What is truth

I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. (1 John 2:21) 

I am the way, the truth, and the life.  (Jesus- John 14:6) 

37Therefore 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?" 

Thoughts: What is truth?  Pilate obviously did not know though the truest man in the universe was before him.  The judge was not sure that there was such a thing as truth, and when that is the case, the giving into popular opinion becomes more important than doing what is just and right.  If there is no real truth, justice becomes only popular opinion.
     Tim Keller, in a recent sermon, had an interesting thought (that I paraphrase).  He pointed out that we may not like a God who disagrees with us or is truth.  So we start saying, "I don't like this about what God did."  Or, "I don't like a God who gets angry with people, I only want a god who is positive and always says yes."  Keller says we tend to think the same thing of human beings- we want them to be "yes men" or "yes women."  When we get married we are surprised that sometimes people we love rebuke us or go against our will.  But that is what it means to be human.  It is the same with God.  God has not only the right but ought to say no to us.  "The Stepford Wives" had a chip put in them so they always said "yes" and were only agreeable to do whatever the men said.  But in the end, these were just robots.  It is hard to love an appliance.  Love demands that we be free to say "no."
    Truth is not whatever we want to make it to be.  Truth is reality- and God is the deepest reality as the Creator of all- and Creator of all that truly is- the truth.  Those who say that all religions are true in all parts are really saying there are no true religions.  Those who say that we are better off without religion are saying the ultimate truths (and therefore really all truths) do not matter.  The Romans were willing to incorporate all religions into there pantheon of gods.  But the Christians (and the Jews) would have none of it, and were willing to die (like Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego in Daniel) that serve the false gods.  The truth enables us to quit living in a selfish illusion world and start living in the world of reality where there is falsehood and truth- fake emotion and true love.
      There are many politicians who say whatever their voters wish to hear is the truth.  But there are rare jewels who will say and stick with their convictions.  They may not be elected down here- but they will be awarded in the next life.  In the meantime, we are called to speak the truth in love.     

Prayer: Lord, give me grace when others disagree with me.  Give me grace to conform to your will even if it is hard for me.  

1/1/13- Where To Begin? Listening to God.

“Come, all you who are thirsty,come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.  Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.  3  Give ear and come to me; hear me, that your soul may live.  I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David." (Isaiah 55:1,2)

Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to wrath. (James 1:19)

Have this Book of the Law always on your lips.  Listen to it day and night.  so that you may be careful to do everything that is written in it.  Then you will prosper in what you are doing, then you will have success. (Joshua 1:8). 

Thoughts: So where do we begin the new year (or a new study)?  It is not by talking, or presuming, or even planning.  Christians believe our first task is listening.  In listening we say that who we listen to is more important (at the very least for the moment) than what we are saying, doing, or thinking.  It is a sign of humbling ourselves in order to pay attention to the other being.  So listening to God is a great way to start a new year.  Oswald Chambers said that "when we ignore God we are humiliating Him." Those who believe and love God will listen as those who are in true love stop and listen to the person with whom they are in love.
     The question is what theologians call "epistemology" which basically asks, "How do we know?" How do we know what is right?  How do we know what we should do?  How do we possibly know the will of God?  Whenever we talk about knowing, Christians also recognize (through our teaching in the Bible) that we need to hold the truth in humility and love.  Even with the Bible we see on this side as "through a mirror dimly" but when we get to heaven it will become clear and we will see "face to face."  We walk by faith and in a sense of humility and mystery.  Yet, that does NOT mean that we cannot know some things for sure.  While we may not know all things, we may  know some things in certainty by faith.  As Hebrews says, "Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."  We do this with all of life.  We may not know how our car works, but most believe that when we get in it the brakes will work.  To be able to move forward at all does not mean we bring in a mechanic every time we get in the car.  But if we hear the brakes squeaking, we may change our mind.  Listening is important- and putting our faith in what we hear or do not hear is important too.
      Where do we listen?  Christians have affirmed the Bible as the Word of God.  This is a matter of faith in the end.  It is not that the Bible tells us everything.  But as the Westminster Shorter Catechism says, the Bible tells us what we are to believe about God and what duty God requires of us.  In other words, what we are to believe and what we are to do.  We do not make this up for ourselves.  The Bible is not just a history of how some people believed.  It is a means (or tool) of grace.  We believe God not only spoke in it, but that God, the Holy Spirit, still speaks in it to us as individuals as well as corporately.

Prayer; Spirit, we I enter a new year- help me to listen to you through the Word you inspire and illuminate to me.

Ryland's papyrus dated between before 100- 150 AD (c. 125).
It is a section of John 18- "Everyone on the side of truth listens to me. 'What is truth?'  Pilate asked."  Jesus was saying there is such a thing as truth.  Pilate was implying he does not know how to discover it.  This is still a huge sticking point between those who have faith and those who do not.