When Pontius Pilate asked Jesus what he had done to warrant his being arrested, Jesus mentioned his kingdom being not of this world. This puzzled Pilate and he asked, “So you are a king?”1 To which Jesus replied: “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.” 1 To which Pilate responded: “What is truth?”2 Which is a very good question! 🙂 And one still relevant today.
As a matter of fact, everyone should be asking it: What is truth? It just might be the most important question to ever ask! Why? Because the answer will become the guide for our lives. The answer will reveal to us the reason we were born. So, we all desperately need to ask the question. And many do.
The problem is that the world has a number of really good answers for us—the primary answer being that there is more than one truth. The world would have us believe that truth is relative—that it changes with regard to our circumstances, and is subject to various cultures, and is dependent on the era in which we live, and most importantly, always tolerant of other people’s truths. 🤪 I think Pilate may have been a proponent of that belief. Actually, I think he was being sarcastic—even laughing at Jesus when he asked him the question because he does not wait for him to answer. He certainly did not want to hear his truth.
But we need to hear his answer. Jesus told his disciples, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes through the Father except through me.”3 So, two essential things are revealed here. First, what Jesus says is truth; therefore, we can believe he will never deceive us. And secondly, there is only one truth. Okay. So how does believing that Jesus is the truth impact our lives? Well, for one thing it does determine our eternal destination because “whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”4 But other than that rather major point, does believing that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life really impact our lives? 🤨 I mean, our daily, here-and-now lives? Not necessarily. 😮
Wait. What? 😲 Well, whether or not Jesus changes our daily lives is totally up to us—and is in direct proportion to how much time we spend wrestling with Pilate’s question: What is truth?
The truth of the matter is that if we do not continually ask that question and discern what is of God and what is not, then our lives will be a mix of Jesus’ truth and other people’s truths. It’s a confusing way to live—not knowing the truth. So, how do we prevent the confusion? Jesus has the answer for this one, too. He said, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”5
Abiding in God’s word will help us discern the truth from the lies. And trust me on this one, we need God’s help with that because the world’s truths are popular and sensible and ever so enticing. They’re just not true! 😉 As a matter of fact, they are enslaving. Only the truth of Jesus will set us free. And “if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”6
Pilate had the right question for Jesus. Unfortunately, he didn’t stick around to listen to his answer for “after he said this, he went back outside. . .”2
But the question remains: What is truth? The answer depends on who you listen to. “Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”1
1 John 18:37 2John 18:38 3 John 14:6 4 John 3:16 5 John 8:31-32 6 John 8:36
This was a timely read in a world where even my purest intentions get easily swayed by other “truths”. Thank you for continually pointing me to Scripture! Love you friend!
How wonderful to hear from you! Thank you for your comment.