Nothing But The Truth
31. Then said Jesus to those Jews who believed on Him, “If you continue in My Word, then are you My Disciples indeed;”
32. “And you shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall make you free.”
John 8:31-32
The Acknowledgement of Truth Decay
The Word of Jesus is truly amazing. He never spoke a Word that was not needed or lacked the power to change lives. When Jesus spoke this Word of Truth to His Disciples, He was giving them something that they needed. Here we are many centuries later with the same need and blessed to have the same Word to help us remedy our need for the Truth. There are some powerful applications bundled up in this passages that we must explore if we are to “know the Truth that sets us free.”
First, there is the need to know the Truth. Second, there is a need to find the Truth from God. Third, there is the certainty of finding Truth. And Fourth, the Truth always delivers from bondage. My prayer is that this message will speak to hearts and help people to not only discover Truth, but also discover the God of Truth in the person of Jesus.
There is no doubt that we are living in an age of “Truth Decay.” Policy researchers Jennifer Kavanaugh and Michael Rich published a 2018 work for the Rand Corporation (an independent policy think tank) describing the four key factors of “Truth Decay” in our culture. They described it as:
1. increasing disagreement about facts and analytical interpretations of facts and data,
2. a blurring of the line between opinion and fact,
3. the increasing relative volume and resulting influence of opinion and personal experience over fact; and,
4. declining trust in formerly respected sources of facts.
Nearly twenty years prior to the Rand publication, Douglas Groothuis, said that “truth decay” is a postmodern ideology that stems from people believing that truth is rooted in one’s opinion, religion, race, sexual orientation, political views, or beliefs.” His book, Truth Decay: Defending Christianity Against Its Challenges was published in 2000. The bottom line is that many believe “truth” is what they perceive and need not be based fact or evidence. This is nothing new; this has been the man’s argument for centuries. When Jesus stood before Pilot, He said, “Every one that is of the Truth hears My Voice.” John 18:37. Rather than hearing Jesus, Pilot asked Jesus, “what is Truth” and then walked away. The only difference in modern times is that there is less and less of a desire to seek the truth. People don’t really want to know the Truth because their desire for Truth is tainted by the sin of their own heart. When that happens, truth decay is inevitable. Truth Decay can be summed up in one bumper sticker slogan: “I’ve given up on reality, now I’m looking for a good fantasy.” (Groothuis, pg. 21).
Last week, I visited my dentist for the semi-annual dental cleaning. (At this point in my life, I don’t want to lose those teeth that are alive and remain). The dental assistant took x-rays to see if any teeth were experiencing problems undetected by the natural eye. She then proceeded to take sharp instruments to scrape my teeth and dig out plaque that would destroy my teeth. What was she doing? She was preventing “tooth decay.” In the same way, we must be willing to accept God’s Word and allow it to dig into our thoughts and ideas to destroy those things that are not based on Truth. If unattended, wickedness and the plaque of sin will produce “Truth Decay” in the wisest, and most devoted Believer. Truth does not depend on the level of sincerity nor the expression of religious ceremony; Truth depends on hearing God’s Word.
The Need for Truth
Rather than assuming that we are right and extracting our version of truth based on our own version of right, we need to acknowledge and accept the truth of God. How far do you think your version of truth will take you? If it cannot take you to Heaven when you die, then you need God’s Truth. If your truth is not almighty, then you need God’s Truth. If your truth cannot heal you when you are sick or bring you out of trouble when you are in need, then you need to turn to God’s Truth.
