What is Truth?
Various passages September 26, 2021
I. Introduction:
A. One of the most relevant questions for our day was asked nearly 2,000 years ago
by a Roman government leader named Pilate. Turn in your Bibles to John 18:34
1. The Jewish religious leaders had brought Jesus to Pilate wanting to condemn
Him to death.
2. Pilate took Jesus to inside the side praetorium and ask Him a direct question
“Are you the k...
What is Truth?
Various passages September 26, 2021
I. Introduction:
A. One of the most relevant questions for our day was asked nearly 2,000 years ago
by a Roman government leader named Pilate. Turn in your Bibles to John 18:34
1. The Jewish religious leaders had brought Jesus to Pilate wanting to condemn
Him to death.
2. Pilate took Jesus to inside the side praetorium and ask Him a direct question
“Are you the king of the Jews?”
3. After a short exchange between the two let’s enter into the end of that
conversation in v37-38 as both Jesus and Pilate say some things that relate to
this series on truth. Read
4. First, Jesus said “Yes, I am a king, I was born for this and I came into the
world for this.” Then he says this “to testify to the truth”
5. Jesus came in to the world to be a king, and to testify to the truth, here in
context the truth that he is testifying about is that he is a king!
a) But in general Jesus came into the world was to give testimony to the
truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth!
6. Then Pilate asked this 2,000-year-old question that is relevant up to the
moment. Read v28a!
B. Let me ask you – what is truth?
1. Now do not get super spiritual on me at this moment and tell me truth is Jesus
or His Word even though this the correct and true answer.
a) But for just a moment, I want to remove truth from every context and
define the world truth itself.
b) Then bring it back and apply to Jesus and His Word so when we say
Jesus and His Word are truth we actually know what we are saying!
2. So let me ask you – if an 11-year-old child were to ask you what is truth what
would you tell them?
a) I am going to give you one minute to formulate a simple and clear
answer in your mind
b) Now I am going to give you one minute to find someone who sits by you
that you do not know very well and introduce yourself to them.
c) Now you each have forty seconds to tell each other your definition of
truth.
• So let me start this morning with
II. A dictionary definition of truth
A. I want to show you actual pictures from various dictionaries themselves because
we remember 10% of what we hear and 50% of what you hear and see. And I
believe that Satan, the father of lies, will do anything to make sure you do not get
this straight – even whisper to your mind “did the dictionary really say…” I
want you to see what I saw, with your own two eyes!
1. Let’s start with the Hebrew dictionary – the language used in the Old
Testament.
a) DBL Hebrew Dictionary of Biblical Languages
(1) Two meanings of this one Hebrew word 1. Faithfulness 2. True
(2) Faithfulness simply means reliability, trustworthiness
(3) True means – read #2 “… conforms to reality…”
b) I want you to understand something about this word. The Hebrew word
for truth is the exact same word for faithfulness.
(1) So if you were reading the Old Testament straight from the
Hebrew and you came across this word (eh-meht) you need to
decide from the context whether it is being used to indicate
faithfulness or truth.
c) My summary of the Hebrew definition for truth is like a coin, it can only
be fully captured when you look at both sides of it!
(1) Truth is reality that can be depended upon!
(2) Faithfulness is something that can be depended upon because it is
real!
2. Greek dictionary
a) DBL Greek Dictionary of Biblical Languages
(1) Read from powerpoint– “reality whether historical or eternal”
b) LTW Lexham Theological Wordbook
(1) Read from power point
(a) Emphasize real… reality
(b) Note the different areas where truth can be revealed
through: words, actions, mind or heart
3. Webster’s dictionary
a) Truth (power point) - read 1a (1) (2) and 2a
b) True (power point) – read 1a (1) (2) and c
B. Did you notice any common elements?
1. Reality, that which is actual, that which actually exists or happens. It is real
2. Thus the name of this series is “let’s get real”
C. So finally the Patrick Bernard Peglow definition – want you to see it straight from
the PBP dictionary!
1. A word, action, thought or heart which so conforms to reality that you can bet
your life on it!
• So what is
III. Truth
A. Now that we know truth, is reality we can push it back even a step further and ask
what is ultimate reality?
