Lessons in Critical Thinking (5 of 12)

Beginning with Truth

When Jesus was on trial before Pontius Pilate the following conversation took place, “Then Pilate said to him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. 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.’ Pilate said to him, ‘What is truth?’ After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, ‘I find no guilt in him’” (John 18:37-38 (ESV)).

Pilate did not know what truth was, even though Truth was sitting right in front of Him. This is the way it is with a fallen world. This is the way it is in a world that has disowned our Lord. Without Jesus, without an absolute, without an ultimate authority, without God’s Word, there is and can be no truth.

Earlier in His Gospel, John lets Jesus speak for Himself when it comes to this matter of truth. “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’” (John 14:6 (ESV)).

Jesus is truth. Apart from Jesus there can be no truth. This principle harkens back to the fact that “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” The fear of the Lord, faith in Jesus is the beginning (and actually it is the middle and the end) of truth.

When the world attempts to separate itself from its Creator, something must fill the void. What tends to fill the void is relativism or some wishy washy excuse for truth. Thus, we get such statements as, “That may be true for you, but it is not true for me.” Unfortunately, if there is no objective truth, then there is no right or wrong, thus I can do as I please, I am not accountable to anyone, and no one can do anything or say anything to correct me, since I am neither right nor wrong.

Yet, to espouse a truth, any truth, is necessary and certainly involves admitting that there are absolutes and there is an ultimate authority, which remains difficult in a world which would attempt to separate itself from such authority. So, we are back to the statement the fact that to begin with truth means we must begin with Jesus.