What is Truth
Notes
Transcript
Scripture
Scripture
31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
This statement has impacted us not only nationally, but globally. It has become personal to many of us as we have heard it said by loved ones or friends in an entirely different context: Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, millions have lost their lives because of the inability to breathe. Many people have experienced the powerlessness of not being able to help their loved one breathe. Gasping for air and being placed on oxygen or on a ventilator have become all-too-familiar occurrences—whether experienced firsthand or through another’s retelling of the horrors of this virus that ravages the lungs.
Yet, despite the difficulties and death all around us, you and I are living in a day when we have gathered to collectively watch yet another potential demise. Huddled in a small room barely big enough for all of us to sit or stand in, we stare as truth appears to draw its final breaths. We watch as, with each gasping inhale and struggling exhale, truth’s strength diminishes before our very eyes.
Truth, which used to be a solid pillar in many people’s lives, lies there on a makeshift hospital bed, a mere skeleton of its former self. Hollowed jaws and protruding bones remind us of where vibrant life used to be. We watch, waiting. Wondering if truth will somehow pull through.
After all, our culture has already proclaimed that truth is dead. Our culture has already ripped off the life support and walked out of the room. Our culture has washed its hands and said good-bye to that which used to guard our land. Our culture has effectively sought to remove the remaining safeguard preventing us from falling into an abyss of chaos and confusion.
Not only would the actual death of truth usher in greater calamity, but the process of truth’s dying over the last decades has already led to a breakdown in the cultural immune system of our entire world. The starvation that has taken place in the organs and lifeblood of humanity is immense. Without truth flowing freely through the arteries of civilization, as oxygen flows through the arteries of a body, the organs that sustain order are shutting down. They are collapsing and can no longer provide what our society needs to function in a productive and healthy way.
Not much remains of honor, honesty, or character in our culture as we watch the ongoing plans for truth to not only be buried but also funeralized before us. Somewhere along the line, we have forgotten that truth matters. We have forgotten that we depend on truth far more that we realize. We have forgotten that objective standards govern much of what we choose to do; they don’t govern just our values. Without truth, the whole world would collapse. Even the opponents of truth depend on it to function every day.
For example, how would you feel about flying on an airplane with an unsure pilot? If you heard your pilot come on the speaker before the flight and say, “We are about to take off, and I’m pretty sure I know what buttons to push to operate the plane properly, but sometimes I just like to mix it up,” what would you do? If you are like me, you would get off that plane.
Or how would you feel about a surgeon who has discarded truth in his or her field? Let’s say you were having a consultation with a surgeon and he or she said, “I watched a surgery like this the other day online and that surgeon was doing some pretty cool new things that I’d like to try to save time. I think I know just where to cut.” Would you even stay for the rest of the consultation, or would you, like me, get up and walk away?
What about a pharmacist who admits to guessing about the accuracy of the dosage as your medication is put in the bottle? Would you take it? Or what if the pharmacist said, “I have a lot of meds to choose from on these shelves. Never mind what the doctor prescribed—let me pick one that I feel is right for you!”
In John 18:33-38 one of Jesus’ last earthly conversations, we read,
33 Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again, and called Jesus, and said unto him, Art thou the King of the Jews?
34 Jesus answered him, Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or did others tell it thee of me?
35 Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto me: what hast thou done?
36 Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.
37 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.
38 Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in him no fault at all.
What is truth? Pilate asked the question of our culture today when he spoke to Jesus on that day. He asked what we hear over and over again in arguments and disputes and especially online: What in the world is truth? And what’s more, who defines it?
Granted, it’s hard to know what truth is if you live in a culture that denies its existence. Pilate didn’t live in a world of absolutes. He was an agnostic. He questioned whether anyone could know truth. But rather than pointing fingers at Pilate, if we open our eyes in our Christian culture today, we can find many people exactly like him.
Far too many believers question whether truth exists. the concept of truth has become one for debate in and of itself. Some lean more toward rationalism, which means that truth is what a person can intellectually perceive or learn. For rationalists, truth is that which your mind can grab in such a way that it makes sense to you.
Other people tend toward pragmatism. Pragmatism defines truth more in line with what works. If something works at that point in time, then it must be truth for that point in time. Still others lean toward world views in which truth is subjective; it’s more about how you feel or what you choose to believe. Truth becomes nothing more than “my truth,” “your truth,” “his truth,” or “her truth.” Relativism and postmodernism call truth according to the way reality is viewed by each person (relativism), or even how each person would prefer to view it (postmodernism).
Essentially, we are living in a world of ISMS, each seeking to define truth according to its own theories, goals, and agendas. But Jesus didn’t mince words when He said in John 18:37
John 18:37 (KJV 1900)
37 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.
Jesus didn’t hold truth up for debate. Jesus told Pilate, as well as anyone else who has ears to hear Him, that He is the one who testifies to the truth.
Truth can be defined as an absolute standard by which reality is measure. Jesus tells us not only that truth exists but also that it is a powerful force when He states in John 8:32
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Truth is not a made-up concept. Truth exists. Jesus testifies to its existence and says that you and I can come to know truth for ourselves.
This absolute and objective standard by which reality is measured sits outside of you and me. Because of that, truth transcends emotions. How you feel does not determine whether something is true. Last time I checked, one plus one equals two. That truth does not rest on whether you feel that it equals two. It does not depend on whether you wish that is would equal three. The truth is that one plus one always equals two. Regardless of how you feeld about something that is true, you need to keep in mind that your feelings don’t determine the truth. Your feelings could be wrong. Truth does not need your emotions to approve it or validate it. One plus one has always equaled two, and it will always equal two. This is because it is a fixed absolute standard by which reality is to be measured. Without this standard, much of what rests on mathematical formulas and programs would come crashing to a halt. Without this standard, the physics of the universe would collapse, as would the world in which we live.
Our society is not as opposed to truth as many may make it out to be. Nearly all of us operate on a foundation of truth in many sectors of our lives. Yet when it comes to our own identity and personal character qualities as human beings, that’s where truth seems to be tossed straight out the window.
Too many people today are changing pastors, teachers, new outlets, social media influencers, authors, and even friends when someone says something they don’t like or with which they disagree. Cancel culture has taken on a whole new level in that I have even seen families cancel each other over disagreements on what they believe to be true. What we’ve got today are people bouncing around until they find somebody who will tell them what they want to hear.
Closing
Another reason why humanity cannot serve as our own standard for truth is because we are finite. We are limited. We don’t know all things about all things. This is why we learn. This is why we study. This is why we change our minds as we discover information.
What’s more, that which we learn from isn’t always rooted in truth. Sometimes we find out later in our journey that what we were learning and believing to be true were lies, misinformation, or propaganda. By the way, this isn’t anything new. This stems from what is known as “doctrines of demons” 1 Timothy 4:1
1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;
You and I are living in a worldwide web of lies. Everyone we look and everywhere we go, are are bombarded with secular billboards blasting lies. Sure, they might be nicely painted, dressed up, and sophisticated-sounding lies, but they are still lies.
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.