what is truth?

I thought relativism – that idea that there are different truths out depending on a person's context and perspective – was a kind of a new thing. Relativism is what lets people decide human gender is not binary, that biological race is a human construct, and torture is acceptable if you do it to bad people. All kinds of choices, like lying, cheating, and violence become situational rather than moral if you believe truth is relative.

I should have known better, though, because eroding our confidence that there is fixed truth out there is Satan's way of attacking our belief in Jesus, who called himself the Truth and is the absolute standard for all our moral behaviors.

There was a perfect example of that in my Bible reading this morning, in John 18:37-38. Jesus is on trial before Pilate when this exchange happened. In response to a statement Jesus made about who he is and where he came from, this followed: “'You are a king, then!' said Pilate.
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. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.'
'What is truth?' retorted Pilate."

The next thing Pilate did was to turn Jesus over for crucifixion. His legal and moral position? "What is truth?"

One of the things we Christians are attacked for is our belief that Jesus defined a singular truth in his life and his teaching. Because we believe the truth of Jesus, we're called superstitious and intolerant and hateful. We're called that because Jesus promised the truth will set us free, but those blind to their own sin, the ones who buy Satan's lies about what life and fun is, are threatened by that freedom. Like junkies living for their next fix, the world is too invested in their own behaviors to accept that they are based on lies.

Because relative truth is another way of saying there is no truth at all. And anything that isn't truth is a lie.

This morning I'm praying for the courage to speak and defend truth. I need to find a loving, respectful to do that, but I have to do it. Anything less is, at a minimum, encouraging the lies.