God Is Truth John 18:37-38
Notes
Transcript
Introduction: What is truth? Do you know? Ask others what truth is and you will get a wide variety of answers. Some may go so far as to laugh at you or even get angry about it. The concept of truth is no longer what it once was. People have their truth and if you don’t agree with their truth then you will be chastised, maybe even beaten because you don’t agree with their truth.
So what is truth? Two thousand years ago a man had the same cynical question and he asked it directly of Jesus. The man was Pilate, and he wanted to know!
37 Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”
38 Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, “I find no guilt in Him.
It was probably rhetorical because Jesus had just told him that He had come into the world to testify to the truth. This same cynicism has a hold on truth to this very day. Some say truth is nothing more than a form of control used by the rich and powerful, to some it is subjective, dwelling in the world of individual preference and opinion, to some it dwells in collective judgment and cultural consensus, and others flatly deny truth altogether - there is no truth.
Transitional Sentence: So, what is truth? Where and how do we find it?
So to begin looking at this question let’s look and see what some dictionaries say about truth. Notice how I said dictionaries - the truth about truth is even relative to which source you get your answer from.
What is Truth is the question.
a. The world’s definition according to the:
Merriam Webster dictionary is:
Truth - the body of real things, events and facts: Actuality
That’s a bit fuzzy to me. A body of real things can look different to different people depending upon what view point you might have.
And then according to the:
is that which reflects factual and/or spiritual reality. Some thinkers view truth in purely intellectual categories, namely, as the affirmation of what is. Hence truth becomes correct assertions or factual statements (factuality). In recent times certain thinkers have suggested that truth is subjective, relative and pluralistic.
So truth is a reflection of what is? How does that work? Does the subjective, relative and pluralistic ring a bell with any of you? Truth seems to have become very relative.
b. And then we have the Biblical definition:
Lexham Theological Wordbook Theological Overview
The OT concept of “truth” is grounded in the idea of dependability or reliability—a quality of being trustworthy that can be applied to speech, thought, intent, or legal testimony. It describes what is real, actual, valid, genuine, and correct in legal and ethical contexts. As a quality or attribute of God himself and the righteous people who attempt to emulate him, truth or the desire for truth is often presented as the basis for all righteous behavior. In this religious sense, truth exists as an external standard for behavior, modeled after the reality of God’s innate truthfulness or faithfulness. The concept is contrasted with wickedness, falsehood, and corruption.
Truth in the NT can be an external norm for behavior, a general label for honesty, or a statement of the absolute revealed truth of the gospel.
Ultimately Truth is that which is consistent with the mind, will, character, glory, and being of God. So Truth, is the self expression of God. God declared it so and made it so. He is the author, source, determiner, governor, arbiter, ultimate standard, and final judge of all truth.
c. Worldly Truth in reality.
The big question about truth - Is it absolute or relative to one’s perspective. According to the biblical definition it is absolute. It flows from the mind, will, character and being of God. For some that is acceptable, but for others it is unacceptable. Some look at what should be truth and twist it, or flat out deny it. Why are things the way they are if I am the way I am. It’s easy to say that changes in culture change the meanings of what is written in the bible. And it’s easy to reinterpret what is written in the bible based on one’s personal truth.
Which leads us back to:
2. What is truth?
a. Well the word is truth. Jesus said:
i. John 17:17
17 “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.
Your word is truth. What God has said, directly through His Son or through the prophets as inspired by the Holy Spirit is God’s word. It is consistent with the mind, will, character, glory, and being of God. (Bracelet) God said it. That settles it. Do you believe it? There are many people who are rewriting and reinterpreting the bible to fit their perspective. To make the Bible all inclusive because their sin isn’t sin and God loves them too.
So what’s your perspective? Do you believe if He said it, that settles it? believe it and live like you believe it. In living like you believe it you will be sanctified by it.
The Greek word here is hagiazo which is to sanctify — to make as dedicated to God; either in becoming more distinct, devoted, or morally pure. The word does this because it is God’s word. God’s word sanctifies, it separates us from the world, it makes us morally pure as we shed the old life of sin and accept a life dedicated to God and His truth. It’s all based on the idea that He said it, that settles it.
There is one great thing about believing the word of God is truth...Freedom.
ii. John 8:31-32
31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;
32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
Believe in the word of God as truth and it will set you free. There are many who believe the word of God is a bunch of rules that chain you to behaving in a certain way. That is true, but the word of God frees us from sin and death. It doesn’t give us freedom to do whatever we want. It gives us freedom from the fear of what is to come. It provides freedom from the fear of spirits and the need to appease gods that demand sacrifices and obedience to lies.
The word as truth leads us into understanding the truth. As you continue in the word, as you learn and grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior freedom will increase and the fear of the past will be washed away because the word is Truth. This provides an answer of what is truth.
