What is Truth?
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (John 8:32)
According to the Gospels, Pilate the Roman governor once asked two important questions: First, "What is the
truth?" (John 18:38). Second, "What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” (Matthew 27:22)
Everyone in this world should figure out the answers to these two questions.
1.Definition of the Truth
Dictionary definition：
Truth is something “that which is true or in accordance with fact or reality.”
“Truth is defined as that which corresponds to reality as perceived by God.” （R. C. Sproul）
God is the truth:
He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and
just is he. （Deut 32:4）
Jesus Christ is thuth truth：
“I am the Way and the Truth and the Life.”（John 14:6）
Holy Spirit is the Truth:
“But when He, the Spirit of Truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth.”（John 16:13）
“And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.”（1 John 5:6）
God’s way is the truth：
“Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.”（John 17:17）
2.The characteristics of Truth
A. Truth is true
Truth must first be true, so the Bible describes Jehovah as "a faithful God”, who is absolutely righteous, just,
upright, and complete.
The Lord Jesus said, "Can any of you prove me guilty of sin?" (John 8:46)
The only charge for the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus was that He claimed to be the Son of God. But the Lord
Jesus insisted that he is really the Son of God, for which he paid the price of his life.
Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and
obey his word. (John 8:55)
In the Gospel of John, the Lord Jesus often said, "Truly, Truly, I tell you...", which means that what I say is true,
and nothing but the truth.
If something itself is false, it can then never become the truth.
"Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,''No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one." (Matt 5:37)
Unfortunately, with today’s diverse and overwhelming information, it is very difficult for you to tell which is true
and which is false. This is such a great sorrow of a society.
B. Truth is absolute
Truth must be absolute, unchanging, and eternal. If something keeps changing, then it cannot be the truth, at
least not absolute truth.
When it comes to Jesus, the Bible tells that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Heb
13:8)
Jesus himself once said “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.” (Matt 24:35)
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”（John 14:6）
“if you do not believe that I am He, you will indeed die in your sins.” (John 8:24)
The absoluteness of truth is also applicable in the scientific field. The laws of nature (truth) are also
unchanging within a certain range, so that it is possible for scientists to engage in scientific research.
Otherwise, if the law is always changing, it is not called law, and scientific research cannot be conducted.
Mathematics axioms do not need to be proved, but are to be universally accepted and become the basis for
other operations or inferences.
The absoluteness of truth is not changed by people's belief or rejection. Apples always fall from the branches
to the ground and not the other way around. This is due to gravity. If someone doesn't believe in gravity and
wants to jump down from a tall building to try it, he can only reap the consequences. The absoluteness of truth, especially the moral laws set by God, such as the "do not murder or commit
adultery" in the Ten Commandments, is applicable to any ethnic group, any time, and any region. Everyone
knows that killing or raping is incorrect, wrong, and guilty. This is because of the conscience that God puts in
everyone's heart.
They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness,
and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them. (Rom 2:15)
C.Truth is exclusive
The absoluteness of truth determines that the truth and its opposite are mutually exclusive, and it is impossible
for both to be true at the same time.
In 1 Kings 22, Ahab was going to a war against Ramoth Gilead. His four hundred prophets all said in unison
that he can go up and win, and God has given the land into the king’s hands; In contrast, there is only one
prophet Micaia who said that if Ahab goes up to the war, he must die on the battlefield. Both of these cannot be
true, and it must be one is true and the other is false. It turns out that what Micaia said is true.
Jesus replied, "I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing
these things. John's baptism -- where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin" (Matt
21:24-25)
Did John's baptism come from heaven? Or from the world?
Only one answer to this question can be true, and it is impossible for both to be true. The Pharisees were not
stupid. They saw the logic behind this question, so they had to say, "We don't know." (Matthew 21:26)
When Jesus declares that He is the only way to heaven, but other religions declare that there are other ways
such as spiritual practice or holy war, both of them cannot be true at the same time. There must be only one
answer that is true and the rest are false. Therefore, in this sense, all religions are exclusive.
