We don’t know what to believe anymore, or do we? ∙

We don’t know what to believe anymore, or do we? ∙

What is truth? – John 18:38

John 17:17 Set them apart in the truth; your word is truth.

Psalms 119:160 The very essence of your words is truth; all your just regulations will stand forever.

John 18:37 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.”

“Social media was invented as part of the plot to undermine the faith of sensible people in freedom of speech” (Michael Deacon, the daily telegraph, U.K.)

Western civilization is haunted by a sense of “unknowing” and cognitive dissonance. We struggle to come to terms with the unsettling reality that we simply do not know what to believe anymore. In the era of “fake news,” every claim must now be viewed with deep suspicion. In the age of Google, anyone can “research” anybody. In the age of Facebook, anyone can broadcast from their own private network. But of course, in an era where we cannot trust the news, why in the world would we trust anything we read online? (Mike Rowe, May 4, 2017)

A quest for contradiction has replaced our search for truth.

We are trapped in a tautology of doubt. Tautology is redundant or circular reasoning or description.

It seems we’re no longer merely skeptical; we’re skeptical of skepticism – and doubly skeptical of those who are not. Should we feel deceived? Betrayed? (Mike Rowe)

How did this come about? Humankind has searched for the truth from the beginning. There was always a new truth, a truth for now. But today, truth with a capital “T” simply does not exist for much of the population. Absolute Truth has become relative truth. Whatever is true for you is truth.

In a live appearance at UCLA’s Royce Hall, Oprah Winfrey explains why it’s essential for all of us to find our own truth. “What is the truth of me? Why am I here? And what do I have to offer?” Oprah asks. “The answer,” she says, “is yourself.” Oprah shares why you are enough, just as you are . . . (Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations).

REFLECT & PRAY

Children of the King need to stand firm upon the foundation of true Truth that He has provided. They put it into practice.

Father thank You that You have revealed Your eternal Truth in the Word of God. Encourage me to build and maintain my life upon it.

INSIGHT

Francis Schaeffer explained that there are two kinds of truth in the postmodern age: Absolute Truth and relative truth. Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, the German philosopher who lived from 1770 to 1831, is responsible. He postulated an entirely new philosophical perspective on truth which he called dialectics. Hegel suggested that truth is not absolute but relative and constantly changing.

For children of the King, the Absolute Truth of Scripture never changes. It can never be compromised. It can never be synthesized. The Father’s Truth is true Truth and never varies. Our Father has provided a firm foundation to build our understanding of reality and base our faith.

Psalms 119:89 Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven.

Times of stress and crisis separate true Truth from false truth. They reveal the true Truth upon which we base our lives.

The Lord Jesus Christ provides an excellent illustration of permanent and lasting foundations. Rather than talking about philosophical constructs, He talks about home construction. One house is built on a weak foundation of sand. The other house is built upon a firm foundation of rock.

Each house in the Lord Jesus Christ’s illustration looks secure. However, severe testing reveals the true quality of the builders’ work. Torrential downpours were and are common in Israel. Wise men build to withstand them (Constable).

Matthew 7:24-25

 24 “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock.

 25 Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise, and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock.

Proverbs 10:25 When the storms of life come, the wicked are whirled away, but the godly have a lasting foundation.

“Only a house whose foundations are firm can withstand the storm, and only a life whose foundations are sure can stand the test” (Barclay). The Lord Jesus Christ demanded two things of all children of the King: they are to listen and to do (Barclay).

“Knowledge only becomes relevant when it is translated into action. It would be perfectly possible to pass an examination in Christian ethics with the highest distinction and yet not to be a Christian. Knowledge must become action; theory must become practice; theology must become life.”

“There is little point in consulting a doctor about our health unless we are prepared to act upon the things we are told. There is little point in going to an expert unless we are prepared to act upon the advice given to us. And yet there are thousands of people who listen to the teaching of Jesus Christ every Sunday, and who have an excellent knowledge of what Jesus taught, and who yet make little or no deliberate attempt to put it into practice” (Barclay).

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© Dr. H 2022