Jesus made it clear that His Disciples will not only continue in His Word, but they also recognize that they need the Truth of God. The religious leaders attempted to claim their lineage and ancestral claims as their freedom, but Jesus pointed to the fact that they were a slave to their own sin. Here’s where we need to make it clear. You and I need God’s Truth. Our destiny rests on the fact that we need to know where we are going both in this life and in the afterlife. Our destiny rests on the fact that we need to know how we will get through this life and to the afterlife. Our destiny rests on the fact that we need to depend on someone to save us when we are broken, heal us when we are sick, and provide for us when we are destitute. If we depend on human government to do that, we will be disappointed. If we depend on family and friends, we will soon discover they have problems too. If we depend on self, we will sooner or later be forced to admit that we have failed before and will fail again. We need Someone who knows what is going on. We need Someone who knows what is coming in the future. We need Someone who can make a way when it seems there is no way. All of this points to One Source who can do all that. The first matter of getting to the Truth is the matter of admitting that we desperately need God. As Mahalia Jackson put it in a song, “if ever we needed the Lord before, sure do need Him now.” As Doug Groothuis puts it, we have gotten to the place where “everything is unhinged; everything can mean anything, so everything means nothing.” We need the Truth.
There comes a point when fantasy and lies will be revealed for what they are as vanity and chasing the wind. We are witnessing the failures of Democracy because we are experiencing a nation of opinions rather than Truth. There is a severe lack of respect for one another. There is an extreme lack of community because we don’t trust each other. There is a lack of national priorities among our leaders because many of them just want another term in office rather than to do good and serve. We are in a “Truth Crisis.” The only thing that people can agree on is “Money will solve all our problems” and that is a lie. Meanwhile the Lie prevails and Truth has fallen on hard times. So where do we turn? We must turn to the Truth.
Let’s look at the first application of Jesus message: and you shall know the Truth. Jesus has stated our need. In conducting the analysis of the soul, our Lord declares Truth as the answer to man’s need. Why? Because without Truth we are in bondage (the Truth will make you free).
Think of it this way. Would you go to a medical clinic and ask them to tell you what you wanted to hear or would you ask them to be honest and give you the truth? A reasonable person would want the facts, data, or the test results. If you have a condition or need, you would expect medical professionals to let you know what was needed for healing of the body. That is expected because the reasonable person would want “freedom from sickness.” Jesus promises us that His Truth releases us from bondage. No matter how much we may argue that there is nothing wrong with us and we’re okay, if we don’t know the Truth, we are far from okay. We are in bondage. It is now up to us to open our hearts and recognize that we are not the ones that define Truth: God defines Truth.
The need for the Truth is powerful. It is the hunger of the soul and spirit that cannot be satisfied by anything else nor anyone else except God. It is that Divine connection, not with facts and information, but with our very Creator. The need for the Truth is like a hunger for one specific thing. We may attempt to satisfy that appetite with substances and other sources, but will only find ourselves malnourished and broken. One of the greatest examples of humans coming anywhere close to Truth is when a mother looks her little child in the eye and tells them “I love you.” That is Truth. That is Life. That is liberating.
Jesus said, And you shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall make you free. To think that my freedom depends on my decision to accept the Truth. There is an excellent New Testament example of both the need for the Truth and the freedom that comes from finding the Truth. The demon possessed man of Gadara in Mark 5 spent most of his life believing the voices inside his head. If the voices said “cut yourself” he obeyed those voices of bondage. If the voices said, “cry out” that young man was forced to obey. He listened to those voices that drove him into the tombs and graveyard. One day, that demon-possessed man of Gadara heard a different voice. Jesus was calling out and the man responded. The estimated, six thousand demons, could not keep the man from hearing the Voice of Truth. The man was set free, released, and unshackled by the Lord of Glory. The man put on some clothes and came and sat at Jesus feet to hear the Truth. He was no longer bound by a life of lies, the Truth set him free.
The contemporary Christian group, Cast in Crowns sings a song titled, the Voice of Truth. Listen to the lyrics. But the voice of Truth tells me a different story. And the voice of Truth says, “Do not be afraid!” And the voice of Truth says, “This is for My glory” Out of all the voices calling out to me. I will choose to listen and believe. I will choose to listen and believe the voice of Truth.
Listen to the Voice of Truth. Turn down the noises inside your head and listen closes to Jesus. He is the Voice of Truth.