On
Good Friday morning, Jewish chief priests delivered Jesus of Nazareth over to Roman
governor Pontius Pilate as an “evildoer” with a death sentence. That word
“evildoer” likely had only one meaning for Pilate in the context of Roman law, under
which this Jesus had been charged. That’s how his accusers intended Pilate to understand
it; however, Jesus had not broken any Roman law, but rather had called himself
the Son of God in the presence of the Jewish religious elite. In other words,
Jesus was guilty of blasphemy.
The
conversation between Jesus and Pilate contained this exchange (John 18:37-38):
“So
you are a king?”
“You
say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have
come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth
listens to my voice.”
“What
is truth?”
What is truth?
is a rhetorical question posed by a pagan skeptic, an educated Roman in an
immoral world with little or no faith in his own gods, of which there were many
in Jesus’ day. As I look around, I see more than a few 21st-century
Pilates here in my day.
A
2016 nationwide poll conducted by the research organization Barna Group, “reveals
growing concern about the moral condition of the nation, even as many American
adults admit they are uncertain about how to determine right from wrong. So
what do Americans believe? Is truth relative or absolute?” Results show that two-thirds
say truth is relative and about a third say absolute.
I
doubt Pilate meant “What is absolute truth?” by his question to Jesus; I
actually think Pilate had the same concept of truth as he did for the number
zero (for which there is no Roman numeral). For the Roman governor and Jesus’
Jewish accusers, the truth is held hostage by the zeitgeist—the spirit of the
age—in which it’s sought after. Absolute truth never changes. A circle is never
a square. A banana is never a cherry. A man is never a woman. The created can
never become the Creator.
We
think times have changed considerably since Pilate questioned Jesus, but have
they? Not so much. The truth is much harder to establish in today’s world. We
modern-day Pilates are still asking our gods and goddesses the same question,
yet the answer has existed long before the question was ever asked!
In
such a dysfunctional and disordered world, where trigger-happy news outlets and
social media zealots are so quick to spread the truth as they see it, is it any
wonder that the average American has less and less faith in government, news
and social media sources, not to mention God? On the day I’m writing this, one
purportedly objective news source is reporting the following (you decide, true
or false?): A married celebrity is calling for women to go on a “sex strike”…In
one state teachers can carry guns…A million plant and animal species are
nearing extinction…Helium (the second most abundant element in our galaxy) supplies
on Earth are dwindling…The name Donald has dropped in popularity since 2016 and
is now at the lowest since Social Security Administration records began in the
1880s (not a typo)…
Jesus—God
Himself—said “Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” And that voice
is Absolute Truth—unchanging, timeless, and dependable, a refuge from the
churning sea of moral, ethical, and spiritual promiscuity in which so many are foundering
without hope. God’s Word can right the ship and repair the sails, not to
mention calm the seas.
Jesus
says “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in
me, though he die, yet shall he live.” (John 11:25)
What
is truth?
Well,
Pilate was looking Jesus Christ right in the eyes and never saw it. And the
same is happening to others all around us. And, though it’s too late for
Pilate, it’s not too late for them!
That’s
it until next month…
Peace
by with you,
Pastor
E.B.
