It was the skeptics of antiquity in Greece that doubted you could know anything for certain (cf. the Sophists). Romans thought that "might makes right" and didn't believe in universal truth that applied to the whole world. David Hume was known as the great skeptic in philosophy and Rene Descartes with his Cartesian principle that cogito, ergo sum (I think, therefore I am). He came about to a proof of his own existence! Actually, Augustine thought that if you err you exist because you have to exist to err!
Modern-day skepticism says that all truth is relative to the person, time, circumstance, and event and isn't absolute: "You can know nothing for certain," according to Alan Bloom in The Closing Of The American Mind showing that modern man believes all truth is relative (which is a meaningless statement because the assertion would also be relative). Actually, the truths they want to hold as relative are those pertaining to Christianity.
John Dewey poisoned our classrooms with his pragmatism, saying that the test of an idea was whether it worked or not, not whether it was true. If it works it must be true. People are convinced many things work that aren't true: hypnotism, yoga, TM, hypnotism, astrology, Buddhist philosophy, et al. Christianity is not true because it works, but works because it is true (there is a subtle but valid difference here). Real truth is timeless and is relative to everyone, everywhere, all the time--it is universal and appropriate in its application.
The hot topic dated back to Pontius Pilate asking Jesus, "What is truth?" Jesus said that He came to bear witness of the truth--actually, He is the personification of truth itself. John said, "For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." The Bible is not just true, it is truth (no other book can claim to be "truth"), but you must take it all in context in and observe the whole analogy of Scripture and remember that "the sum [entirety] of [God's] Word is truth" (Psalm 119:160a). What is ambiguous in one place will be explained or is unambiguous in another--Scripture interprets Scripture.
Satan liked to misquote Scripture and take it out of context (a text taken out of context is a pretext!); he knows enough to be dangerous. His main strategy is saying: "Hath God said?" He gets us to doubt the Word and putting our faith in God's promises. Even when he tempted Jesus he used Scripture to try and trap Jesus and use it against Him. Still, the best way to combat the enemy is to know Scripture and say, "It is written" in response. In a world of uncertainty, we can count on God's Word to be reliable and certain and it will never let us down or fail us.
To sum up, Harvard University has the Bible quote, The Truth Shall Set You Free, as its slogan. They are mistaken to think that academic subjects can liberate the soul from guilt, despair, sin, and death--we just become educated neurotics. It has been said, "The womb forms you, sin deforms you, schools, inform you, prison can reform you, but only Christ's truth can transform you!" Truth has an impact on the soul; we don't get changed lives by being inspired by Shakespeare. We can know the truth and it is absolute because Jesus bore witness of it and knowing Him is equated with knowing the truth. Soli Deo Gloria!
Modern-day skepticism says that all truth is relative to the person, time, circumstance, and event and isn't absolute: "You can know nothing for certain," according to Alan Bloom in The Closing Of The American Mind showing that modern man believes all truth is relative (which is a meaningless statement because the assertion would also be relative). Actually, the truths they want to hold as relative are those pertaining to Christianity.
John Dewey poisoned our classrooms with his pragmatism, saying that the test of an idea was whether it worked or not, not whether it was true. If it works it must be true. People are convinced many things work that aren't true: hypnotism, yoga, TM, hypnotism, astrology, Buddhist philosophy, et al. Christianity is not true because it works, but works because it is true (there is a subtle but valid difference here). Real truth is timeless and is relative to everyone, everywhere, all the time--it is universal and appropriate in its application.
The hot topic dated back to Pontius Pilate asking Jesus, "What is truth?" Jesus said that He came to bear witness of the truth--actually, He is the personification of truth itself. John said, "For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." The Bible is not just true, it is truth (no other book can claim to be "truth"), but you must take it all in context in and observe the whole analogy of Scripture and remember that "the sum [entirety] of [God's] Word is truth" (Psalm 119:160a). What is ambiguous in one place will be explained or is unambiguous in another--Scripture interprets Scripture.
Satan liked to misquote Scripture and take it out of context (a text taken out of context is a pretext!); he knows enough to be dangerous. His main strategy is saying: "Hath God said?" He gets us to doubt the Word and putting our faith in God's promises. Even when he tempted Jesus he used Scripture to try and trap Jesus and use it against Him. Still, the best way to combat the enemy is to know Scripture and say, "It is written" in response. In a world of uncertainty, we can count on God's Word to be reliable and certain and it will never let us down or fail us.
To sum up, Harvard University has the Bible quote, The Truth Shall Set You Free, as its slogan. They are mistaken to think that academic subjects can liberate the soul from guilt, despair, sin, and death--we just become educated neurotics. It has been said, "The womb forms you, sin deforms you, schools, inform you, prison can reform you, but only Christ's truth can transform you!" Truth has an impact on the soul; we don't get changed lives by being inspired by Shakespeare. We can know the truth and it is absolute because Jesus bore witness of it and knowing Him is equated with knowing the truth. Soli Deo Gloria!
No comments:
Post a Comment