’s Word is our ultimate standard. But when we see someone living in a different way, we are sometimes tempted to “soften” what God says — to make the truth fit the moment or avoid discomfort.  But God’s truth doesn’t shift with time, opinion, or culture.  His standard cannot change.

You can ignore the scale, but that won’t change your weight. You can break the mirror, but that doesn’t change the way you look. In the same way, changing or dismissing God’s Word doesn’t make wrong things right.  His truth remains the same.

Jesus prayed for His followers, “Sanctify them by Your truth; Your word is truth.” (John 17:17 NIV). To be sanctified means to be set apart — to let God’s Word shape us instead of trying to reshape it.

Living by God’s truth isn’t always easy.  It will sometimes put us at odds with the prevailing “wisdom” of our culture.  It will ask things of us we’d rather not give.  But the goal isn’t to make God’s truth fit our lives. It’s to let our lives fit his truth — to be shaped, corrected, and ultimately sanctified by the Word that never needs revision.

Prayer: Lord, help me to stand firm in your truth. Teach me to follow your Word faithfully and resist the temptation to compromise or change your standard to suit my convenience. Sanctify me by your truth. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Alan Smith
Reprinted with permission from Alan Smith’s Thought For the Day