What is Truth?

John 18:28-37

     The Sanhedrin has decided that this blasphemous man must die.  The problem is that they did not have the legal authority to enact capital punishment under Roman rule.  Therefore they brought Jesus before Pilate, the Roman governor.  Pilate takes Jesus away from the Jews and into the Praetorium.  From here a back and forth sparring occurs between Pilate, the Jews, and Jesus which ends with an open question saturated with irony; “What is truth?”

     We live in a Post Modern culture which denies any existence of absolute truth. Nevertheless, though we deny its existence that does not mean the truth is not starring us right in the face.  Take Pilate for example, he was caught between two worlds, the Jews and Jesus, the worldly and the divine.  You can almost sense the tension of Pilate’s predicament as he goes back and forth between the two worlds trying to discern the truth.  One has the outer showings of religious fervor, but he cannot help to question their corrupt motives.  On the other hand, what he sees standing before him does not look like a king or a real threat for that matter.  However, the problem with Pilate is that his criterion for truth was focused on self-preservation.   We know this for two reasons.  First, he eventually sides with the Jews and delivers Jesus to be crucified because he was afraid of an uprising that could threaten his status as a Roman governor.  Second, he had the truth staring him right in the face and he chose to walk away.  He knew Jesus was an innocent man, but the cost was too great to free him.

      Isn’t self-preservation the root of our rejection of truth?  You can hear it in the saying “You believe what you believe, and I will believe what I believe.”  That is another way of saying, “I want to be my own God.  Your truth may dispose of my kingdom.”  Post Modernism rejects the idea of absolute truth because it rejects Christ.   Those who embrace this world view are lost and are not hearing the voice of our Savior.  May this not be said of Christ’s people today!

     Father, please continue to make us a people who hear the voice of our Lord and proclaim His truth everywhere we set our feet.