B. Turn to John 14:6 where we see that God Himself, Jesus is truth
1. Now the word I want emphasize here is not truth but the word “the”
a) “The” indicates what we learned in Greek as par excellent!
b) Means they are in a class of their own and no one else is like them!
c) They are the ultimate; they are the best, no one or nothing else like them,
the one of a kind!
2. Jesus is not just a truth but the truth. He is the ultimate truth to which no
other truth is like!
C. Truth is right at the core of God’s glory
1. Read John 1:14
2. Listen to when God’s glory passed in front of Moses. Read Exodus 34:6
3. We have talked a lot about grace at MVC and it is just as important that we
get truth right in our lives and church as it is to get grace right and that we
learn to wed the two together as one!
D. Where can we find reality/truth about God and His glory?
1. Turn and read John 17:17 – “Thy word is truth”
2. Simply God is truth, God is the ultimate reality and the Bible is His chosen
vehicle to communicate Himself and what He declares to be true
a) And since the Bible is God’s chosen vehicle, which He has given equal
weight to His own character, we can depend upon it and can build our
lives upon it!
• I want to suggest two ways we can apply this today
IV. Apply
A. If truth is what is real then a lie or a falsehood is what is not real, what is not
actual!
1. Thus, Satan, the father of lies, is also called the deceiver! Deception is
simply believing something that is not true is true!
2. And the liar and deceiver uses false teaching as his primary tool whether it
comes dressed in humanistic secular clothes or religious clothes! Secular and
spiritual lies are both dangerous and undependable to build your life upon.
3. And let me remind you of something we learned in our series on spiritual
warfare. Satan is the master of taking truth either out of context or making it
stand alone without other passages to balance out the truth.
4. Satan will do everything he can to keep you away from this book. If he
cannot keep you away from it he will seek to get you to take verses out of
context or try to get them to stand alone as a partial truth, out of balance from
the whole truth. Because he wants you to build your life upon and depend
upon something that is not real, just an illusion of truth.
a) Illustrate reality with the wall and its reliability to hold me up if I lean
against it.
b) But if Satan can convince me that this is a real wall that can hold me up
(called deception) and I lean against it I will fall down because it is not
real!
B. Secondly, practice reframing what has personally happened to you in the past,
what is personally going on now and what you are going to be facing in the
future.
1. Do this because it allows me to look at my life, past present and future
according to what is real, what is actual, what is true so I can build a healthy
spiritual, mental and emotional life off of that. Let me illustrate
a) Present – something bad is going on in your life. – not only is Romans
8:28-29 true here where God will use it to produce the good in you of
becoming more like Jesus
(1) But so is Ephesians 6:10 that our battle is not with flesh and blood
but with demonic spirits who are behind this.
(2) Also, the truths of James 1 that He uses trials to grow us and
perfect our character
(3) The truth of 2 Corinthians 4 that He uses difficulty to break down
our flesh and release more of the inner life of Jesus within us.
(4) Consider Lamentations 3 where God’s mercies are new every
morning
(5) According to Hebrews 13 He will equip me with everything I need
to do His will in a way that is pleasing to Him by the Spirit of
Jesus
(6) The list can go on but do you see how dwelling about these truths
would cause the light of God’s truth to overwhelm the darkness of
the lies and take us from deception to reality!
b) Past – When we do the same with our past, it helps deliver us from lies
that have kept us in bondage and depression.
c) When we do the same with our future it turns that future event into a
walk of faith
2. A few simple steps on how do we reframe our lives according to truth. Got
this method from Craig Groeschel in his book “Winning the War in Your
Mind” a must read for everyone.
a) Identify very specific situation or person that is big or trying for you –
past, present or future
b) Consider what Bible truths speak to this. If you really do not know then
it’s a great time to speak to someone else and ask them what Bible truths
speak to your situation
c) Form a short personal statement that is full of truth and reality and put it
on a piece of paper or 3 by 5 card. Then review it constantly until it
becomes a part of your thinking.
d) This way your thoughts about what has, is or will happen will be built
upon reality rather than the lies and falsehoods with which Satan is
seeking to fill your mind!
