In reading chapters like this (and there are many!) it is difficult to isolate a single verse without commentary. And so breaking it up and praying on each seems the better way.
It is profitable, therefore, to look at one of several places in Scripture where our Lord discusses Truth. This one with Pilate. I note that Jesus never wastes His time, not even on pagans. He's always sharing the Truth:
John 18:37-38Good Thomas opens this chapter with the following:
"So Pilate said to Him 'Then you are a king?' Jesus answered, 'You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice." Pilate said to him, "What is truth?"
"Happy is he whom Truth teaches by itself, not by figures and words that pass, but as Truth is in itself. Ps 18:36, Is 28:26"Sometimes, we get wrapped up in ideas and experiences which supposedly show us who God is. We think we know the Him because someone told us how it is supposed to feel.....or we bowed our head and said the magic words. But instead of investigating the matter, we quickly form an opinion or try to replicate the feeling through our eyes or other senses...even our ears, without listening for the God's still, small Voice (1 Kings 19:12-13).
Thomas refers to two Scriptures from which he makes this claim. In Psalm 18, David personifies truth as a protecting shield, or even God's right Hand. A protecting shield in ancient times covered the soldier's vital parts from his neck to his thigh. Other shields were even larger, requiring a shield bearer who held the shield for the fighter. These shields were heavy and durable and could withstand any weapon of the time. It is thought that the Star of David comes from this verse, as does the rabbinic phrase "Shield of Abraham" which was a direct reference to God.
When God teaches us directly (like Jeseus did Pilate), the teaching is clear and reliable. We can boldly stand behind the Truth, just as a soldier can rely on his shield to protect him against the onslaught of the enemy. A reckless disregard for the dangers of the battlefield will quickly expose the soldier to pain or death: even from small weapons.
And so Thomas continues:
"Our opinion and our senses often deceive us and discover but little."
Confused, we may become indifferent or drop into old habits.... We step out from behind the Shield and get nicked by a piece of debris that infects us. An infected wound can kill just as well as a spear - only slower.
We don't even know we are infected until the wound's poison has reached other aspects of our health. At that point, we need major surgery. Our soul needs The Great Physician.
The Lord will reach out to us, not with weak slivers of a conceptual framework, but with Truth that we can easily stand behind to defend our families, our lives... our very souls. That is our prescription for being healed.
Until next time.
tim
Ps 18:36 reads: You have given me your protecting shield; Your right Hand has upheld me; You stooped to make me great.
Is 28:26 reads: He has learned this rule, instructed by his God.
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