But another question can be Who is truth?
b. The Spirit is truth: John 14:16-17 says:
16 “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever;
17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.
The Holy Spirit, He is truth. He is given to us by God, so He is consistent with the mind, will, character, glory, and being of God. He has been around since the beginning and will be in the world until the day of the rapture when Jesus takes those that are His out of the world.
According to this verse the world cannot receive Him. The world doesn’t know Him, the world can’t know Him. Only those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ will know Him. Only the believers will know Him because He is in us. He was sent by the Father to make His dwelling place within us that we would not be left as orphans or left to fend for ourselves.
In chapters 14, 15 and 16 of the gospel of John we are told many of the things the Holy Spirit will be responsible for.
He is responsible for staying with us forever. He will dwell in us to teach us and help us remember all that Jesus said. He will testify about Jesus that we may know the truth of who He is. He convicts the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because the world does not believe in Jesus; and concerning righteousness, because Jesus went to the Father and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. The Spirit will disclose what is to come in the future and He will speak only what He hears from the Father. He will not speak on His own initiative. Most of all He will guide us into truth. Only truth can guide someone into truth.
The Holy Spirit is truth and:
c. The Son is truth.
i. John 14:6 says:
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
(Picture of Appian way) Jesus is the way. Do you know what the name of one of the most famous roads in the world is? It is Via Appia or the Appian Way. In 312 B.C. it was the longest and widest road in the world. It connected Rome to Brindisi about 800 kilometers away. It was an important road a road that opened towns and cities all along it’s length to easy travel. Most of all it lead people to Rome. It was a way to get from one place to another. Jesus said that He was the way. He was a path to get from one place to another. He won’t get you any where here on earth but if you want to get the the Father you have to follow Him. All the other roads you may get on will only lead you to destruction.
Jesus also said that He was the truth. Do you remember the definition: Truth is that which is consistent with the mind, will, character, glory, and being of God. Jesus is saying that He is all of these things. All that He does is consistent with the mind and will of God and His character is a representation of God. Most of all He is the glory of God and glorifies Him with all that He does.
Jesus also said that He is the life. His life is the life that each of us should be trying to emulate. His life is the life we should want to live. But His life is also the life that we should want to have after we have lived this life. His life is eternal life. His life will have us living in the presence of God for eternity. Only His life will lead us to eternal life.
Jesus came from the Father. He is an exact representation of the Father. He spoke and did what the Father was saying and doing. There is nothing more consistent with the mind, will, character, glory, and being of God then our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ;
Except:
d. The Father.
i. Jeremiah 10:10
10 But the Lord is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King. At His wrath the earth quakes, And the nations cannot endure His indignation.
Yehweh emet Elohim. The Lord is the True God.
The Old Testament is the story of creation and the beginning of His chosen people. The stories are full of other gods, false gods that the other people groups around them worshiped and the ones the Jews were constantly chasing after. They were not the living God, they were made of stone, wood, metal and other materials that the living God created. Some of those other gods were:
Here are some of those gods and goddesses: Adrammelech - an Assyrian god, Asherah, Ashtoreth - Canaan goddess, Baal - Canaan and Phonecia, Chemosh - Moab, Do you remember Dagon? Dagon battled against God when the ark of the covenant was captured by the philistines and then placed in Dagon’s temple. Some others are Hadad, Marduk, Moloch, Nisrok and Tammuz. This doesn’t include any of the gods or goddesses of Egypt, only the ones close at hand that were constantly drawing the Israelites away from Elohim. No wonder idolatry is a big deal for God.
All of these gods and goddesses were once worshipped by whole nations. Many are gone now, lost in history, now they are mostly found in museums and history books. But the one true God, the one living God, He lives on. Half the population of the world call upon His name in one way or another. Perhaps truth has something to do with it. Perhaps truth and life have something to do with it.
Now that we know what truth is:
3. How can we know truth?
a. First believe and live the word John 8:31 says:
31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;
If you continue in My word. Don’t ignore the word of God.
There are a lot of good books on the shelves of libraries and book stores. They have a lot of good advice which may or may not help you live your life in a better way. They can tell you how to be more assertive, more business like or more loving towards others. They can tell you how to do things, how to do things better or even how to avoid doing things you don’t want to do; but these are only opinions. They are the opinions of the authors and the people they quote. They may be true for some people and work well for them but they may not be very true for others and not work at all. When you boil it all down the book that works for one person may work for that person because that person actually read it, took it to heart and did the things that were suggested. Another person may read the same book and laugh it off as a joke, this won’t work, so they don’t even try. Sound familiar to anyone?
