This post was last updated on March 29, 2026

Day 314, Year 1

Honesty Does Not Waver in All Situations

“And they sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, ‘Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any.'” (Matthew 22:16 NASB)

In the past, even Jesus’ opponents praised Him as an honest man. Indeed, Jesus is the example of truthfulness for all believers. Today’s verse brings up three aspects of Him for us to learn. First, Jesus honestly preached the Word of God. The Word must first be honestly, fully, and truly accepted in hearts before it can be preached. Indeed, many people who had heard God’s Word have distorted and diluted it. They look at words from God using inappropriate or sinful filters, but they think it is good. What they think of His words is wrong, or inapplicable, or, to their disliking, are immediately discarded or distorted. As a result, God’s Word did not enter their hearts, and cannot be preached honestly by them. This is how prideful people treat His Word. 

Second, Jesus was not showing favoritism. The above statements of the Pharisees, etc., might have meant that Jesus did not respect them enough, or even did not recognize them as religious leaders. Traditional Israelites are somewhat similar to traditional Chinese, and are accustomed to looking at people’s faces. Yet, for believers to be as honest as Jesus, we must choose to take sides with the truth when it conflicts with anything. This is not to say that we don’t need to understand people’s feelings or their capacities of acceptance toward the truth. Rather, it means that God’s truth should not be distorted or diluted for the sake of anyone or any reason. In fact, when Jesus preached the Word, He always took into account human ability to understand.

Third, Jesus is not partial to any. This might include referring to Jesus’ indifference to the faces and emotions of others, no matter whether they are rich or poor. So, if our honesty is based on God, partiality should not be our consideration in any case. Similarly, when our feelings conflict with truth, we need to choose God’s truth over any feelings, comments, or evaluations. In this evil world, sinners always find God’s Word difficult to accept. Contrarily, we need to put aside our feelings or sensations for a while. After receiving God’s truth, pray and think on how to address emotional problems, such as losing face or feeling bad, so that we can be truthful in our hearts. We must be humbly taught and honestly accept God’s Word to preach His Word. Otherwise, it is easy for us to convey the distorted words of God and induce His punishment on us.

Reflection questions:

1) Are you humble enough to receive and follow every word of God? If not, what are you going to do to make yourselves more humble? 

2) Can you put aside your human responses and feelings in accepting God’s truth first? If there is a problem, how can you resolve it?