More Thoughts About the Truth

More Thoughts About the Truth

I think it’s time that we all stop being so casual about that concept that is referred to as “the truth”.

Finding the truth is something most people will tell you is of utmost importance.

The trouble is, too many people think that they have already “found the truth” and no longer need even to pretend to be searching for it, or yearning for it, or appreciating it above everything else on earth.

You see, when you’re talking about the truth, you’re not talking about something that is spun, or put through some public-relations machine to make it delectable and appealing.

And, by the same token, you’re not talking about something that makes you feel superior, comfortable, and strong. It doesn’t mean that, since you know “the truth”, that you are automatically powerful and in control. You know the truth, so that means you get to bully others?

No, sorry.You’re supposed to seek the truth. That’s where the faith, the prayer, and patience and dedication come in. The Bible talks a lot about these things, right?

Well, now you know why it keeps harping on those things. Because they will be the tools, indeed, the only tools which will assist you in your search for truth.

The mistake many people make is saying that “I’ve found God, therefore I have found the truth. The truth is simply all things associated with God.”

They have it backwards. By deciding that all issues dealing with “God” are automatically the truth, besides being a lazy way out, is just plain dangerous.

It’s just too easy to make God over into our own image (the essence of idolatry), and therefore, accept feel-good ideas, comfortable rhetoric, patriotic do-goodism, etc. etc., as the truth.

In fact, most of this stuff is outright lies, put in place by people who are trying to gain power and control by hoping you will give credence to their position by feeding you their own garbage and calling it “the truth”.

Find out the real truth, through careful study and prayer. Exercise your faith by believing that, even though the path you’re following may take you away from what is comfortable and secure, and may even lead you to places where your very life may feel threatenend, that the truth is worth finding.

Because it is the path to truth that is the path to God.

Quiz:

Question 1. Why, in the New Testament, do we see St. Paul and St. John repeatedly warn the new believers against idols? (for example, see I Cor. 10:14 and I John 5:21 and use the cross-references to check out other passages.) Was it because these men really worried that the new Christians would seek out or return to the worship of objects made of wood and stone, or did they have other concerns? Or is worshipping icons the exact same issue as worshipping a god made in one’s own image?

Question 2. What are some signs I should be looking for, in my worship at church, in my attitudes in my daily life, and, indeed, in my very heart that point to those attitudes that would keep me from searching for the truth?

Question 3. Why may I actually be allowing myself to listen to what I know are lies (or should know are lies), rather than ardently seeking the truth?

Question 4. Do I fully understand the seriousness of accepting and believing lies? Do I understand that I have a responsibility to seek out the truth, at all costs? Read Romans Chapter 1 for an explanation of the gravity of exchanging God’s truth for earthly lies, then read the final chapter of the Bible, Revelation Chapter 22.

By the way, the final book of the Bible is called “Revelation”, not “Revelations” as some would have it. The incorrect plural implies that the book contains many revelations, or prophecies that may be taken as excuses for some people to bully others. However, the correct singular refers to the fact that the Revelation is that of God to man through our supreme Revelation of God, which is, of course, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. To Him all knees must bow.