I recently read a book about feet. It talked about how a lot of the physical ailments we suffer from stem from bad footwear. Who knew? Do any of you think the shoe you have been sticking your feet into all of your life may actually be the root cause of your physical ailments. I didn’t. But I took it to heart and have made changes to what I do with my feet. I have suffered with back and neck problems for 30 years because I didn’t care for my feet very well. Making changes and caring for my feet seems to have made a difference. Time will tell, time will tell.
Just as with others books, reading and taking them to heart makes all the difference. Reading and taking the one really important book to heart, the bible, can make all the difference in your life as well. When you pick up the bible and read it you have to believe it. You have to accept it as truth. You have to make it your very own. It’s a love letter from God teaching you everything you need to know to have a relationship with Him while you walk through this life and eternal life with Him when this life comes to an end. If you read it and don’t believe it or you read it and don’t do what it says it won’t help you. You won’t be continuing in the word, you won’t be walking in truth.
Pick up the word, read it, learn it, continue in it, be a child of God.
b. Next you have to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior John 8:12 says:
12 Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”
When night falls darkness covers the land scape. We have lots of lights around the house so we can see. The light displaces the darkness so there isn’t so much of it. All this light is called light pollution. It becomes a problem when you want to see the stars in the sky or you want to actually sleep in the dark instead of all the light. Where we lived in Auburn we were a few miles outside of town so it got dark at night. It got dark because there was a ridge between us and the town. We couldn’t see the lights of town but we saw the glow in the sky above the town. We saw the pollution that said town is that way. We have lots of lights because the darkness can be scary. Did you ever hear stories of the boogie man when you were young. The boogie man lives in the darkness.
The crazy thing is that people live in darkness and don’t even know it. They live in spiritual darkness. The dominion of darkness is the dominion of evil. This darkness is actually a place where a lot of people want to be. It’s a place full of sin and lies, a place safe from the truth. People want to walk in darkness they want to walk in spiritual death. Those who love the darkness don’t want to come into the light. Leaving the darkness and entering the light means a lot of things will change, nobody likes change.
To enter the light you have to accept the truth as truth. You have to accept that you are a sinner and your ways are evil. To enter the light you must accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, you have to turn your life over to a different Lord. You have to turn from Satan the lord of darkness, sin and death to Jesus the Lord of truth and life. When you accept Jesus then you will know truth. Then you will receive the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth. He will teach you and guide you into all truth. As you continue growing in your knowledge of Jesus Christ through the word you will come to know the truth as truth and lies as lies.
c. After you have entered the light you must walk in the light.
The dark is an easy place to be. Rules are arbitrary. They may or may not apply to you specifically, only if you want to follow them. You might learn right from wrong when you are young and maybe you follow those rules for a while but as time goes along it doesn’t seem to matter much. It’s no fun following the rules. Lying, stealing, adultery, who cares anyway, no one else is following them. So the darkness is safe. When you don’t follow the rules you can hide the sin in the darkness, you can live thinking that you are getting away with it. You don’t really know who you are hiding from but it is good to hide anyway. Keep it a secret. Keep it on the down low.
But then along comes the light. When you leave the dominion of darkness and enter the light everything changes. The light is full of rules. The crazy thing is that there aren’t anymore rules in the light than in the darkness. That’s just one of the lies that makes the darkness seem like a better place to be. Anyway, in the light there is actually someone who will talk to you about your habits and sins that you bring into the light with you as you begin your walk in the light. This someone is the Holy Spirit. He will walk along side you in the light and help you avoid the darkness and even begin to follow the rules. He speaks in that still quiet voice that we like to call conviction. That’s right He will convict you about what you are doing. Your deep seated habits and sins will begin to seem like what they are - sins. He will help you over come them. This is walking in the light. This is walking in truth. This is walking with the Lord. The other thing this is called is sanctification. Now we have come back to the beginning. “Sanctify them in the truth, Your word is truth.”
Exit: Viewed from a theological perspective, truth is grounded in the being and will of the triune God. So whatever reflects God’s own being and will is truth. God’s word flows from His will and has it’s beginnings in God so it is truth. The Holy Spirit comes from the Father, speaks from the Father and glorifies the Father by doing His will so He is truth. And Jesus Christ is the truth. He does the will of the Father and He is the exact representation and revelation of God.
This is truth. All the stuff of the world is a lie or a twisted reflection of the truth. If it stems from the word, the Spirit or the Son it is truth. Everything else, may seem like truth, it may be helpful for living in this world but it can not help us find reconciliation and eternal life with God through Jesus Christ by Faith through Grace.
Believe in the truth, walk with the truth and in the light. God is truth, walk like you believe it.
Pray: Psalm 106:48
48 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, From everlasting even to everlasting. And let all the people say, “Amen.” Praise the Lord!
