Blog

True Enemies?

Mike Focht 11/6/2026

Have I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth?

Galatians 4:16


It is a searching question. It is a very important question. At some point in life, and at various points through life, the test will come to all of us. What is the test? The test of truth! Will we befriend the truth or others? Will we love the truth or ourselves?

   The test is illustrated and lived all throughout the Scriptures. Abigail confronts David with the truth of his murderous attitude toward Nabal. How does he respond? Does he become her enemy because of the truth? No! David loves the truth! He sees God’s blessing in the woman sent to tell him the truth. David looked at his rebuker and said: Blessed is the LORD God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me (1 Samuel 25:32).

   Do all men love the truth? They do not. What happened when Elijah was sent to rebuke Ahab for the murder of Naboth? How did Ahab respond to the messenger of God sent to speak the truth? Ahab looked at Elijah and said: Have you found me, O my enemy (1 Kings 21:20)? Elijah was only Ahab’s enemy because he spoke the truth. Ahab didn’t love the truth. He loved evil.

   How will we know if we are a true friend of the truth? Well, there are two simple tests.

   First, do we love others enough to speak the truth? Do we love others enough to say what needs to be said, even though they may not like it? Do we love others like Abigail, Elijah, and Paul, as well as all the prophets and apostles who joined them?

   The worst outcome is not being treated as an enemy by others. The worst outcome is not truly being a friend of the truth, and withholding the truth to love ourselves rather than others. What if Abigail, Elijah, and Paul hadn’t spoken the truth?! Their consciences would have stung if David had killed Nabal, Ahab’s sin went unrebuked, and the Galatian believers dove into legalism without Paul saying a word about it. It is always better to be the enemy of one who hates the truth than to be an enemy of the one who loves the truth.  

   Second, do we love the truth when it is presented to us? It is one thing to speak the truth to another, and it is another thing to have the truth spoken to us! When we are the David, the Ahab, or the Galatians, and God sends someone to us, how do we respond? Do we love the truth when we have to agree with God against ourselves, or do we choose to love ourselves instead? How many Christians reject the simplest correction because they cannot bear to see themselves as faulty, wrong, or something less than a stellar Christian? Too many love their reputations more than the truth. Religious pride lurks in all our hearts. Even so, it is possible to love the truth more than we love ourselves. Can we bless our rebukers like David, or do we see them as our enemy, like Ahab?          


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Mar 1

We Need That Type of Hope!

To say that the Bible speaks of Christ’s second coming is something of an understatement. The Old and New Testaments systematically disclose the...
Mike Focht

Feb 23

Live And Grow

Spiritual growth happens to us and not by us. We are all caught up in “how-to” books and do-it-yourself videos. Unfortunately, there is no...
Mike Focht

Feb 16

Ministers Must Read Books

The aged Paul, in prison and soon to be a martyr, asked Timothy to bring his books because he felt it wise to spend time reading even though he knew h...
Mike Focht

Feb 9

Old Souls

There are temptations particular to each stage of life. One of the temptations of old age is that of an old soul. As we age physically, our physical g...
Mike Focht

Feb 2

More Of The Same

As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God (1 Peter 4:10). Some men are not meant for...
Mike Focht

Jan 26

The Other Plan For Your Life

There is another plan for your life. It has been told to us many times and should continue to be said that God has a plan for our lives. The Bible is ...
Mike Focht

Jan 19

The Fear Of God

The fear of God needed today does more than cause sinners to slink away from a church or frighten us with holiness until we tiptoe through our daily r...
Mike Focht

Jan 12

Abba, Father

For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” T...
Mike Focht

Jan 5

Status Quo

The status quo will be a constant danger to our spiritual growth. The status quo I am speaking of is the societally acceptable Christian crowd. Those ...
Mike Focht

Dec 29

A Vote For The Prayer Closet

Personal time with God is indispensable. There are no substitutes for spending time in the Word and prayer. The growth and life produced in the indivi...
Mike Focht

Dec 22

Add To Your Faith

One of Peter’s direct commands to believers is that they should diligently seek to add to your faith virtue. Peter knew that everyone’s fa...
Mike Focht

Dec 15

Put Out The Fire

It is time to put out the fire. We must stop telling people to be “on fire” for Jesus. I know that many well-meaning brothers and sisters ...
Mike Focht

Dec 8

Is God Enough?

Is God enough? It is a question we will find ourselves continually asking. To answer yes at one point in life doesn’t mean we have finished with...
Mike Focht

Dec 1

The Christian Does More Then Die

The Bible is clear that there is a cost to following Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was clear about the reality of a cost to those following Him. Then Jes...
Mike Focht

Nov 24

The Idolatry of Feeling

Innocent joy accompanies the early stages of spiritual growth. We are discovering God with youthful excitement and anticipation. Our spiritual life mo...
Mike Focht

Nov 17

Days Lived and Distance Traveled

There is a difference between days lived and distance traveled. Just because we are older does not mean that we have made much progress in our spiritu...
Mike Focht

Nov 10

Our Little Secret

The Bible reveals that each of us has something secret. Every person has a secret life. The fact of our secret life—our life that is known only ...
Mike Focht

Nov 3

A Walk With God

How is your walk with God? Phrases like that are something that we are very familiar with. The idea of a walk with God has almost become a Christian c...
Mike Focht

Oct 27

The Dinner Table

No one likes being watched while they are eating. There is something strange about realizing that someone scrutinizes us as we shovel food into our mo...
Mike Focht

Oct 20

Evil Endurance

The devil has numerous ways to twist our thoughts for our own purposes. Most of the time, these thoughts are more assumed or felt than directly spoken...
Mike Focht

Sep 29

Spiritual Growth Is A Reality

The Bible is clear that spiritual growth is a reality. The doctrine of spiritual life and growth has taken a beating recently. In most of our Chr...
Mike Focht

Sep 22

To the Glory of God?

The whole life of a Christian should be nothing but praises and thanks to God; we should neither eat nor drink nor sleep, but eat to God and sleep to ...
Mike Focht

Jun 2