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A Few Thoughts About Truth

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This is not an article on the philosophy of truth, but some things the Bible teaches about truth.
The Bible assumes truth to be reality, factual, and accurate.
The Hebrew word for truth is אֶמֶת ʼemeth (H571). It means truth, reliability, stability, faithfulness, etc.
B1 Exodus 34:6 WEB Yahweh passed by before him, and proclaimed, “Yahweh! Yahweh, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth. (Many translations have faithfulness instead of truth. This is correct as far as translation, but the Septuagint has truth (ἀληθινός alēthinos G228)).
B2 1 Kings 22:16 NLT But the king replied sharply, “How many times must I demand that you speak only the truth to me when you speak for the LORD?
The Greek word is ἀληθής alēthḗs (G227).
B1 1 John 2:27 MKJV But the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as His anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true and no lie, and as He has taught you, abide in Him.
B2 John 4:18 NLT For you have had five husbands, and you aren’t even married to the man you’re living with now. You certainly spoke the truth!
The God of the Bible, Yahweh, cannot lie. He is the nonlying god.
B1 Titus 1:2 MKJV On hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before the eternal times.
B2 Hebrews 6:17-18 MKJV In this way desiring to declare more fully to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, God interposed by an oath, (18) so that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us.
He expects us to tell the truth also. It is a Kingdom rule.
B1 Matthew 5:37 CSB But let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.
B2 Ephesians 4:25 CSB Therefore, putting away lying, speak the truth, each one to his neighbor, because we are members of one another.
We need to speak the truth to ourselves, too. We must admit what we are. If we sin, we must tell the truth. If we are addicted to something, we first must tell the truth. Telling the truth is the first step in agreeing with God, after the Holy Spirit has opened our eyes, minds, and hearts that we are sinners.
B1 Abraham believed that God was telling the truth: Genesis 15:3-6 NRSV And Abram said, “You have given me no offspring, and so a slave born in my house is to be my heir.” (4) But the word of the LORD came to him, “This man shall not be your heir; no one but your very own issue shall be your heir.” (5) He brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” (6) And he believed the LORD; and the LORD reckoned it to him as righteousness.
B2 Telling the truth when convicted by the Holy Spirit concerning sin:
C1 Proverbs 28:13 NRSV No one who conceals transgressions will prosper, but one who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.
C2 1 John 1:9 NKJV If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
We are to tell each other the truth as a ministry:
B1 2 Timothy 2:25 NRSV correcting opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant that they will repent and come to know the truth.
B2 Galatians 4:16 NRSV Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?
Truth separates from what is false, what is lies, about God and us: John 17:17 BSB Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth.
What we say, and what we do must match. This is both in private and in public:
B1 1 John 3:18 NIV Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.
B2 3 John 1:4 NRSV I have no greater joy than this, to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
We need to interpret the Bible in its plain, normal sense. Too often, the Scriptures are distorted by novel methods of interpretation. God is omniscient and omnisapient and knows how to perfectly communicate. Abraham believed God. David believed God. Those who believed Jesus Christ were redeemed. God’s yes is yes, and His no is no.
B1 2 Corinthians 4:2 NLT We reject all shameful deeds and underhanded methods. We don’t try to trick anyone or distort the word of God. We tell the truth before God, and all who are honest know this.
B2 2 Peter 3:15-16 NLT And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him– speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction.
Believing God sanctifies and results in a changed life: 1 Peter 1:22 PickNT Since you have purified your souls by obeying the truth through the Spirit, resulting in sincere brotherly love, you must love one another fervently from a pure heart.
God’s judgment is in truth and justice: Psalm 96:13 NLT Before the LORD, for he is coming! He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with justice, and the nations with his truth.
God knows our heart. We cannot fake it. He wants truth, so do we. We want true love from our friends, family, children, parents, and spouse. Acts 15:8 NRSV And God, who knows the human heart, testified to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us.
We need to love the truth: John 18:37 NLT Pilate said, “So you are a king?” Jesus responded, “You say I am a king. Actually, I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth. All who love the truth recognize that what I say is true.”
God loves those who tell and live the truth: Proverbs 12:22 NLT The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in those who tell the truth.
Of Messiah (Jesus) it is written Isaiah 11:5 NLT He will wear righteousness like a belt and truth like an undergarment.
John 1:17 NIV For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
A Few Thoughts About Truth
Truth
Posted by Choco in 2019 at 18:17
Labels: Christian truth, Truth

 

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