Is that a half-truth?

Your commands make me wiser than my enemies. They are always in my thoughts. Your teaching helps me to understand things, so I hate anything that is false. (Psalm 119:98, 104)

If you want to resist something, you need to build the 'strength' to resist it. We take Vitamin C to help us build our immune system so we might be less susceptible to viruses. We build bone and muscle strength by working out at the gym. We build financial 'buffers' by saving an emergency fund for the 'just in case' scenarios that may arise like that unexpected car repair. We build to resist. Why would it be any different with our spiritual strength? We build character by a steady intake of the Word of God and a consistent application of it in our lives. 

One of the primary reasons we study his Word is so we may be able to combat any lies the enemy might throw our way. Trust me on this one, if the enemy can mask any form of a lie with the smallest amount of truth, he will. We need to know truth 'fully' if we are to recognize when we are believing something that isn't quite spot on. I have learned it is one thing to know what we believe - it is another to know why we believe it. We know what the speed limit in a school zone is, but do we know why it is set that low? We know that we aren't supposed to pass other vehicles in that school zone, but do we know why it is against the law to pass?

The connection between what God says and why he says it is very important. If we want to build resistance against any deception in our lives, we need to know both the truth and why God gives us that truth to use. The boundaries he sets with his commands are the 'what', but when we begin to connect those boundaries with the 'why' behind them, we begin to see how important it is for us to embrace them. We might not realize how much the enemy of our souls uses the 'what' but wants to keep us from understanding the 'why'. God wants us to realize both!

If we want to be wiser than our enemy, we need to turn to God's Word and really allow it to get into us. If we have believed half-truths, we are set up with a very poor resistance to his ploys. For example, does scripture really say God helps those who help themselves? You will not find that in God's Word - in fact, self-reliance is something God frowns upon. God will never give us more than we can handle is not biblical - scripture says he will give us a way of escape when we are tempted, but that we will face hardships that he will walk through with us. Get to know God's Word and you may just discover that you have been basing your 'strength' on some half-truths. Just sayin!