Truth, and Hostage Negotiations.

An ICCDBB Sermon by Dr. Bob Benchoff March 7, 2003.

Jesus Christ is truth. Following truth sets you free.

Sometimes a young child at play can say more clearly greater truth than a whole city hall council committee vigorously working to weigh considerations of this and complications of that.

A child may get lucky and say the right thing at the right time. Yet truth is less about luck and more about responsibility. So the group in agreement is typically revered as having greater reliability.

Reliability indicates truthfulness.

Sometimes people agree to not have truth, but rather choose a quick solution to a pressing concern. For instance, a group being held hostage might go-along-with a fellow captive's misleading conversation and lie to gain freedom.

So we find that to have truth we may need to sacrifice ourselves, relying on Christ only.

We can also conclude that truth is deeply involved in priorities.

If an oppressor asks of us, we can remain silent or we can answer yes or no. If not asked, we can offer the oppressor parables in the hopes of causing them to repent, for their sake (and yours), for the greater glory of God.

This in not to be interpreted as giving aid and comfort to the enemy. It is the opposite, it is giving them the chance to immediately disarm themself and set captives free. No aid and comfort is to be provided to them unless they repent. In some situations, this may be a matter of degrees.

In no case should it be strictly for the purpose of helping them accomplish their wrong-doing.

If you have otherwise been appointed to and accepted a position of authority, you need to hold that authority and it's associated powers of office responsibly.

Therefore if for instance you are an armed police officer aiming your pistol [or words of authority] at a gunman while the gunman holds their pistol to the head of a hostage demanding that you lower your weapon or they will shoot the hostage, you must not lower your weapon: that would be treasonous.

In other words, you are to seek the truth, not treachery, then you can do what's right.

If someone teaches you that lowering your weapon is successful some great amount of the time, you must nonetheless do what's right and stand your ground move ahead to stop the criminal, righteously. The criminal did not empower you to have your weapon and/or your say, and therefore they are not to be wrongfully involved in weakening your truthful authority.

In hostage negotiations it is important to get the crime perpetrator to continually agree with you. Lies can wreck havoc on the situation, so you must establish authoritative trust.

Then they can reliably understand when you, the trustworthy authority, tell them they may lose all privileges and sanctions immediately unless they begin to free hostages, and that if they are a victim and have innocence reasoning to be considered then they may jeopardize their own life and soul unless they allow justice to work more closely with them to find them innocent if they are innocent. The negotiator may interject applicable ideas to diffuse confusion as to why the hostages are held, such as for the gunman's financial problems, domestic problems, government bias, or other concerns.

Consider how Christ helped a world full of sinners. Innocent Christ served as the authority for righteousness to save the lost and turn their hearts from selfishness to the greater truth.

Truth is not merely about the dictionary definition senses of words, and truth is not merely about private interpretation, although these areas can be intrinsic.

Truth is more, truth involves priorities. Tangled speech such as perhaps with political debates or perhaps with legal cases is often used to conceal the truth by using lower levels of reasoning with little significance. While this sometimes has value in revealing new information, such tricks often backfire.

People that continue to work to use words to trick other people may find themselves at a loss in higher reasoning. In other words their minds may become so accustomed to winning by tricks, they may no longer want their original purpose, their first love. When they were young and asked what they wanted to be when they grew-up, did they answer "I want to use words to cheat people."? Their tricks, their lack of reliance on top priority truth, finds them guilty of their own defeat: who can withstand the truth?

Jesus Christ came into this world to show how an individual person can stand for truth and righteousness. This truth is not for one selfish person or group. This truth is for love and enlightenment for all. This is about one true priority of righteousness, one top logic, and one divine reasoning that is God.

The truth of God is Godly, and you can have this prioritized Godly truth and Godly logic.

Aside from government authority, you have been given a Godly task from Christ, that you take up your Christian authority of truthful reasoning and hold it dearly and preserve it and share it with others righteously.

Your highest responsibility for your top priority authority is to tell the perfect truth, and that perfect truth is for the glory of God, Jesus Christ.

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