The Proclaimer

The Absolute Truth

The vast majority of people in the religious world really consider the truth of God to be relative rather than absolute.  That is, in their minds God has been so ambiguous in His revelation that we simply cannot understand His word alike.  How many times have you heard someone say, “That’s just your interpretation of that scripture?”  What they mean is that it really doesn’t matter if we differ, for one interpretation or understanding is a good as another. 

While it is true that no man has perfect knowledge and that every individual’s knowledge or understanding of truth is relative to his total experience, we must remember that such inadequacies on our part do not render the truth of God relative.  The word of God is complete and provides all that the man of God requires to serve and please the Lord  (2 Tim. 3:16, 17). Furthermore, the word of God bears the characteristics of God Himself. As God is perfect, so is His revelation.  It contains neither error nor ambiguity.  Not only so, it has been recorded so that when we read it we can understand what it means.  Paul says he wrote by inspiration the revelation of God so that “when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ” (Eph. 3:3-5). 

Certainly we must remember our potential fallibility as well as our imperfect understanding and knowledge of the Scriptures.  Remembering this will keep us ever searching for truth and will keep us from using our imperfect understanding as the standard as though what “we think” is the final word of truth.  But acknowledging the possibility of our being wrong is a far cry from denying that God has revealed all the truth in such a way that we can understand it.  God’s truth is absolute.  He says what He means and means what He says.  If, because of prejudice, or lack of study, or preconceived notions, or lack of courage, one does not understand what God has plainly stated, the fault is his, not God’s.

Yes, there are some passages more difficult to understand than other passages.  Peter refers to the epistles of Paul, “in which are some things hard to understand, which those who are untaught and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures” (2 Peter 3:16).  But notice that Peter did not say these passages were impossible to understand, just hard to understand by the “untaught.” 

The fact is, God has delivered to man such truth as is needed for salvation.  Jesus prayed, “Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth” (John 17:17).  When we consider those things essential to one’s becoming a Christian, I find it hard to believe they are all that difficult to understand.  Jesus said, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved” (Mark 16:16).  What part of that statement is difficult to understand?

I’ve observed through the years that the difficulty with most folks is not so much in understanding what God says, but having the desire and courage to do it.  Once the hearer’s attitude is right, there is little problem with him both understanding what God wants him to do and obeying His gospel.  The elementary conditions of salvation are clear and simple and easily understood.  And as one obeys he keeps studying that he might “grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). Have you been obedient to the Lord?  Are you still growing?

                                                                                         -- Clark Dugger

The Proclaimer