What Is Truth?
“Jesus saith unto him, ‘I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life…’” – John 14:6
“Pilate therefore said unto Him, ‘Art Thou a king then?’ Jesus answered, ‘Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.’ Pilate saith unto Him, ‘What is truth?’” – John 18:37-38
Recently Pastor Clifford Hurst of Union Pentecostal Church in Dayton, OH wrote a blog post in which he referenced a particular strip from the iconic comic strip Peanuts. One character was shooting arrows at a fence. Wherever the arrow landed the character would draw a bullseye around the arrow and then draw circles to create a target around the bullseye. Another character saw and marveled at how accurate the archer was until the archer revealed his process of hitting the mark. I believe we can all agree that the character shooting the arrows was cheating.
In our culture there is an attempt to cheat when it comes to what is truth. I want to address the broad topic of the truth today, and I will try to get into some more specific truths in the future.
What is truth?
TRUTH IS NOT RELATIVE: IT IS ABSOLUTE
Sure there are some things that can be debated and left up to opinion. One person can believe that Michael Jordan was the best basketball player to ever play, while another argues that Lebron has superseded him. Some might say Chick-fil-a is the best fast food restaurant in history, while others say it is overrated. Those topics are matters of opinion. But real truth is concrete.
Here are some examples of absolute truths:
- Two plus two always equals four.
- What goes up will eventually come down (gravity).
- You cannot create or destroy energy.
- Water is always wet.
- The angles of a triangle always add up to 180 degrees.
There is another source of truth that is always concrete, though under fire. It is the Word of God. The Bible is not relative. Relativism wants to establish that all opinions are valid. But that is not so! What each individual chooses to believe about the truth is up them. But the truth is fixed. It does not change. It does not change from culture to culture, from generation to generation, or from era to era. TRUTH is always TRUTH!
Truth is eternally established. When God says something is sin, that means it is sin forever. When God says something is right, that means it is right for eternity. The Truth does not change because God does not change! In reference to the comic strip mentioned earlier, Pastor Hurst said, “God has already drawn the target on the fence.” Our culture is trying to create a target around the arrows they are aimlessly shooting. But truth is absolute.
TRUTH IS NOT RUINOUS: IT IS RESTORATIVE
The purpose of the Truth (God’s Word) is to restore what is broken. We have a broken fellowship / relationship with God that only His Truth will heal. Yes, the Truth does hurt sometimes; but it always wins. Truth brings freedom. While it may destroy your already crumbling and faulty foundation that has been established by this world, it will afford you to be placed upon a solid foundation that will last throughout eternity. Your life will continue to crumble until you allow the Truth to restore you.
The purpose of the Law or the Truth or the Word of God is meant to show us where we have come short and where we can go to for redemption. Jesus came and fulfilled the Law (ceremonial); but Jesus never gave us a license to live outside of the boundaries established in His Word.
TRUTH: God is love. God loves ALL people. God’s grace is sufficient and available for ALL people. This is a truth we can rejoice in! But it is also a truth that the “church culture” is abusing, misusing, and twisting by refusing to pay attention to the following:
TRUTH. God is just. God hates ALL sin. God will punish ALL sin how He has set forth in His Word.
Real Truth: God’s Truth is solid, unchanging, and unending. Don’t settle for less.
Questions and comments can be sent to Kenneth Crews at [email protected]