Truth

TRUTH

 

I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

JOHN 14.6

 

Jesus made many “I am” statements, but one of the most intriguing is when He calls Himself the Truth.

Think about it. Satan is called “the father of lies” (Jn 8.44). He specialises in twisting truth and casting a shadow on God’s character. (To see him in action, just read Genesis 3 or Luke 4.1–13.) For Satan, to spew lies is in keeping with his character. We would expect nothing less of him.

But Jesus is not just the opposite of the devil, just as truth is not merely the absence of a lie. Truth is the construct that defines reality. It stands in stark contrast to a lie because lies cannot exist without something to twist and oppose. Truth, in contrast, exists on its own. It needs nothing external to prop it up, it needs no other affirmation.

Jesus is God’s truth. All He says is true and His very life demonstrates a life lived in singleness of mind and truth. As Randy Alcorn explains, He is “the source of all truth, the embodiment of truth, and therefore the reference point for evaluating all truth-claims.” We, however, are tempted to live compartmentalised lives, the persona we adopt in church on Sunday morning remarkably different than the one in the boardroom Tuesday afternoon or the one watching movies Friday night. Our enemy whispers that no one’s watching, no one cares, no one’s keeping track, his lies slithering around our necks like a noose. And just as he did in the garden of Eden, he tempts us to question God’s goodness, His presence, His provision, and His love for us, sending us into a tailspin, wondering what’s really real.

But whereas we’re ambushed by the enemy’s lies, Jesus stands grounded in the reality that is truth. He defines it, He lives it, and He calls us to experience the freedom that comes from walking in Him, for “you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (Jn 8.32). Jesus, the Truth, frees us from the chains of falsehood to discover the fullness of life that comes when His presence fills our lives.

When we fix our gaze on Jesus, we learn to see life through the prism of reality, what is really true, instead of through the tinted glasses that our enemy would have us wear.

In fact, when Jesus faced Pilate on the day of His death, He made this aspect of His character very clear, “The reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” Pilate responded with an age-old question that’s ever-so-relevant today: “What is truth?” (Jn 18.37). Face-to-face with truth Himself, Pilate was too wrapped up in his own view of the world to acknowledge Him.

The only way to recognise lies is to be intimately acquainted with truth, much like investigators recognise counterfeit currency by studying the real thing. We must fill our hearts and minds with the Truth, bathing all of life in His presence, so that we immediately recognise the enemy’s lies when he tries to deceive us. It’s Jesus, the Truth, who sets us free.

 

Prayer

 

Jesus, You are the Truth that sets us free. So often I let the enemy whisper lies into my heart and I actually believe them. Help me to fill my life with You and with Your words so that I can recognise lies when I see them. Fill me to overflowing with Your truth so that Your words spill out into the lives of those around me, bringing them hope, joy, and freedom in You.

In Jesus’s name, Amen  

If you want to read more 

 

Jn 8.32, 17.17, 3 John 1.3