Our church in Toledo has a stone wall on the sides of the steps leading up to the church. One morning, I noticed a stone from the wall lying on the sidewalk. I picked up the stone and put it back into the vacant socket.


The next morning I discovered that half of the stone facade had been dismantled. All the pieces lay in a heap upon the sidewalk.


Apparently someone waiting at the bus stop was removing the removable. First the loose stone, then the mortar socket became vulnerable. Then another stone, and so forth, until a fair portion of the wall was reduced to rubble.

Disregarding truth

It reminded me of a man who contended that the plain words of Genesis, chapters one and two, are offensive to intelligent people. He preferred to understand the creation narrative as symbolic rather than historical. "After all," he asserted, "it's faith in Jesus that saves, not faith in the six-day creation."


When he was asked if Adam and Eve were only symbolic people, he answered, "Likely."


"How about their son, Seth?"


"Maybe."


"And his descendent, Noah?"


"I wouldn't rule it out."


"And Abraham?"


"Perhaps."


"And King David?"


"Perhaps."


"And what about the son of David? Is he only a symbolic figure?"


Destroying truth


To think that the demise of the wall outside of the church began with a stone the size of my fist! That was one repair we made quickly. The wall, you see, was attached to our church.


The father of lies may not ask for much at first: only a small stone or a bit of mortar. His objective, at any rate, is to remove the chief cornerstone.


By destroying God's Word, his good name, Satan destroys us. He plants darkness where there is light; doubt where there is faith; offense where there is pardon; discord where there is unity; death where there is life, and despair where there is hope.

Creating truth

The general anesthetic which seems to work best on our generation is the notion that truth is neither something "from above" nor absolute. Truth is human perception. Truth is my interpretation. Your interpretation, though it may be the opposite of mine, is no less true. And so our world drifts towards the waterfall, each on his own little plank, refusing the anchor and ignoring the safe harbor.


When it comes to leading us away from God's truth, Satan's devices are legion.


If I don't like the truth that I've broken God's law, the adversary will lead me away from the foot of Jesus' cross. In his estimation, all I may need is a second opinion from a spiritual defense attorney who can compassionately plead that the defendant is the real victim.