"The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth, because the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever: ... I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth...." (2 John 1-3, ESV).
"For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." (3 John 2-3, ESV).
"Sanctify them in the truth, your word is truth" (John 17:17, ESV).
"...as the truth is in Jesus" (Eph. 4:21, ESV).
By definition: Truth is what God says is truth (He's the final arbiter), and anything consistent with His nature, "will, mind, character, glory and being," and laws. "Truth is the self-expression of God," in other words (per John MacArthur).
It is not only possible to ascertain the truth in this relativistic age, where people think they can decide their private truths, but commanded in the exhortation of Jesus in John 8:32: "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." Note that Christ didn't say we would find some truth, or our truth, or relative truth, but THE truth! No man ever spoke like this: not by authority, but with authority! This is not referring to getting a good education as the answer to life's problems, though the Bible isn't anti-intellectual and nowhere demeans learning.
The truth that sets free is knowing Jesus as personal Lord and Savior, who is the embodiment and personification of truth itself: For he told Pilate that He came to bear witness of the truth, when Pilate didn't know what truth was (saying, "What is truth" in John 18:38)! If Jesus is the truth, that means you can know it, and we would know nothing for sure without this divine revelation, for truth depends upon the existence of a God, and must be revealed to us as the starting place of all knowledge: "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge..." (Proverbs 1:7, ESV).
Today, in liberal academia, students are taught that they can know nothing for certain and that they can be certain about that one truth (which has no truth value per se, since saying all truth is relative, this means that this statement must also be relative!). When people say truth is relative they usually mean to the situation or to the person's circumstances, situation, or viewpoint, but you must always inquire, "Relative to what?" This is subjective truth. If there is no God, then the quest for truth is meaningless and vain. Postmodernists say that the only truths that are certain are the truths relating to them, and the ones relating to Christianity are only relative. Objective truth is true regardless of whether one believes it or not and no matter who says it. Jesus said that he that is of the truth will hear His voice (cf. John 18:37), and so this is where we throw down the gauntlet.
The word of the year, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is "post-fact," which is when people think that emotional connotation is more valid than the literal meaning or denotation. Naive students like to say or write what they "feel" rather than think: they have lost all meaning and understanding of cognition. Thought precedes feeling and feelings depend on thoughts. Our mind controls our body, not vice versa. Today, people are not as concerned about the truth as to what's true for them! They also don't care what something means (and even the Bible), but what it means to them: "O, that's your interpretation!" We seem to have lost all basis in knowledge, wisdom, and understanding and resorted to subjectivity.
What makes Christianity so unique is that it's not based on subjective thought, empiricism, or interpretation, but on objective, historical fact of the resurrection of Christ and Christianity is a historical religion, not a myth, nor a catalog of rules or wise sayings of philosophy. The whole purpose is to not to increase our knowledge but to introduce us to a person (the living God!). We don't get saved by cognition or Gnosticism (getting in on the scoop), but by a transformed life through a living knowledge of a person.
All knowledge must have a purpose, and not become an end in itself--the end result is getting to know our Lord and live a life of service to Him.
Nonbelievers are those "who reject the truth," according to Romans 2:8 and they "refuse to receive the love of the truth," according to 2 Thess. 2:10. We are concerned about orthodoxy in our doctrine, of course, but it is much more vital to be concerned with knowing Him, who is Truth incarnate.
In sum, there is "absolute truth" regardless of what academia proclaims, and that means there's Truth with a capital T! Truth is timeless and that means what was true in antiquity is still true! What was valid as a principle of morality still holds water. We are not evolving new truths and standards of right and wrong as we progress in our civilization. Truth is different from some statement just being true because only Scripture can be called "truth," and Jesus said that we are "sanctified" by the truth and that His Word is Truth--Truth alone transforms; while something may be true, doesn't necessitate it being "truth." Education can be truth and Shakespeare can be inspiring, but only Scripture and Jesus can transform a life and give life to the dead--Shakespeare doesn't change lives! Finally, there is no absolute belief, but there is absolute truth that is knowable as a foundation for all knowing.