D.Truth is knowable
Jesus said, “You will know the truth.” (John 8:32)
If the truth is agnostic, as some have insisted, then Jesus would not say, "You will know the truth."
"No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with
the Father, has made Him known." (John 1:18)
Jesus himself asked people to know him, and said that to know him is to have eternal life.
"Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." (John
17:3)
The study of the laws of nature in the scientific field is also the knowledge of truth. Note that truth can only be
discovered, but cannot be invented, because the law has already been set, and people can only recognize and
discover the law, but cannot invent and create the law.
"This is what the LORD says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his
strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have theunderstanding to know me , that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth,
for in these I delight," declares the LORD." (Jer 9:23-24)
Knowing the truth is also the motto of many famous universities.
The school motto of Yenching University (the predecessor of Peking University) founded by the missionary
John Leighton Stuart, later US ambassador to China, who served as the first president, is: Freedom Through
Truth For Service (from John 8:32)
"Adhering to the traditions of early European universities, Harvard University’s emblem is of the shape of a
shield, with the "Veritas" (Latin for "truth"), which is distributed across three books. The original Harvard school
emblem is surrounded by "pro Christo et ecclesia" (Latin “for Christ and the Church".) We can still see the
words “Veritas” on Harvard’s emblem today, but the three books are all opened upwards, while the surrounding
Latin words with strong Christianity no longer exist.” ("American Ivy League School Emblem and History" by
Gideon)
John Harvard, once a pastor of Charlestown, Massachusetts, is the founder of Harvard University (1636). The
following passage he said should be the purpose of his founding of Harvard University: "Let every Student be
plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the maine end of his life and studies is, to know God
and Jesus Christ which is eternal life (John 17:3) and therefore to lay Christ in the bottome, as the only
foundation of all sound knowledge and Learning. And seeing the Lord only giveth wisedome, Let every one
seriously set himself by prayer in secret to seeke it of him (Prov 2:3)."
It's a pity that the university campuses in America today have become the center of liberalization and
secularization, and the Ivy League is at the forefront!
3.The distortion of Truth
God created mankind upright, but they have gone in search of many schemes. (Eccl 7:29)
When God created Adam and Eve and placed them in the beautiful and rich land of Eden, they had everything
they needed, which should be a perfect paradise on earth. However, the cunning and vicious snake came to
seduce Eve.
"He said to the woman, "Did God really say,'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" …"You will not
certainly die," ... "For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,
knowing good and evil."" (Gen 3:1-5)
To distinguish between good and evil like a god is what proud human beings want. Human beings abandon
God's standards of good and evil, and judge good and evil according to their own standards. From then on,
human society began to decay.
"The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who
suppress the truth by their wickedness." (Rom 1:18)
Since then, to suppress the Truth, especially the truth from God, has become an incurable commonality of
mankind. As the book of Ecclesiastes says, when people deviate from the truth of the Bible, they "have gone in
search of many schemes."
A. Evolutionism
Dictionary definition:
“The process by which different kinds of living organisms are thought to have developed and diversified from
earlier forms during the history of the earth.”
Evolutionist definition:
“The general theory of evolution (GTE) is defined as the theory that all the living forms in the world have arisen
from a single source which itself came from an inorganic form.”（Kerkut）
The theory of evolution is a hypothesis about the origin and evolution of species that "excludes the creation by
God". It is completely opposite to the claim revealed in the Bible that the creatures are directly created by God
in accordance with the principle of "each according to its kind".
There is no evidence to back up the theory of evolution, it is purely a fantasy concocted to get rid of
"God-creation theory".
ERNST HAECKEL and his the infamous Haeckel embryo map.
All the fossils of ancient apes were forged by people who were dazzled by fame and fortune.
Social Darwinism:
The principle of evolutionary theory of "natural selection, survival of the fittest, law of the jundle" evolved into a
bad social Darwinism, which provided a theoretical basis for the fascist atrocities in Nazi Germany and created
the most brutal racial killing in human history.
Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with
seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. … So God created the great creatures of the sea
and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and
every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. … God made the wild animals
according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground
according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. (Gen 1:11, 21, 25)
B. Marxism
Marxist philosophy, based on Darwin's theory of evolution and Hegelian philosophy, classifies people based on
the wealth they have, thus leading to a violent revolutionary communist theory system. The global movement
and practice of communism in the twentieth century has become a tragic catastrophe for all mankind.
