What is Truth?

VIDEO: There is No Truth Debunked

Pilate asked the question… and it is a question that our world is STILL wrestling with TO THIS DAY! What is Truth?

Jesus had been arrested. He is standing in front of the Roman governor. The people want Jesus to be crucified. Pilate, the governor, has the power to carry out this sentence. The problem is… Pilate can find NO FAULT in Jesus.

Jesus says this to Pilate in John 18:37

John 18:37 NIV

37 “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

Everyone on the SIDE of truth listens to me. Jesus declares that He has come to testify or to tell the truth. And… Jesus in this moment… draws a line in the sand.

Those who listen to the TRUTH… are with Jesus.

Those who oppose the TRUTH… side with the world.

And then… here it comes. The question people still wrestle with today.

John 18:38 NIV

38 “What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.

Tonight we begin a new series that will explore that question. This series will define what truth is… and what truth is not.

The video did a great job of debunking some of today’s more popular angles regarding truth. We will look a those more in depth but the Word gives us a clear direction and definition of what truth is and where it comes from.

Psalm 119:160 NIV

160 All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal.

GOD’S WORDS ARE TRUE. God’s Word serves as the revelation of truth. And I realize that our culture today has a hard time accepting the FACT that an absolute truth exists - but it does - and we operate in it every single day.

Going back to the illustrations in the video - how would you feel if you took $100 to the bank, and they only deposited $25 in your account? What would your response be if they said, “That might have been $100 to you but for us it was only $25.” That would drive you crazy!!!

Imagine for a moment if truth did not exist in this world. What would it be like to live in a world like that?

Imagine what would happen if your right and left were different from my right and left. Seems silly, right? It’s silly until you and I meet driving in opposite directions on the highway!!! That’s called a head on collision at 65 mph!

Imagine what would happen if your concept of time is different from your employer’s concept of time. His 8:00 am is more like your 11:30 am. Imagine what would happen if you tried to sell that one to your boss… he or she wouldn’t be your boss for much longer!

Truth is… we live in and operate in truth all day long! Truth is… statements like “There is no truth” is a so-called statement of “truth” that if true… would absolutely contradict itself. In other words that person is saying “It is TRUE that there is no truth but it can’t be true because there is no truth.”

And the sad reality is… as confusing and chaotic as that might appear… many people are trying to navigate their lives while holding on to that contradiction.

Sp Pilate drops the bomb when he asks, “What is truth?” His question is not a denial that truth exists… rather his question is who determines what is true and where does truth come from?

People… are LOOKING for truth. People want to know what is true and what is not true. Like Pilate, they are unsure who to follow or what to listen to.

How many times do we hear statements like:

I can do whatever I want, as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone.

It’s a free country, I can do as I please.

Who are you to tell me what to do.

What’s true for you is not what is true for me.

And then… you punch them in the face and they say, “HEY! You can’t punch me! That was the wrong thing to do!” And then you say, “What’s true for you is not what’s true for me!” NO… please do not do that… but you get my point!

We are facing a battleground of truth today… and the issues are deep. The issues deal with deep concerns, feelings, and directions in which people choose to live their lives.

The further our society moves away from God’s truth… the more chaotic and lost it becomes - the more difficult the wrestling match will become.

God’s Word is the source of truth this world is looking for. But instead of accepting God’s Word for what it is… our world is trying to redefine its standards. It’s as if the world is looking at God saying, “What’s true for You is not what is true for me.”

Here’s the deal… a person can walk in that denial but it doesn’t make the Word of God any less true. It simply means that person has traded His truth… for a lie.

Remember the words of Jesus when He said that whoever listens to Him will be on the side of truth? This implies that there is another voice… this implies that whoever doesn’t listen to Him… is listening to someone else.

Jesus has come to to testify of the truth. In Fact, Jesus said this in John 14:6

John 14:6 NIV

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus is the TRUTH. So… why does our world have such a hard time accepting this? Because there is someone else trying to convince you of another “truth.”

Enter the Deceiver

The question regarding truth has been going on since the beginning of time itself. This wrestling match didn’t begin yesterday or with your generation. It has been going on since the world’s population… was all of two people.

