Tough Questions: What Is Truth?

The Law of Non-contradiction states that two opposing views cannot both be true at the same time and the same place. And yet this is preached in our culture every day. You hear it at school when someone says, “You get to decide for yourself what is right and wrong.” You see it in those COEXIST bumper stickers which not only convey the sense that all religions should just get along with each other, but also that all religions are equally valid and true. Both exude the premise that there are no absolutes (n.b. one must use an absolute to deny an absolute). This is called moral relativism.

This kind of thinking is very appealing to our sinful nature, because I get to decide for myself what I think is acceptable or not. My emotions and my feelings determine the truth. That goes completely against what God has declared in his Word. God says through the prophet Jeremiah, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). My heart and the emotions it produces are fickle beasts that change by the day and the by the moment. Often what I think is the correct course to take, ends up hurting me or someone else. So how can I trust myself to figure out what is right and wrong? Thankfully I don’t need to figure it out. God has taken care of that for me. God has given me his Word. And his Word is truth (John 17.17). I can always trust God. God declares “I the Lord do not change” (Malachi 3:6); and James says about our God that “does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17).

God’s immutability is especially good news for our salvation. God is not going to change his mind about his Son’s sacrifice on the cross. He is not going to suddenly say, “You now have to work your way into heaven.” Our salvation is completely dependent on the Lord who does not change. When he makes a promise, he keeps it. Jesus cried out on the cross, “It is finished.” Our sins have been forgiven and our salvation has been won. By his grace and through faith in Jesus, I know the truth that I will go to heaven when I die, for Christ has died for me.

So, then, how do we communicate that truth with friends who view absolute truth as intolerant or unacceptable. When talking to someone about truths found in scripture, ask a probing question to get to the heart of the matter. Ask, “What is your standard for right and wrong?” or “Who gets to decide what is right and wrong?” The person you’re speaking to probably has never thought through the result of his own moral relativism. If everyone decides for themselves what is right and wrong, eventually my standards will conflict with yours. Chaos will ensue. Then who decides what is right? The only alternative is the one with the most power will decide, whether that be the government or the mob or a leader in society. Moral relativism isn’t as freeing as most people think. It is enslaving to the whims of sinful mankind.

However, Jesus was born some 2,000 years ago, not to enslave, but to set us free. He redeemed us (set us free) from our slavery to sin and death. Jesus told the crowds in John 8, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” Jesus has broken that chain. I am no longer defined by my sins, but by my relationship with God who graciously made me his own child through baptism. It is this truth that sets you truly free (John 8:32). So, take joy in the redemption that Christ won for you. And continue to stake your life on the truth of God’s Holy Word.