By Dr. Al Hearne II

In October, our focus on God Is! shifts to God Is Truth!

Psalm 25:5 reads, "Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long."

To understand this verse, one needs to understand the definition of truth is a moral absolute.  A growing percentage of the population chooses to define the word truth however they want.  On February 12, 2002, researcher George Barna released a shocking study that found even among born-again Christians, only 32% believe in moral absolutes.  Fast forward to May 19, 2020, when Arizona Christian University released a study stating, "most Americans reject any absolute boundaries regarding their morality, with a majority-58%- of adults surveyed-believing instead that moral truth is up to the individual to decide."

Yet, truth is not like ice cream; a person cannot merely pick their favorite flavor. 

A Christian who professes to believe that the Bible is the word of God cannot define truth in any way other than the five ways the Bible defines truth.  First, God is the only God of truth (Exodus 34:6, 2 Chronicles 15:3, Psalm 31:5, and 1 Timothy 2:4).  Second, Jesus himself is the truth (John 17:17).  Third, God's words (Psalm 119:60 and Daniel 10:21) and actions (Nehemiah 9:33) are truth.  Fourth, truth is the barometer for measuring a person's words (1 Kings 22:16, Daniel 11:2, Ephesians 4:25, and Colossians 3:9, 1 John 3:18) and actions (Genesis 24:49 and Joshua 2:14).  Fifth, to "walk in truth" is to conduct oneself according to God's holy standards (1 Kings 2:4, Psalm 86:11, and Isaiah 38:3).  These five definitions show that truth is a moral absolute and without a proper understanding of truth, a person cannot understand Psalm 25:5. 

A common phrase used in Christian education is, "All truth is God's truth."  Redwood Christian Schools believes in this concept so strongly that it is encapsulated in the school's Bylaws - Article II - Basis:

1.   The basis of Redwood is the Word of God (Ephesian. 6:4, Psalms 34:11, Proverbs 22:6, and Deuteronomy 6:5-7).

2.   The basis is five-dimensional in that Redwood: (a) honors the Bible as God's Word, (b) proclaims the relevancy of God, (c) asserts that man is a spiritual being, (d) teaches that there is absolute truth, and (e) believes that man is a sinner.

3.   Redwood's philosophy for an education that is Christian starts with the belief that God is the source of all truth.  Its perspective is the Biblical view of God with Christ at the center of all life and with all parts of the universe mutually related.

At Redwood Christian Schools we teach that the Bible is the Word of God and that truth can only be defined by the Bible.  God is the only source of truth and that as God’s people we are to "walk in truth" according to God's standards.

In the next few weeks as we delve further into this month's theme of "God Is Truth," my challenge is for you to renew your commitment to embrace truth as a moral absolute guided by God's unchanging standards found in the Bible.  How does the Biblical definition of truth influence your daily living and decision-making?  How can you align your words and actions with God's unchanging standards of truth?

 

[The oil painting this week, "Lead Me In Truth", was created using DALL-E.]