Daily Journal: 14 August

The Stability of Truth

Where does truth begin? Can it begin within ourselves or must it begin externally? What do we know about truth?

Is it stable or unstable? Does it change or is it unchanging?

If we accept truth as stable, we accept it as foundational. If we accept truth as foundational, we accept it as an absolute or it can't be truth. No matter whose truth I profess it’s not truth apart from itself. This is so important to understand. The stability of our life hinges on it.

There are some well-known sayings about truth that have been passed on through the years:

The truth of the matter.

Telling half truths.

Truth be told.

Truth is stranger than fiction.

Honesty is the best policy.

Honest-to-goodness.

Why does our world fight so hard against identifying with absolute truth? We want to find all kinds of things to identify with but unless it’s based on the stability of truth itself, our search for truth, identity and meaning becomes unstable.

The Word of God declares itself to be truth.

John 14:6-7 (NIV)

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

John 16:13-15 (NLV)

The Holy Spirit is coming. He will lead you into all truth. He will not speak His Own words. He will speak what He hears. He will tell you of things to come. He will honour Me. He will receive what is Mine and will tell it to you. Everything the Father has is Mine. That is why I said to you, ‘He will receive what is Mine and will tell it to you.’

No person can think these things up. The things of God’s Spirit are beyond human comprehension, that is, external to ourselves, but it is passed on to our spirit and we can recognise the truth with our spirit first, not our mind. Whether we choose to accept it is the first step towards spiritual stability. That spiritual stability builds the foundation of who we then become in life and becomes our substance.

John 8:31-32 (NCV)

 So Jesus said to the Jews who believed in him, “If you continue to obey my teaching, you are truly my followers. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

Truth isn’t always easy to accept and it can be hard to live by. We try to follow our own truth, or justify ourselves, because honest-to-goodness truth doesn’t always suit us. Jesus says here, obedience to truth is what sets us free - not truth itself. We can say we have our own truth but it won’t set us free. We don’t obey our own truth. We’re gratified by it.

When Jesus prayed to the Father before He ascended to heaven, He said: Sanctify them ^[a set them apart^] in the truth; your word is truth (John 17:17/ ESV).

Truth isn’t an internal construct. Truth as a construct is established externally; it governs and it’s righteous.