What is Truth?

This is the first in a series of three op-eds defining what is True, what is Good, and what is Beautiful.

     Increasingly in our culture, we are witnessing a move away from absolute truth. Postmodern philosophy is permeating our society and also becoming prevalent in our churches. This philosophy promotes the idea that there is no objective truth which we must acknowledge, but rather every person can decide what "their truth" is. This ideology was recently expressed by a famous individual at a high profile event.
     Truth cannot be what we want it to be. If we create our own truth, it will be marred by our finite minds. Truth must be fixed by someone greater than ourselves. God is not inhibited by time, space, or matter; He, in fact, created them. Because He is the Creator, He is outside of this continuum, and not subject to its laws or limitations. Because of this, He is more than able to establish the truth that guides creation. Scripture states, “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (Num 23:19).
     In backing up the truth God established, we can look back to the historicity of one of the oldest texts known to man: the Bible. Considered one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of all time, the locating of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1946/47 confirms the authenticity of the Bible. At least a fragment of every book in the Old Testament was found (except for Esther) with little or no differences within the ancient documents and our current Bible. This brings historical legitimacy to the story of Creation as recorded in Genesis 1.
     About six months ago, I had a conversation with a young man in Ecuador. Our topic centered on religion and why people believe what they believe. He contended that one is shaped by their upbringing and outside forces which cause a person to believe a particular truth because it is what they were taught and what they know. Truth for many individuals is concurrent with their environment. He had no particular religious belief, so I asked him if he believed that Jesus actually existed. Using the rather prolific proof for a historical Jesus, I expounded upon several points before he stated that he did indeed believe that Jesus walked this earth. He added that his father greatly revered the teachings of Jesus and believed him to be a very wise man. ‘And yet’ I stated, ‘Jesus claimed to be the Son of God. If this is not true, he is a liar, and we cannot believe anything else he says’. I saw a change come across the young man’s face as he comprehended what I was saying, and stated that it was a “very good point”. Jesus’ whole ministry relies upon the fact that He spoke truth.
     “What is truth?” In the New Testament, the question of truth haunted Pontius Pilot, the Roman prefect of Judea. Pilot refused the very embodiment of the answer to the question in front of him. Jesus had said: “I am truth”. Many people today mirror Pilot’s rejection of truth. Pilot had the answer literally staring him in the face, and chose to ignore it, as well as his conscience, and his wife’s warning. For anyone who seeks truth, the answer might not be as blatant as in Pilot’s case, but it is nonetheless knowable and accessible. For those who refuse it, as Pilot did, their excuse is no more legitimate than his was.
     Preceding Pilot’s question on truth, Jesus said: “For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice”. In all walks of life, truth is defined and upheld by an authority; be it civil, religious, governmental, or familial. Without truth, anarchy reigns. An idea, or thought, cannot be simultaneously truth and falsehood. One must trump the other. When society begins to believe that what is false for one person is truth for another, then we begin to lose respect for the one who establishes ultimate truth: God Himself.
     When absolute truth is discarded, the people are lost. No longer are we looking to meet a standard of truth set by a power far above our abilities and insecurities, but rather we grasp at the truth we set for ourselves, which in most cases allows us to look or feel better about our own miserable state of being. Trying to set our own standards of living, limited by our finite minds, we lose the vast amount of knowledge attainable by understanding and knowing the One who created us, and the truth, and Who, in fact, embodies truth.`