In Genesis, in the creation story, God gave Adam a command… a statement of truth. There was a tree in the Garden of Eden that humankind was not to touch. God said to Adam in Genesis 2:16-17

Genesis 2:16–17 NIV

16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

God’s word to Adam was clear. Stay away from that tree. If you eat from it, you will die. That was God’s command. But not long after that command was given… someone entered the picture to challenge this truth. Satan, in the form of a serpent, comes on the scene and causes some major problems.

Genesis 3:1–5 NIV

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ” 4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

The serpent brings question to the truth - you won’t certainly die. Then, he injects a falsehood into the equation - God doesn’t want you to be like Him. The enemy did this then, and he is still doing it today - leading people away from truth with deception.

We see Eve immediately begin to fall for it when… she exaggerates the command God had given Adam. God DID say that if they ate the fruit they would die. But God did NOT say if they touched the tree that they would die.

Eve is falling into the trap the enemy set. Her judgement and recollection is now clouded by the words of the enemy.

Again, remember what Jesus said - those who LISTEN to Jesus are on the side of truth. ALL Eve had to do was say, “Shut your stupid mouth, serpent. I aint falling for that!” But instead, she listened to the voice that led her with a lie. She was led to believe… that God was withholding something good from her. When in all actuality, God was leading Adam and Eve from harms way.

I get it… sometimes we can’t see the harm that comes with the world and its ways. But if the actions, behaviors, or attitudes go against what the Word would tell us, you can believe that harm will come if we go that direction!

And we know the rest of the Genesis story. Adam and Eve sin against God when they chose to ignore God’s truth. Immediately, the Bible says, their eyes were opened. They realized their mistake, they were now aware of and living in shame, and the worst part is… they began hiding from God.

But God did not leave them in hiding. God called them out.

Jesus Calls us Back to Truth

God foreshadowed the coming of Jesus all the way back in the Garden of Eden. Although sin was no a part of our world, there would soon come someone who would conquer sin and deliver us from death.

THAT IS WHAT JESUS CAME TO DO. He came to testify or to tell of the truth. He came to answer the very question Pilate asked that day, “What is truth?”

Truth… exists. And God did EXACTLY what He foreshadowed in the Garden… He sent His Son, Jesus, to declare the truth… to present the truth… to live and to lead others back to the truth.

The real question isn’t “What is truth?” the real question is “Do I want the truth?”

God gave all of us an incredible gift called free will. We all have the ability to make choices on our own. The reason the tree was placed in the garden and the command was given was to see what we would CHOOSE to do.

Watch this: How can a person CHOOSE truth if no option to deny the truth is not available? God didn’t want Adam and Eve to love Him because He forced them to love Him, He gave them the choice to go His way or to rebel against Him. He did that because He loves us.

And you still have that choice today. But here’s the deal: Even if you choose not to accept the Bible, Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit as truth… it doesn’t make it any less true. THERE WILL COME A DAY WHEN EVERY PERSON WILL KNOW JUST HOW TRUE GOD’S WORD IS. That is not a threat… it’s a promise of a reality that is to come.

This series will be designed to give you the opportunity to choose for yourself which direction you will go. We will explore the truth of the Word, why the Bible should be foundational in the choices we make, and why it is important we recognize the deception of the enemy for what it is.

I WELCOME your questions. And… I encourage you to invite others to come and be a part of the discussion. PEOPLE ARE LOOKING FOR TRUTH. One thing I love about the interchange between Pilate and Jesus is… Jesus doesn’t bust the guy up for asking, “What is truth” when the truth was standing right in front of Him. Jesus literally just told the guy that He came to testify the truth… and He allowed for Pilate to make his decision.

God allows for all of us to choose. His desire is for ALL to come to repentance. He doesn’t want a single person to perish because of their sins. This truth is found in 2 Peter 3:9

2 Peter 3:9 NIV

9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

John 3:16 tells us that God so loved the world… not just a select few… but the entire WORLD! That’s why He sent Jesus to save us.

John 3:16 NIV

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

That is truth! And God invites you to know the truth through the Son… but you must make that choice for yourself.

God will not force you to believe… He invites you to come to the side of truth through Jesus. Will you take Him up on that invitation?