This is not a new question as almost 2,000 years ago, a Roman governor asked a wrongly accused prisoner who stood before him, “What is truth?” The Roman’s name was Pontius Pilate. The prisoner was Jesus of Nazareth (John 18: 37-38). Jesus did not respond to Pilate’s question during this encounter as He had already expounded upon this question throughout His ministry and teaching. Apparently, Pilate walked away from the question that day and simply washed his hands of the ordeal. That debate is still resonating today as daily we must search for truth among the fake news, disinformation, and lies that are circulating—even in the church. Nearly three out of four Americans say there is no such thing as ultimate, or absolute truth and the numbers don’t look better among those who claim to follow Jesus.
Absolute truth refers to a fixed, invariable, and unalterable fact that is true at all times and in all places. The meaning of the word corresponds to what actually is, not what we feel or wish were true. We may avoid truth—or water it down or cover it up—because it can be uncomfortable to expose weakness or bring wrongdoing into the light. Paul Watson, a founder of the activist group, Greenpeace, claimed, “It doesn’t matter what is true, it only matters what people believe is true.” According to Mr. Watson, truth is irrelevant if it doesn’t achieve the desired outcome. The battle between truth and lies began in the Garden when a supernatural rebel in the form of a serpent challenged God’s truth with his lies. Reflecting the confusion that Satan has created, Otto von Bismarck humorously stated, “When you want to fool the world, tell the truth.” The fact is that this absurd statement is relevant in our society today as the scientists, technology gurus, social media platforms, entertainment industry, government, medical community, schools and even churches have fallen prey to Satan’s snare. The Bible says active deception will take center stage in the end times. The lies we endure now are nothing compared to those that are coming. It will become normal to “throw truth to the ground” according to Daniel 8: 12. It will be a matter of routine when “deceit will prosper.” Jesus Himself warned us of the father of lies and great deception coming upon the world. In Matthew 24:24-25 He said that “false Christs and false prophets will rise up and show great signs and wonders so as to lead astray, if possible, even the chosen. See, I have told you beforehand.”
In the Garden of Gethsemane, hours before His arrest, Jesus prayed for the disciples: “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.” (John 17 :17) Here Jesus is saying one should be able to examine the pages of God’s Word—the Holy Bible—to learn the truth on any subject of major importance or significance. Truth is so important it’s mentioned almost 200 times in Scripture. Christ is the Living Word and the Written Word and the source of all truth as is revealed in His character, His teachings and His promises. Anything that does not agree with the Bible is false, error, deception or heresy. In the Song of Moses in Deuteronomy 32: 3-4 he said: “Because I will publish the name of the LORD; ascribe ye greatness unto our God. He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are judgment (justice); a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He.” David in Psalm 91:4 had this to say about the LORD: “He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shall thou trust; His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.” Paul said to the Ephesians, “If indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus.” (Ephesians 4: 21) Christ, as God, is the personification of truth. He embodies truth.
From before Jesus was born until the late 1700’s people believed in a spiritual or supernatural world that affected all aspects of their lives. Those people gave spiritual explanations for what went on in their physical lives. They expected God to reveal Himself through His Word and circumstances. Around the mid-1700’s common ideas about truth and the supernatural changed. There was a shift away from God as truth and started treating the human mind as if it were a god and the age of reason was born. Scientists made astounding discoveries, and the scope of knowledge seemed limitless and God and His Word were put on the back shelf. Science was turned into doctrine. Society bought into the lie that Satan presented to Eve “Your eyes will be opened and you will be like God.” This same evil spirit endeavors to take a kernel of truth and twist it until the reality is finally obscured in falsehood. This demonic spirit seeks to establish itself as the ultimate authority over humanity, especially attaching to the multiple institutions of God’s legitimate work upon the earth—like government, technology industries, marriage, education systems, and so forth. God is actually allowing this demonic spirit to do its work of sifting, deceiving, and manipulating among those who do not desire to follow His Word, His ways and His truth. And so it is that, right in the midst of our times, one can see this same type of demonic spirit operating throughout the world, even in the core of the institutional church. We are currently witnessing the prophecy of I Timothy 4:1 “The Spirit clearly says that in latter times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.”
This departure from the truth of God’s Word was seen early on in the history of our nation when Thomas Jefferson edited biblical passages out of the Bible that he considered over the top or that offended his Enlightenment-era sense of reason. He used a razor and scissors to carefully cut out small squares of text. Each cut had a purpose and each word was carefully considered. Using his clippings, the aging third president created a New Testament of his own—one that most Christians would hardly recognize. This Bible was focused only on Jesus, but none of His mystical works. It didn’t include major scenes like the resurrection or ascension to heaven or miracles. Instead, Jefferson’s Bible focused on Jesus as a man of morals, a teacher whose truths were expressed without the help of miracles or the supernatural powers of God. The question arises today: Have we as the church accepted the whole counsel of God as truth or have we like Jefferson focused on the parts that do not offend us?
This week I became aware of a so-called anti-propaganda law called the Smith-Mundt Act passed in 1948 that prevented the U.S. government’s mammoth broadcasting arm from delivering programming to American audiences. But on July 2, 2012, under the Obama Administration it silently came to an end with the implementation of a new reform passed in January, 2013 called the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act. The result: an unleashing of thousands of hours per week of government-funded radio and TV programs for domestic U.S. consumption in a reform initially criticized as a green light for U.S. domestic propaganda efforts. Now we know the source of fake news (lies) and the censoring of free speech (truth)!
In recent months the alarm has been sounded even by Elon Musk of the dangers of AI (artificial intelligence) and rightfully so as I have seen where PETA is using AI to rewrite the book of Genesis to exclude animal sacrifice. Among the changes made by PETA to the Word of God includes referring to animals as “beings” rather than “beasts” or “creatures.” Another deviation is the use of plant fibers like hemp and bamboo as clothing rather than animal skins, a significant change from the narrative in Genesis 3 in which God made “garments of [an unidentified animal] skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them” (Genesis 3:21). Among other new interpretations, in Genesis Chapter 22, Abraham travels to the land of Moriah and befriends a gentle lamb to show his reverence and respect for God’s creation, rather than slaughtering a ram to demonstrate his faith — much as human sacrifice, once a reality, is now outlawed all over the world,” the product description reads. Another AI project is rewriting the whole Bible that embraces all religions in light of culture today.
The Holy Bible is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help us God to believe it, obey it and live by it! Here’s a summary of biblical answers to the question: What is truth?
Jesus said God’s Word, the Bible, is truth (John 17: 17). Christ, as God, is the personification of truth (John 14: 6; Ephesians 4: 21). God cannot lie (Titus 1: 3-2). Satan is the father of lies! And we have to be on guard against his attacks on the truth (Revelation 12:9) by putting on the belt of truth daily (Ephesians 6: 14). Jesus promised His disciples that they would know the truth and be set free (John 8: 31-32). Truth is revealed in God’s Word—not through science. God will only accept worship of Him “in Spirit and Truth” (John 4: 24) THIS IS THE TRUTH ABSOLUTELY!