“The house of the wicked will be destroyed, but the tent of the upright will flourish. There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.”
Proverbs 14:11–12
Most of us do not wake up in the morning thinking we are wrong. We usually believe our opinions, choices, and perspectives make sense. In our own eyes, we feel justified. We may say, “This is how I see it,” or “This is what I believe,” and we may mean it sincerely.
Yet Proverbs gives us a sobering warning: something can look right to us and still lead us away from God. A road can seem smooth, popular, reasonable, and even moral by human standards, but if it is not rooted in God’s truth, it can lead to spiritual ruin.
That is why this subject matters. The issue is not whether we have opinions; we all do. The issue is whether our opinions have been surrendered to the Lord, tested by Scripture, and shaped by the Holy Spirit.
When Our Opinion Becomes Our Truth
There are times when we talk with people who are deeply convinced about what they believe. They may speak with passion, confidence, and emotion. They may even use spiritual language. Yet what they are saying may carry little or no spiritual value. It may sound wise, compassionate, or reasonable in the moment, but still be far from the truth of God’s Word.
That is why sincerity alone is not enough. A person can be sincere and still be sincerely wrong. We can feel deeply about an issue and still need the Holy Spirit to correct our hearts, expose our motives, and renew our thinking.
One of the great dangers of our time is that many people have turned personal perspective into personal truth. If something feels right, sounds right, or supports what we already believe, we may quickly accept it. But the people of God are called to a higher standard. We are called to measure everything by the Word of God.
Proverbs reminds us that outward appearance is not the final measure. The “house of the wicked” may look strong for a season, while the “tent of the upright” may look small, temporary, or unimpressive. But God sees the foundation. A life built on pride, deception, hatred, prejudice, or rebellion cannot stand forever. A life built on humility, obedience, righteousness, and truth will flourish in God’s time.
A Time to Revisit the Truth
This post is a compilation of several reflections written over the past few years, beginning in 2016. As I have considered the increase of harsh rhetoric, verbal assaults, investigations, racial tension, antisemitism, and outright untruths, I have sensed the Spirit’s encouragement to revisit these thoughts and share them with fresh urgency.
We are living in a time when many voices are competing for our attention. Some voices stir anger. Some spread fear. Some twist the truth. Some divide people into enemies. Some sound spiritual but are not led by the Spirit of God. If we are not grounded in the Word, we can easily confuse strong emotion with spiritual conviction.
The enemy does not always come with obvious lies. Sometimes deception comes dressed in half-truths, religious language, cultural pressure, political loyalty, or personal offense. This is why discernment is not optional for believers. It is necessary.
God’s people must not simply repeat what is popular, political, emotional, or convenient. We must pause and ask, “Is this true before God? Does this line up with Scripture? Does this reflect the heart of Christ? Does this produce humility, righteousness, love, and obedience?”
Speaking Truth, Not Personal Opinion
The Lord speaks to every believer in a way they can understand. I do not sense a call to give personal prophecies. I do, however, sense a call to speak spiritual truths that agree with God’s Word and the leading of the Holy Spirit.
That kind of calling does not happen overnight. It is shaped through years of preparation, testing, faith, study of the Word of God, prayer, and learning to trust what the Spirit is revealing. Speaking truth is not about winning arguments, gaining attention, or proving we are more spiritual than someone else. It is about being faithful to what God has said.
Prophets and prophetic voices must speak the truth, whether others receive it or reject it. But truth must always be tested by Scripture. Jesus warned us to beware of false prophets who may look harmless on the outside but are dangerous within (Matthew 7:15). In simple words, not every spiritual-sounding voice is from God.
A true word from the Lord will never pull people away from the character of Christ. It will not excuse hatred, pride, deception, bitterness, or rebellion. It will call people back to God, back to repentance, back to holiness, and back to truth.
This is why believers must be born of the Spirit and rooted in the Word. We need more than feelings. We need more than opinions. We need more than confidence. We need discernment. We need the Holy Spirit to help us recognize what is true, what is false, and what only appears right in our own eyes.
A Heart Check for All of Us
Before we point at the world, we must allow God to search our own hearts. Are we holding on to something simply because it feels right to us? Are we defending an attitude that does not reflect Christ? Are we allowing anger, fear, pride, prejudice, offense, or political loyalty to speak louder than the Word of God?
These are not questions for someone else only. They are questions for every believer. The moment we stop allowing God to examine us is the moment we become vulnerable to deception.
The danger of being right in our own eyes is that we can become blind to correction. We may defend what God is trying to deliver us from. We may call conviction “offense” and call pride “boldness.” But the blessing of walking with God is that He lovingly opens our eyes. He corrects us not to shame us, but to save us.
May we be humble enough to listen, wise enough to test every voice by Scripture, and faithful enough to choose God’s truth over our own opinions. The world may applaud what seems right in its own eyes, but God calls His people to walk in truth, love, holiness, humility, and discernment.
In the end, the safest place we can stand is not in our own understanding, but in surrender to God. His way may challenge us. His truth may correct us. But His path leads to life.
Prayer: Lord, help us not to be led by pride, fear, anger, offense, or our own understanding. Teach us to see through Your eyes. Give us hearts that love truth, ears that hear Your Spirit, and lives that are rooted in Your Word. Correct us where we are wrong, humble us where we are proud, and lead us away from what only appears right. Guide us in the way that leads to life. Amen.
Minister A Francine Green I July 2026