RECOGNIZING TRUTH at CHRISTMAS

Philip Ney 812/10

“That’s it”. “Now I remember.” “It all comes together.” “Now it really
makes sense.”
He had sat there almost all day. Frowning, almost as if in pain. Then
somebody mentioned something, and suddenly he jumped to his feet and
danced about shouting. “I get it. Don’t you see? There was no other way”
His astonished friends replied, “We have no idea what you’re talking
about”
“You ninnies. It’s as obvious as the nose on your face if you just take a
moment and think about it”
“Think about what?” We were just listening to some old Christmas
carols. What has that got to do with it?”
Every thing. Now I see it I can’t imagine why I didn’t see it before.
There was just no other way. It hit me in my gut. Suddenly it all unfolds
and that isn’t my brain talking. It is something much deeper. It was almost
like my genes knew before I did and I didn’t listen.
“If you gut is unfolding like this maybe now you would eat some of
this delicious turkey”
He did that and this remarkable revelation faded into the background.
Yet he knew next day, there was something remarkable in the back of his
mind that he wished he could remember. What was it? God sent his son
into the world as a baby. Do you get it? It all makes very good sense when
you do. Give it a try. Stop your frivolities and your eating and listen to your
innermost being.
Since the discovery of the Big (really big) Bang humans must confront
the ultimate conundrum. Where did it, (energy and matter) come from. The
answer divides mind and men, as they make one of 2 assumptions, Creator
or Accident. Since neither can be scientifically proven, adhering tone or the
other takes faith. Faith after all is acting on an assumption.
The above would lead to an approximate 50-50 split in the religious
behaviour of humans. It would except for the fact that humans of every
generation and every place seem to be able to recognize truth. It takes very
little time and effort for a Sawi person (1) to accept the fact an outboard
motor can push his canoe up the Kronkle River much faster than he can
paddle.
What is this ability to recognize reality when someone casually
demonstrate it. “I don’t exactly know how it works but when you clamped
that noisy machine on the back of my canoe and made it roar, I could see it
push water away and make my canoe speed thru the water. It makes sense”
We are physically, mentally and spiritually, part of this Cosmos. We
are still products of the Big Bang. Somehow we can remember. Although
there are persistent doubters, religious and scientific, most people when
introduced to the notion of the Creation Event, say with the West Irian man,
“I have no idea how that happened but it does make sense.” In fact it
resonates.
The truth resonates because we have truth built into us. Our genes tell
us what is real. It is partly a memory and partly a feedback loop. Our body
and mind and spirit must keep informing us of what is up and which is
down, inside and outside or we could not survive.
We only need the right information at the right time and it clicks with
what we remember and what our nature is constantly telling us. But we
must choose to listen. Most people don’t.
Though it may be vague at first, we remember and recognize enough to
feel vastly relieved, gladly exhilarating, somberly at peace, at least for a
moment. What we now grasp fits with what we knew before. It makes a
bigger, brighter picture of our world. With that more complete picture we
can more easily look in the right direction to find more. It is so easy.
Actually it is not.
That sudden revelation impels some import choices. As soon as we
face them, we lose our newly found sense of harmony. This is why not
everyone is glad to recognize truth. Truth demands action or it’s recognition
quickly fades.
The actions demanded by truth are:

a) I must learn more.
b) I must change
c) I must tell others.

It is partly because of truth’s demands that people “push it away” (2)
Truth makes people very uncomfortable; so much so that they spend
considerable effort to make it a lie, rationalize the status quo, persuade
others of their well constructed defense and attack people who are able to
see holes in their rationalization. They want to hold onto their traditional,
self reassuring and self preoccupied belief systems.
As they turn away from the truth, most people feel pinches of sorrow
and pangs of pangs of regret. “I guess I should have listened to him” But it
is soon covered by indolence or some exciting diversion. “Oh well, I’ll turn
on the TV and take my mind of it” As they do this, something dies within
them and they intuitively know this.
Have I seen this whole scenario happen? Many times. In the course of
helping patients thru psychotherapy see themselves, it is so easy to see the
bifurcation in their thinking as they glimpse some uncomfortable truth.
Oh you may say, “You have missed something vital” Indeed I have.
God is using His Spirit and His people in an effort to reveal Himself. He
wants to be known and loved for who He is. This unfailing love for His
humans is best seen at Christmas, if only people would remember their
Creator and listen to His Spirit.
God created humans a little lower than Himself to have interesting
creatures to befriend and commune with. His amazing creation, male and
female, chose the sneaky creatures offer of power thru the knowledge of
good and evil. That ruined everything; well almost. God cannot be mocked
or frustrated for very long. He had an alternative plan. Initially He
introduced Himself quietly strolling about in a lovely garden. Then He
showed His might in floods and lightening flashes. People were temporarily
intimidated and worshipped Him in fear. But that isn’t what He really
wanted. He wants friendship and people cannot frightened into being
friendly.
He came again in the most gentle, non-threatening manner possible.
He came as a soft cuddly baby. He came as one of us to reconcile the whole
world back to Himself (3) and still people didn’t ‘get it’ although it makes
preeminent sense. With a little time and thought, they should be able to
recognize their Creator, partly because He made them similar to Himself.
His makeup is part of theirs.
He has reminded us for the last 22 centuries that we cannot feel
comfortable until we remember, recognize and take Him into ourselves.
Out of deliberate pride and ignorance His creatures have forgotten their
Creator. Therefore they have grown thoroughly rotten. They are so rotten,
they think very little of dismembering one of His most perfect and most
complicated creations, a baby; painfully torn apart by the millions. You must
feel the truth of His growing rage. You know when He comes again and it
must be very soon, He will not be gentle.
Don’t you see how it all makes sense
References
1. Peace Child, Don Richarson.
2. Rom. I:18
3. Col. 1:20