Has the concept of truth fallen on hard times?

The concept of truth has clearly fallen on hard times.

Pilate posed one of the most profound and eternally significant questions in the Bible. He asked Jesus in His final hour, “What is truth?” It was a cynical response to what Jesus had just revealed: “I have come into the world, to testify to the truth.” Two thousand years later, the whole world breathes Pilate’s cynicism, with good cause.

So, what is truth?

Here’s a simple definition drawn from what the Bible teaches: Truth is that which is consistent with the mind, will, character, glory, and being of God. Even more to the point: Truth is the self-expression of God. That is the biblical meaning of truth.

The Old Testament refers to the Almighty as the “God of truth” (Deut. 32:4; Ps. 31:5; Is. 65:16). When Jesus said of Himself, “I am...the truth” (John 14:6), He was making a profound claim about His own deity. He was also making it clear that all truth must ultimately be defined in terms of God and His eternal glory. After all, Jesus is “the brightness of [God’s] glory and the express image of His person” (Heb. 1:3). He is truth incarnate—the perfect expression of God and therefore the absolute embodiment of all that is true.

Jesus also said that the written Word of God is truth. It does not merely contain nuggets of truth; it is pure and unchangeable truth that (according to Jesus) “cannot be broken” (John 10:35).

Of course, there cannot be any difference between the written Word of God (the Bible) and the incarnate Word of God (Jesus). In the first place, truth by definition cannot contradict itself. Second, the Bible is called “the word of Christ” (Col. 3:16). It is His message, His self-expression. In other words, the truth of Christ and the truth of the Bible are of the very same character. They are in perfect agreement in every respect. Both are equally true. God has revealed Himself to humanity through The Bible and through His Son. Both perfectly embody the essence of what truth is.

The Bible also says God reveals basic truth about Himself in nature. The heavens declare His glory (Ps. 19:1). His other invisible attributes (such as His wisdom, power, and beauty) are on constant display in what He has created (Rom. 1:20). Knowledge of Him is inborn in the human heart (Rom. 1:19), and a sense of the moral character and loftiness of His law is implicit in every human conscience (Rom. 2:15).

Those things are universally self-evident truths. According to Romans 1:20, denial of the spiritual truths we know innately always involves a deliberate and culpable unbelief. And for those who wonder whether basic truths about God and His moral standards really are stamped on the human heart, ample proof can be found in the long history of human law and religion. To suppress this truth is to dishonour God, displace His glory, and incur His wrath (vv. 19-20).

Still, the only infallible interpreter of what we see in nature or know innately in our own consciences is the explicit revelation of The Bible. Since the Bible is also the one place where we are given the way of salvation, entrance into the kingdom of God, and an infallible account of Christ, the Bible is the touchstone to which all truth claims should be brought and by which all other truth must finally be measured.

Truth also means nothing apart from God. Truth cannot be adequately explained, recognized, understood, or defined without God as the source. Since He alone is eternal and self-existent and He alone is the Creator of all else, He is the fountain of all truth.

There are serious moral implications whenever someone tries to dissociate truth from the knowledge of God. Abandon a biblical definition of truth, and unrighteousness is the inescapable result. We see it happening before our eyes in every corner of contemporary society. What we see today is a fulfillment of what Romans chapter 1 says always happens when a society denies and suppresses the essential connection between God and truth.

Truth is not subjective, it is not a consensual cultural construct, and it is not an invalid, outdated, irrelevant concept. Truth is the self-expression of God. Truth is thus theological; it is the reality God has created and defined, and over which He rules. Truth is therefore a moral issue for every human being.

How each person responds to the truth God has revealed is an issue of eternal significance. To reject and rebel against Jesus Christ, who is the Word of God, results in darkness, folly, sin, judgment, and the never-ending wrath of God. To accept and submit to Jesus Christ is experience the forgiveness and blessing of God, to know with certainty, and to find life everlasting.

Written by a guest blogger:

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Christianity - a Fairy Tale or the Truth?

The Lord Jesus Christ is no ordinary person. I make this statement in the present tense because the Lord Jesus is not just a figure of history but he is, today, still alive in heaven. I don't mean alive in the way we might think about a relative who has died and hope is now in heaven (as a Christian I believe people who have turned from their sin and accepted Jesus as their Saviour will be in heaven when they die but this is not my point at the moment). I mean that Jesus is alive, physically in heaven. Your response might be - impossible and unbelievable! 

The record of the life of Christ is all highly improbable if you ignore the key ingredient, God. Believing the following claims about Jesus is pretty far fetched IF you don't accept the supernatural or God. BUT are these historical facts and if so what is your personal response?

Here are the claims: 

Jesus was a man but so much more than an ordinary man, 

He lived an absolutely faultless life,

He could do miracles, 

He became accountable for sin and evil,

He died to pay the price to deal with it on a cross outside Jerusalem and finally

Three days after his death he came back to life. 

Add to this the claims that he lived on earth for forty days after his suffering, death and resurrection and physically rose from the earth and passed through the sky and space into the presence of His Father, God in heaven itself. 

On a purely rationale level this sounds like I am stretching facts and calling it truth! 

BUT WHAT IF......

A careful analysis of the facts points to Jesus being the Son of God!