Soli Deo Gloria!ab
"For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." (3 John 2-3, ESV).
"Sanctify them in the truth, your word is truth" (John 17:17, ESV).
"...as the truth is in Jesus" (Eph. 4:21, ESV).
By definition: Truth is what God says is truth (He's the final arbiter), and anything consistent with His nature, "will, mind, character, glory and being," and laws. "Truth is the self-expression of God," in other words (per John MacArthur).
It is not only possible to ascertain the truth in this relativistic age, where people think they can decide their private truths, but commanded in the exhortation of Jesus in John 8:32: "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." Note that Christ didn't say we would find some truth, or our truth, or relative truth, but THE truth! No man ever spoke like this: not by authority, but with authority! This is not referring to getting a good education as the answer to life's problems, though the Bible isn't anti-intellectual and nowhere demeans learning.
The truth that sets free is knowing Jesus as personal Lord and Savior, who is the embodiment and personification of truth itself: For he told Pilate that He came to bear witness of the truth, when Pilate didn't know what truth was (saying, "What is truth" in John 18:38)! If Jesus is the truth, that means you can know it, and we would know nothing for sure without this divine revelation, for truth depends upon the existence of a God, and must be revealed to us as the starting place of all knowledge: "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge..." (Proverbs 1:7, ESV).
Today, in liberal academia, students are taught that they can know nothing for certain and that they can be certain about that one truth (which has no truth value per se, since saying all truth is relative, this means that this statement must also be relative!). When people say truth is relative they usually mean to the situation or to the person's circumstances, situation, or viewpoint, but you must always inquire, "Relative to what?" This is subjective truth. If there is no God, then the quest for truth is meaningless and vain. Postmodernists say that the only truths that are certain are the truths relating to them, and the ones relating to Christianity are only relative. Objective truth is true regardless of whether one believes it or not and no matter who says it. Jesus said that he that is of the truth will hear His voice (cf. John 18:37), and so this is where we throw down the gauntlet.
The word of the year, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is "post-fact," which is when people think that emotional connotation is more valid than the literal meaning or denotation. Naive students like to say or write what they "feel" rather than think: they have lost all meaning and understanding of cognition. Thought precedes feeling and feelings depend on thoughts. Our mind controls our body, not vice versa. Today, people are not as concerned about the truth as to what's true for them! They also don't care what something means (and even the Bible), but what it means to them: "O, that's your interpretation!" We seem to have lost all basis in knowledge, wisdom, and understanding and resorted to subjectivity.
What makes Christianity so unique is that it's not based on subjective thought, empiricism, or interpretation, but on objective, historical fact of the resurrection of Christ and Christianity is a historical religion, not a myth, nor a catalog of rules or wise sayings of philosophy. The whole purpose is to not to increase our knowledge but to introduce us to a person (the living God!). We don't get saved by cognition or Gnosticism (getting in on the scoop), but by a transformed life through a living knowledge of a person.
All knowledge must have a purpose, and not become an end in itself--the end result is getting to know our Lord and live a life of service to Him.
Nonbelievers are those "who reject the truth," according to Romans 2:8 and they "refuse to receive the love of the truth," according to 2 Thess. 2:10. We are concerned about orthodoxy in our doctrine, of course, but it is much more vital to be concerned with knowing Him, who is Truth incarnate.
In sum, there is "absolute truth" regardless of what academia proclaims, and that means there's Truth with a capital T! Truth is timeless and that means what was true in antiquity is still true! What was valid as a principle of morality still holds water. We are not evolving new truths and standards of right and wrong as we progress in our civilization. Truth is different from some statement just being true because only Scripture can be called "truth," and Jesus said that we are "sanctified" by the truth and that His Word is Truth--Truth alone transforms; while something may be true, doesn't necessitate it being "truth." Education can be truth and Shakespeare can be inspiring, but only Scripture and Jesus can transform a life and give life to the dead--Shakespeare doesn't change lives! Finally, there is no absolute belief, but there is absolute truth that is knowable as a foundation for all knowing.
Soli Deo Gloria!ab