Series: The Lion and the Lamb
Message: I Need a Hero
Preacher: Dany Hernandez
Reflection: Becky De Oliveira
Live Wonder: Zan Long
Live Adventure: Jenniffer Ogden
Live Beyond: Adrian Peterson
Live Purpose: Kyle Smith
Editor: Becky De Oliveira

Refresh: Begin with prayer. Ask for the Holy Spirit to open your heart to new understanding and for God’s character to be revealed.

Read: Isaiah 59:14-60:1  in the New Living Translation (NLT). Note 1–3 insights or questions. 

Reflect: I can’t help but think about the way truth itself has come under attack in recent years as I read these verses in the New Living Translation today. “Truth stumbles in the streets, and honesty has been outlawed. Yes, truth is gone, and anyone who renounces evil is attacked” (Verses 4-5). Michiko Kakutani, longtime reviewer of books for the New York Times and author of The Death of Truth (2018) writes, “The point of modern propaganda isn’t only to misinform or push an agenda. It is to exhaust your critical thinking, to annihilate truth.”

Truth itself is an important end, and perhaps God is coming to save us from the mountain of lies that we live under as much as anything else. George Orwell’s 1984 which has enjoyed a recent resurgence in popularity over the past couple of years (I can’t begin to think why) deals with issues of truth, perception, power, and authority. Winston, the main character, a party drone living in a totalitarian society ruled by Big Brother and the Party, rebels against the system and commits thoughtcrime, “the essential crime that contained all others in itself.” He is taken to the Ministry of Love, a place where nothing loving ever happens. His interrogator, O’Brien, holds up four fingers and tries to convince him that he sees five fingers instead, and that Oceania has always been at war with Eastasia. O’Brien says:

Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else. Not in the individual mind, which can make mistakes, and in any case soon perishes: only in the mind of the Party, which is collective and immortal. Whatever the Party holds to be the truth, is truth. It is impossible to see reality except by looking through the eyes of the Party.

This is, in many ways, a pretty compelling argument because so much of it is true. The human mind does make mistakes, reality is relative to a certain degree—at least at the meaning-making level, and it is always tempting to cede authority to someone who seems more capable, more knowledgeable, more powerful, better, than we are. The problem, of course, is that not everyone seeking your allegiance is worthy of it. In addition to telling us that God is coming to bring justice and truth, the Bible also points out that the world is currently under the command of “the father of lies,” one who is said to have been “a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him” (John 8:44, NIV). We have to continue to find our sense of direction and truth in God. This, of course, is more complicated than it sounds, but a good way to start is by communicating daily with God and asking for His guidance in knowing truth and living in accordance with His will.

Recalibrate: What are some lies that currently seem to have a grip on your community or on you personally? How can God’s truth overcome these lies?

Respond: Pray for a spirit that is open to truth.

Research: Read The Death of Truth by Michiko Kakutani or 1984 by George Orwell.

Remember: “I promise that my Spirit and my words that I give you will never leave you” (Isaiah 59:21, ICB).

Becky De Oliveira is a teacher, writer, editor, and graphic designer. She is working on a PhD in research methods at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley.

Make a list with your little one of all that they can see. I can see the front door, I can see an apple, I can see my family. Know that God can see and knows all that is going on with you and in you. Know in your heart that He will make things right. Choose to work with Him to make things right today.

Broken promises can lead to big heartache and hurt. Sometimes the people we look to in our lives fail. And if we are being honest we must admit that we fail too. Think of someone you have hurt by failing to keep a promise you made to them. Take time to write them a letter or have a conversation apologizing for the hurt you caused. Remember, we build justice in the world around us by choosing to do the right thing. Doing all that we can to fix our own mistakes is creating justice in the world and we can encourage people around us to do the same by leading the way! Let’s challenge ourselves to be justice bringers, like Jesus is!

I will never forget when I was in primary school and we played a game where you go around the circle and each person adds an object to the growing story without repeating an object that has already been included. Heaps of the other kids had been knocked out and I was doing well. One of the items I added was a subwoofer. (I thought I was so clever!) It came around to another girl and she called my item a “boombox” so she was out—or so I thought. The teacher said the answer was close enough to continue. I was outraged! They are completely different things! So we continued, and when it was my turn again this same girl added “polly waffle” (a pre-made waffle, rolled up with marshmallow and chocolate), however, I said “waffle” and I was eliminated. I was furious! She was allowed to remain in the game with her wrong answer about my object and I was out on hers. There was no justice that day!

OK, so I need to calm down a little. This was more than 20 years ago but it still gets under my skin! Just think how much God cares about things that actually matter, when people are mistreated and hurt and aren’t given any justice.

Have you ever seen someone suffer for doing the right thing? I have heard countless stories about a cop being put in a situation where they have to choose to do the right thing or the wrong thing. In one movie in particular, a cop finds a bunch of money and turns it over to his police station. His partner is angry, exclaiming, “Let’s just keep it, man!” As the movie continues, the cop who turned the money over has death threats made against him and is terribly mistreated because he didn’t keep the money. Other cops scold him, saying, “You rat!” That movie says a lot about our society. The people chosen to do good often choose to do bad. Even worse, when someone does good they are often punished for it. Verse 15  tells us that we become prey when we depart from evil. Are you willing to do the right thing even if it costs you? Even if you become “prey” to those around you? I hope so! As followers of Jesus, let’s be people who go against the grain, and do what is right no matter what it costs us.

Zan Long is GRC director for faith development groups. She lives in Sydney, Australia, and serves at her local church in nearby Kellyville.
Jenniffer Ogden serves as the children and family pastor at the Walla Walla University Church in College Place, Washington.
Adrian Peterson is the associate pastor at Burwood Adventist Community Church in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Australia.
Kyle Smith is the associate pastor of youth and family ministries at New Haven Adventist Church in Overland Park, Kansas.