Who’s Telling the Truth?
Is the government overreacting to the virus, or underreacting? Did the stay-at-home orders help or not? How long should we continue social distancing? How do we determine who is telling the truth on all these questions, and who isn’t? Complicating this question is the fact that we are now living in a “post-truth” world. Objective standards for truth have been replaced with appeals to emotion and personal belief.
Three Reminders From God’s Word About Truth:
The Truth About Our
“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” —II Corinthians 4:4
“He [Satan] knows that his time is short.” —Revelation 12:12
Satan entices mankind with alternatives to God’s truth. Although a Christian worldview predominated in America’s first century as a nation, in the late 1800s, a naturalistic worldview called modernism emerged that was focused on science. In the late 1900s, post-modernism arose with a focus on self.
Don’t just float along and absorb any stream of news you happen across! Is your ultimate authority Scripture? Or Science, which often drifts beyond the facts into speculation? Or Self, by cherry-picking facts to arrive at a conclusion of your own choosing?
“We have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.” —II Corinthians 4:2
We must evaluate current events in the light of Scripture. Stay in the Word, and the Word will lead you home!
The Truth About Our
“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us…We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.” —II Corinthians 4:7, 10
Jim Caviezel almost died when he played Jesus in The Passion of the Christ, eventually having two heart surgeries. Jim actively shares God’s love with others, even adopting three children from China who were battling cancer. Jim’s life mission is to be a light for Jesus in the darkest of places (Hollywood). Soon to come is a sequel – The Resurrection of the Christ.
The biblical worldview sees the purpose of life as exalting Christ, while both modernism and post-modernism focus solely on the here and now.
The Truth About Our
“Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” —II Corinthians 4:16-18
We accept the unseen world by faith which is the biblical worldview. Every scientist knows there is more out there than we can presently see. Is it not reasonable to believe that God is also out there, as well as Satan and angels, demons, heaven, and hell?
“The Cosmos is all that is or was or ever will be. Our feeblest contemplations of the Cosmos stir us…We know we are approaching the greatest of mysteries.” (Carl Sagan). This is modernism, which is based on science.
“What I believe is that if I live my life as well as I can, I will be rewarded. I don’t presume to have knowledge of what happens after I die. But I feel strongly that whether the reward is in the here and now or in the hereafter, the aligning of myself to my faith and my values is a good thing” (Barack Obama). This is post-modernism. Self is your ultimate authority.
How did the coronavirus originate? It’s hard to know who to believe as both the media and politicians have an agenda which is ultimately to discredit their opponents and elevate themselves. Once again a deeper issue in the battle for truth has been exposed. Who is the ultimate determiner of reality – God or man? In whom will you place your faith?