Truth today is seen as optional, random, and relative. Long-gone are the days of ‘situational ethics’; today’s culture is not even concerned with the ethics of the situation – only on personal ethics. “What does this mean to me?” is the question asked by many. It is the wrong question! Your interpretation of a matter is irrelevant. “What is TRUE?” in this situation is far more relevant and important than any personal reaction or interaction.
Society needs truths to progress. The absence of truth leads to anarchy, when all seek to “do what is right in their own eyes.” Societal anarchy is horrendous; but personal anarchy is seen far more frequently and is even more destructive. Years ago, it was said that the person who acts as their own lawyer has a fool for a client. A modern corollary might state: The person who acts as their own moral compass has a fool for a guide.
Truth is not elusive. Truth is unchanging. Truth is vital if your life is to be one of integrity. The great unchanging truths are found in the Bible, the written record of the One Who does not change! Notice what God’s Word says about truth and its application to life.
Consider the two forms by which truth can be presented: objective and subjective. Objective truth is that which does not change in any circumstance (a good example would be the orbit of the earth, from any vantage point, it always behaves the same). Subjective truth is that which is free from error in the given circumstance (a good example here would be gravity – on the earth it behaves in one manner, but in space or a different plant, quite another). Both of these aspects are found in Scripture.
- Luke 4:25 (subjective; Jesus is referring to all the widows in
- John 1:14, 17 (objective; the truth Jesus brings and is filled with does not change in any circumstance)
- John 17:17 (objective; the truth of God’s Word does not change)
- Acts 10:34 (objective & subjective; Peter refers to a timeless truth that is applicable to his immediate situation)
What qualifies a statement, quality, character as “truth”? Truth is presented as that which is reliable, certain, provable, and settled. These are the non-negotiable aspects of life.
- Ruth 3:12 (Boaz’s relationship to Ruth was established and confirmable)
- Job 12:2 (Job sarcastically points out the difference between his friends subjective truth and the objective truth they claimed it to be. This is an interesting point to consider: because you believe a truth to be objective does not make it so!)
- Psalm 25:5 (David pleads for God to impart knowledge of that which will not change)
- Proverbs 29:14 (The king that adheres to truth in his judgments is rewarded. Legislation from the bench is not a wise course of action)
- Daniel 6:12 (The law of the Medes was true: it could not be broken or contradicted)
- John 8:32 (Truth is a freeing and liberating agent)
- Philippians 4:8 (Our mind is to focus on that which is true and truthful)
Truth is the bedrock upon which a life of integrity is built. Examine your life; upon what unchanging truths is it based? Do those truths align with the truths of God’s Word? His unchanging foundation must become the pattern and source of your life’s foundation. To do otherwise is not safe, right, true or stable.
