S142P5 – The fruit of falsehood: relative truth
Jn. 18:36-38
Jesus [said], “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”
They often fought like siblings do, and being so close in age did not help. She decided that Saturday to grab one of their favorite books and read alone on the porch. Her brother followed almost immediately, trying to take the book from her. After the arguing began, their father appeared on the porch. Her brother insisted that he had the book first, and she calmly pleaded her case. As the conversation continued, her brother began to sob. She could not understand why he was so upset, but as she looked at his face change, she started to get it. He was not simply lying to get his way. He really believed the words he said. He had convinced himself that she had cheated him, and he felt a real loss.
I used to know someone who could argue forever about anything no matter how wrong he was. I used to look at him in disbelief because I could not understand what was happening. Obvious truths seemed to elude him, and it appeared that he lived in his own realm of reality. It did not take me long to realize that he thought saying something made it true. No matter how wrong he was, he stuck to what he said, and that was because he was able to convince himself that lies were true. He had reached the point at which he no longer could distinguish between the truth and a lie. That wisdom was gone. For him, whatever he decided was true would be true the moment he said it, and no one could tell him otherwise.
If you look at today’s world, you will see how many people have reached this point. Simple, obvious facts become topics of debate. Truth has become relative, and deception somehow has become one with reality. This is the crux of Pilate’s question here. The inability to tell lies from truth is not a new concept. Those who choose to live by deception or in deception eventually will be unable to see the truth. This is a sign of the reprobate mind, one who cannot even tell when he is lying to himself. If we lie enough, we will not even recognize that we are doing it anymore. Father, help us to live sober to what is true and real, and keep us from the lie of relative truth.