October 7, 2006
Are we relying upon our faith or on Christ ?
Atheists, Agnostics and other non-Christians think it preposterous to place faith in anything "religious" but that we must rely upon science, knowledge, and the intellect (reason) for our philosophical foundation. The achiles heal to this philosophy is its non-relational perspective. Even Christians tend to get caught up within this mode of thinking all the while trying to "prove" God's existence. A striking disconnect occurs when the Christian uses such tactics in apologetics; it's not necessarily bad, however it should be supplemental rather than foundational when used.
The essential question to ask is, "What is truth?"
An Agnostic may say that truth is relative, not always true in every situation. Another may claim truth as a foundational presupposition. But the reality of truth is that it is not a what but a Who. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Jesus is Truth.
When Jesus claimed (of Himself) He was Truth, He was stating something earthshattering. By His very claim, He also inherently implied that Truth is Personal; Tri-Personal in fact. If Jesus Himself was Truth, then the Father as well as the Spirit are Truth. Truth then is also ethical, and it is about faithfulness.
God is true (this has strong connotations of ‘faithful’): John 3:33; 7:28; 8:26; I John 5:20 Jesus is “full of truth” (John 1:14) and “the truth” (John 14:6). His name is “True” (Rev. 19:11) The Holy Spirit is the “Spirit of truth” (John 14:17; 15:26; 16:13) and “the truth” (I John 5:6) Jesus is the Wisdom of God incarnate: I Cor. 1:24, 30 Truth as faithfulness: Gen. 24:49; Deut. 7:9; Josh. 2:14; II Kings 12:15; Neh. 7:2; Prov. 14:5; 29:14; Lam. 3:23 God’s people are to “walk” in truth: I Kin. 2:4; II Kin. 20:2; Gal. 2:14; II John 4; III John 3, 4 They are to “walk” in wisdom: Col. 4:5 Walking in truth is equivalent to walking according to God’s commandments: II John 4-6 They are to “walk” in the way of understanding: Prov. 9:6 Wisdom is associated with personal traits and actions: Jas. 3:17 Christians are to love “in truth”: I John 3:18 (cf. II Jn. 1; III Jn. 1) The truth is righteousness: Prov. 12:17 Seeking truth is synonymous with doing justly: Jer. 5:1 Truth and knowledge of God are synonymous with goodness: Hos. 4:1 Wisdom and understanding are identified with upright behavior: Prov. 15:21 Believers have a moral obligation to speak the truth (Ps. 15:1, 2; Zech. 8:16; Eph. 4:25) Sin gives rise to error, while truth is linked to goodness: Prov. 14:22 Evil naturally brings forth falsehood and is antithetical to truth: John 8:39-47 Truth is antithetical to evil: John 3:20, 21; I Cor. 13:5 Wickedness is antithetical to truth; it is an abomination to wisdom: Prov. 8:7 (cf. 8:1) Wisdom speaks no perversity: Prov. 8:8 Truth is antithetical to unrighteousness: Rom. 2:8 Any kind of idolatry, as a sin, is a lie: Is. 44:20; Jer. 10:14; Rom. 1:18-23
I think Dan Philips was striving for this point. Truth is not primarily a presupposition. Truth is a Person and thereby relational, and thereby, Truth must touch every area of life. This is why the Gospel is not merely for entrance into the Christian life. The Gospel is also for our sanctification and our guaranteed future glorification.
When I have asked different preachers about why the Gospel is not preached every service, the general (wrong) answer is, "when unsaved individuals are present, I will preach the Gospel (Truth)". The fundamental problem with this view is that they only preach truths relating to the Gospel (i.e. Jesus Who is Truth and is the Gospel) yet without preaching the Gospel. Scripture is then presented as a set of impersonal presuppositions and apologetic discourses.
However, "If we will do these things, take them to heart, and internalize them, we will have taken a major step away from our rationalistic pietism and towards a full-orbed, incarnational, covenantal worldview."
(Much of the above was taken from Derrick Olliff).