The above “What is Truth” video by Mark Spence of Living Waters, is a snippet from the full recording which outlines the problems that occur in society when there are no moral absolutes.
A couple of weeks ago, I was down on the streets of Freemantle in Western Australia.
I approached a group of about 5 teenagers who were all sitting in a semi-circle on the lawns of a park. I walked up to them with a big, friendly smile and handed them each a Gospel credit card tract. While they were studying the tracts, I explained that they were pre-paid credit cards and that on the back it explained how Jesus pre-paid our fine before we did the crime. They liked the tracts and we started to have a discussion about faith, God and Jesus. I expected that at least a couple of them would have had a religious background or a Christian upbringing, but they all denied having so. They were quite open to having a discussion and didn’t seem in a hurry for me to move on, so I asked a few questions.
I didn’t want to condemn or judge them, but I did want them to hear the truth of the Gospel and for each of them to recognise their need for a Saviour. I wanted to gently help them to “self-diagnose” and recognise that they were sinners like the rest of us. I then explained what God had done through Jesus so that they didn’t have to go to Hell. It’s difficult to gauge accurately what the state of each of their hearts were; one of the guys seemed to “soften – or appear quietened and touched” and two of the girls seemed to “harden their hearts” or at least show some resistance. One of them seemed to be on a mission to make as many creases in her tract as possible. She indicated that she had a problem with the part of my message that clearly stated that the only way to avoid Hell is to trust in Jesus as your Saviour. She asked, “what about Hindus and other religions, are you saying that they are all wrong and Christianity is the only right way?”. “Yes” I replied. “I’d like to be more “accepting” and politically correct so as not to offend people, but often, in the case of facts and not opinions, there really is one true answer and lots of untrue answers”. One of the reasons that I like the above video snippet (and more so the full episode) is because Mark Spence makes a simple illustration to a couple of girls, showing that we can’t all have unique and different truths and all be correct.
The Christian message has always offended a lot of people – sometimes for the right reasons and sometimes for the wrong reasons.
It is a wrong reason when the offense is caused by the loveless manner or method of the messenger. It is right when it is the true message of the Gospel itself that offends (but they loved the darkness…” – John3:19).
Whenever the Apostle Paul hit the streets with the Gospel, we read that it would stir up an angry mob. We don’t read that he should have toned it down or kept the message less narrow because it was causing offense. The method or manner should not be offensive, but the actual message is literally “One-Way” and this can upset people who have a “different way”. Jesus made it clear that there was one way, “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” ( John 14:6). So the claims of Jesus are indeed unique and exclusive. There are many stories and anecdotes that can be used to illustrate the problem in believing that truth is subjective and in believing that there are no moral absolutes. Hitler believed that he was doing the world a favour by destroying the Jewish race. Was he right because he believed he was right? Is it wrong for us to judge him by standards that are not his own? Of course not! Is it really OK for us to base our beliefs on what makes us feel comfortable? Should we choose our sins and then find beliefs that support our lifestyle and actions and then say it is right and true? As humans, we NEED to have some moral absolutes and a belief system that does not change or adapt to suit our natural tendencies toward sin and rebellion.
Pilot asked Jesus “What is truth” and many youth are asking their teachers and university lecturers the same question today. Unfortunately, teaching the truth is now often labeled as narrow, religious brainwashing. Instead, institutions are now teaching people to believe anything they like, as long as it is true to them and doesn’t offend others or break our civil laws. Let’s not side-step the issue or sweeten it up with all things fluffy. If we are watering down the truth about Hell, which is where most people will spend eternity eternity eternity (yes, 3 times in case you missed the first two); if we are watering down the seriousness of sin and rebellion against God, then we are watering down the sacrifice of the Saviour. If we water down what Christ did, then our message is incomplete and may lack the power to convict and cause a sinner to fall to their knees.
Every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus is Lord. That is Truth.