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love for God and our neighbor by speaking the truth of Scripture faithfully. Today, we wish to explain why the truth is so important to us. First we should understand what truth is. Truth is what God is and says. God is truth. He identified Himself to Moses as The LORD, The LORD God, . . . abundant in goodness and truth, (Exodus 34:6). Later Moses said to Israel: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He (Deuteronomy 32:4). That God is truth means that He is real, and that He determines what all truth is. Jesus Christ, who is Gods only-begotten Son, is truth. Speaking of Christ, John said, And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). And Jesus claimed: I am the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). God speaks truth, and His word is truth. Jesus said in prayer to God: Thy word is truth (John 17:17). In fact, it is impossible for God to lie. Regarding eternal life, Paul writes to Titus that God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began (Titus 1:2). So all that God said through the prophets of the Old Testament, through Jesus Christ, and through the apostles of the New Testament is truth. The Bible is truth, for all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16). God, Jesus, and the Bible are truth. All that we call truth, therefore, must take into account the truth about God and Jesus Christ as set forth in the Bible. The next point that we must make about truth is that it is absolute. Truth is not whatever men want it to be, and it does not change. Yet today our society views truth this way. We think that we determine truth, and that truth is different for us than it was when our parents or grandparents were growing up. We twist facts to fit our needs, and call it truth. But does truth really change? Can truth be different for one generation than for another? No. Truth does not change. God does not change: I am the LORD, I change not (Malachi 3:6). So also His word does not change. To change His mind would mean that He had lied, which He cannot do. Jesus Christ does not change; He is the same yesterday, and today, and for ever (Hebrews 13:8). If truth was mans invention, man could change truth as he pleased. But because God determines truth, truth never changes. Understanding this helps us answer the often-asked question: when even churches cannot agree on what is truth, how can any individual ever know what is truth? The answer is this: churches do not determine truth. God determines what is truth, and churches are called to teach that truth. So if you wonder what is truth, read the Bible to find out for yourself! Then, beware of those churches which ignore the Bible completely, and of those churches which ignore parts of the Bible. And even with regard to those churches which strive to teach the truth of God in the Bible, be like the noble Bereans, who, after hearing Paul preach, searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so (Acts 17:11). Study the whole Bible, pray to God for the Spirit of understanding and faith, and He will lead you to know the truth. Finally, we ask: why is it so important to know rightly the absolute, unchanging truth of God and His Word? Our answer is this: God saves His people in the way of teaching us truth. Only in the way of knowing truth, do we know God, and do we know Christ as our Savior. Remember what Jesus said: I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me (John 14:6). To know the truth as it is in Christ is the only way to approach God, seeking His favor and love. And He said to His disciples: If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free (John 8:31-32). Freedom - from the bondage of sin and the lie which is in all of us - comes by knowing the truth, as Christ speaks it! The same idea is taught in other passages of the Bible. We read that God will have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4). Notice, to be saved is to come to the knowledge of the truth. Those who perish eternally do so because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved (1 Thessalonians 2:10). We must know the truth of God, set forth in the Bible, in order to enjoy salvation. We cannot enjoy this salvation if we deny or twist Gods truth - only if we know it and believe it from our heart. Do you desire to enjoy this salvation, through knowing the truth? Then pray this prayer from a sincere heart: Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day (Psalm 25:5). Pastor Douglas Kuiper Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth. - Psalm 119:142 Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding. - Proverbs 23:23 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth. - III John 4
I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth; And in Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary; suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit. I believe an holy catholic church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. AMEN. - The Apostles Creed |
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