Just look at the murderous purge under Stalin in the former Soviet Union; just look at the great famine in China
during the peaceful times and the good weather, and the cultural revolution that the government itself has
characterized as unprecedented and ten-year catastrophe; just look at the mass graves in Cambodia where
the Khmer Rouge Pol Pot regime slaughtered its own people; just look at the dangers of the former East
German Honecker police; just look at the Romanian where Ceausescu, ordering the army to shoot down the
masses, was instead being shot and executed by the army... It is not difficult for you to draw such a conclusion.
C.Neo-Marxism
The "neo-Marxist" movement has recently emerged in the United States, which believes that what Marx called
class oppression has now been transformed into another form of oppression in American society: oppression
of women by men, oppression of blacks by whites, oppression of homosexuality by heterosexuality, oppression
of LGBTQ by traditional gender, and the oppression of Muslims by Christianity, etc.
BLM mission statement:
“We disrupt the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure requirement by supporting each other as extended
families and villages that collectively care for one another… We foster a queer‐affirming network. When we
gather, we do so with the intention of freeing ourselves from the tight grip of heteronormative thinking, or rather,
the belief that all in the world are heterosexual. …We embody and practice justice, liberation, and peace in our
engagements with one another.”
From this, it is not difficult for you to understand the chaos of the "American Cultural Revolution" such as
"Cancel Culture" in American society today.
Recently, Virginia Elementary School teacher Cross was suspended for refusing to use corresponding personal
pronouns for transgender students.
Byron Tanner Cross : “It’s lying to a child, it’s abuse to a child and it’s sinning against our God.”
Feminism is another liberation movement. God created men and women in his own image, men and women
are completely equal, but with different roles and responsibilities.
So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created
them. (Gen 1:27)
That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh. (Gen
2:24)
D.Postmodernism
“Postmodernism, also spelled post-modernism, in Western philosophy, a late 20th-century movement
characterized by broad skepticism, subjectivism, or relativism; a general suspicion of reason; and an acute
sensitivity to the role of ideology in asserting and maintaining political and economic power.” （Brian Duignan,
Charles Colson had some prophetic insights into, and deep analysis of, various postmodern thoughts in his
books "How Now Shall We Live?" and "The Good Life".
According to the data from the book "The Good Life" published in 2005, 64% of individuals believe that there is
no so-called moral truth; and 83% of teenagers believe that moral truth is fabricated out of thin air.
According to a Gallup survey, 88% deny the existence of absolute truth. The characteristics of postmodernism: there is no absolute truth; all truth is relative. Therefore, Intolerance is intolerable. "It may be true for you but not true for me" is the most commonly used sentence. In fact, this concept is illogical, because the sentence "there is no absolute truth" is already an absolute claim. And, if your doctor says to you, "You have cancer and need immediate treatment." Can you say to the doctor, "This is true for you and not true for me"?
Because there is no absolute truth, there is no absolute right and wrong. Therefore, even the hijackers who
flew the planes into the World Trade Center on 9/11, cannot be simply defined as terrorists, because on the
other hand, they are warriors fighting for freedom.
Postmodernists declare: "Tolerance is God!" "Everyone should be allowed to have their own views and
lifestyles!" They oppose all forms of authority, and deconstruct order, procedures, traditions, ethics, beliefs, etc.
in an all-round way. They believe that gender has nothing to do with physiology, so they oppose the traditional
order of gender.
"My body my choice" has become a slogan, and most people believe that people can make rules for their lives.
So it has become a popular way of life opposing authority, advocating sexual freedom, and smoking marijuana
drugs. Drug abuse, same-sex behavior, sex reassignment surgery, etc., are all choices of one's own behavior,
and are sacred and inalienable personal rights that should be protected by law.
However, common sense tells us that the abolition of tradition and the deconstruction of order will inevitably
bring turbulence and chaos, and the whole society will suffer together. Individuals, families and society will pay
a huge price for this kind of ideology and lifestyle.
Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify
to the truth. (John 18:37)
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” (Isa 40:8)
E. Utilitarianism
Peter Singer, a professor of ethics at Princeton University, "thinks that the governance philosophy of a society
should be to create the greatest happiness and joy for the vast majority of creatures (including humans and
animals)."
"Peter Singer refers to his philosophy as the ethics of inevitable conclusion catching up with Darwinism.'"
He did not shy away from his own point of view, "For infants with severe disabilities, since they will be some
extremely miserable and worthless lives, we should allow such infants to be injected with poison. Why should
infanticide be limited in the womb? As with abortion, we should not ban infanticide." (The Story of the Outlook
on Life, p196)
Similarly, sterilization and euthanasia of chronic patients should be encouraged.
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am
fearfully and wonderfully made. （Ps 139：13-14）
Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his faithful servants.（Ps 116:15）
Life is bestowed by God, is sacred, and only God has the authority to take it away.
F. Lie-flat-ism
Recently, "involution" and "lie-flat" have become popular online vocabulary.
Lie-flat --- Facing the noisy, clamorous, impetuous, and heavily materialized external world, adopt a stagnant,
unwavering response to protest. Among young people, it is expressed as passive aggressiveness, like not
buying a house, not getting married, not having children, and not spending money.
Involution --- a phenomenon in which abnormal and irrational fierce competition among internal peers has
caused a serious decline in the "revenue to effort ratio".
For example, 996 normal work status (some people even use 007 to describe it), the "tenure or leave"
employment system popular in colleges and universities in recent years (the latter directly led to the Jiang
Wenhua murder case that just happened in Shanghai Fudan University). A 17-year-old boy, Zhang Xifeng,
gave a speech that is trending on the internet, "I am a rural pig, and I am determined to eat the cabbage in the
city." These are all reflections of social abnormalities.
I recently saw a political cartoon: Keqiang Economics was changed to "Lying Flat Economics."
Luo Huazhong, a master of lying flat study, wrote an article "Lying flat is justice", in which he claims: "Only lying
flat, one can be the yardstick of all things."
Luo Huazhong also claimed that “Lying-flat is a postmodern deconstruction.”
Deconstruction what? -- Family and work are where this structure lies.
Lying-flat doctrine identifies the problem, but it cannot provide the answer to the problem!
(Chen Xiao, "A Brief Talk on the Problems Behind Lying Flat and Its Solution", "Nazir" official public account)
The author has always said that literates, philosophers, entertainers, scholars, etc. in this world are brilliant in
that they can deeply reveal real problems; but their limitation is that they cannot provide answers to problems.
Leaving behind the Bible, the detailed manual given to mankind by God, people are doing the impossible to
solve mankind's problems only by themselves.
Other social trends such as---existentialism, materialism, progressivism, nihilism, multiculturalism, humanism,
scientism, environmentalism, skepticism, relativism, atheism, agnosticism, etc. Almost all of these cultural
trends conflict with biblical values.
Some people call this kind of cultural conflict the "Cultural War". It is ultimately a conflict between values that
surrender to the truth of the Bible and those that oppose, resist, and despise the truth of the Bible.
4.The ultimate of Truth
The root of all human problems lies in depravity and crime, and the way out for mankind lies in Jesus Christ!
God created a beautiful world and created noble human beings in his own image. However, we chose to rebel
against God, and since then human beings have fallen into the quagmire of sin and become slaves to death.
This is the cruel reality that everyone including ourselves must face! Jesus Christ, the Son of God incarnate, sacrificed himself on the cross for sinners and shed his blood on the cross to pay for the wages of sin which is death on behalf of the sinner, and rose from the dead on the third day to save all sinners who are willing to believe in Him from the domination of sin and the slavery of death.
This is the core, ultimate, and eternal truth revealed in the Bible!
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.（Rom 3:23）
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.（Rom 6:23）
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.（Rom 5:8）
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish
but have eternal life.（John 3:16）
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”（
John 14:6）
All human problems must be, will be, and only be, solved within the framework of this eternal truth!
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