The evidence points to it being statistically impossible for the historical predictions (the bible calls them prophecies) being fulfilled accurately being mere coincidence!

It was impossible to deceive so many historians and eye witnesses on a such a grand scale!

The probability of it being the truth is higher than the probability of it being a lie?

I believe that this is the truth of the matter. I believe that the evidence to the authenticity of the bible is there if you care to look for it. I believe there is no other honest conclusion that you can come to about who Jesus is if you are prepared to genuinely look at the facts.

In support of this the bible clearly states: 'these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you might have life in his name', John 20:31. 

SO WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH THIS INFORMATION?

If it's all true you are affected! Why, because if it's true then there is a God to whom you are accountable. You will answer to Him for your beliefs, behaviour and lifestyle. Which means that you need the salvation that God has on offer through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. 

If you are concerned (and you should be) here are some statements that will guide you and point you in the right direction:

Accept what God says about you and confess your sins and guilt to Him (by praying). The bible states 'if we confess our sins he (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness,' 1 John 1:9. 

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved, Acts 16:31. This means trust God and depend on the Lord Jesus to deliver and save you from eternal judgment and punishment. 

If you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you shall be saved, Romans 10:9. 

These biblical statements explain and define how you can be safe and blessed with salvation. 

If you need to talk, have questions or would like to tell us that you have become a Christian please either call 44 7747 101352 or email stepcar61@gmail.com. Alternatively you could visit my webpage www.seekthetruth.org.uk. 

Stephen 

Why do we have a sense of justice?

We now live in a society where the general opinion about whether things are right or wrong can at times be vague.

I believe that, in the Bible, God has given us clear information about what is right and what is wrong. There is a reality about things being just or unjust.

Here are some things to consider:

·      Why do children cry “that’s not fair” or “it’s not right”!

·      Is there is an inbuilt awareness of fairness in a child!

·      Why is it common for people to have a really well developed feeling for what is right and what is        wrong?

The Bible gives us the explanation. It teaches that God “has written His law in our hearts”. God gave us this inbuilt awareness of right and wrong. Holy scripture (the Bible) teaches that we have a conscience. It teaches that we have an inbuilt knowledge within ourselves and a knowledge about ourselves. We automatically can clarify the reality of the rightness or wrongness of the things that we say, feel and do.

For example, most of us feel impulsively that to tell blatant lies is wrong. We instinctively know that to remove property that belongs to someone else is wrong. The Bible teaches these principles but somehow we know them to be true! Is that significant or co-incidental?

The ‘ten commandments’ teach that you shouldn’t steal, you shouldn’t lie, and that you shouldn’t take somebody else’s wife and so on. The list defines prohibitions as well as teaching positive things that we should do. Things like loving God with all your heart and with all your soul and all your mind (and Jesus summarized the rest by saying “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” – Matthew 22:39).

You may say to yourself, “I’m not really sure why we all know those things?” Let me come back to what the Bible says - God has planted within us an awareness of right and wrong. Just look across society for a moment. People are very interested in equal rights and equal opportunities. We are very concerned that disabled people are cared for, that ethnic minorities aren’t disadvantaged, that there is religious freedom, freedom of thought and freedom of belief. We campaign for the rights of the unborn child plus we debate people’s rights for free speech. Public behavior is monitored ensuring that people do not overreach themselves and inflict damage on other people or their property. In all of this we try to balance the rights of a society to be free and yet free of criminal activities.

These things are right. I believe we are like this in society because God has implanted in us an awareness of things that are very important to Him - a consciousness of right and wrong and of the realities of living in a way that is fair and equitable. God describes Himself as a just, as well as righteous, doing right. He is a God of light; God is love, a God who is eternal and a God who is all-knowing!

We wouldn’t know these things if God hadn’t revealed them to us in the Bible. This is why the Bible is such a key book for us to read. In fact it is God’s message to humanity and it’s an amazing thing that we have it so freely available despite some societies today that still restrict access to the Word of God.

Let me leave you with a statement from the Bible, the Bible says this, “For Christ also has once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God”, 1 Peter 3:18. This verse is saying that if God was being just, if God was being fair He would punish is for our sin, He would penalize us, He would judge us for breaking His law because we are guilty. But the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came into the world and suffered for sins to bring us to God. He personally suffered the penalty for sin by dying for us. Three days later He was brought up back to life. His resurrection is sufficient evidence that the price for sin was fully paid. His resurrection establishes that you can take advantage of salvation. You do this by confessing your sin (to God, not a religious representative) and asking God to forgive you. You are effectively asking for God’s blessing upon your life.

I wonder if you would take advantage of a God’s offer of salvation today. Will you come to Him for forgiveness and rest upon Him for salvation? You can know what it is to be forgiven and saved.

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved – the Bible, Acts 16:31

For more information please visit our webpage www.seekthetruth.org.uk

Why do we need forgiveness?

Why do we need forgiveness? What does God’s forgiveness look like? And is it possible to truly be forgiven? Stephen Baker explores the topic of forgiveness by looking at what the Bible teaches.

Life is full of questions and often the answers are difficult. Stephen Baker seeks to answer various questions about life and faith using the Bible as his only source. Listen to Stephen’s show, “Life Questions,” on HopeStreamRadio as he tackles the challenge of life questions.

“In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;”– Ephesians 1:7