What is Truth?

John 18:37-38 

Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world,

that I should bear witness unto the truth.

Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice. 

Pilate saith unto him,

What is truth?

And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in him no fault at all. 

“What is truth?” Or, in modern parlance, “What is your definition of truth?” For the Christian there can be no higher question. Or, perhaps, no higher answer, so when I was asked to do so by Russell Gold I immediately got out my computer and started banging away.

Actually, the first thing you need to do is define “truth.” Science, logic, and philosophy (which includes religion) use different definitions. Applying the philosophical definition of truth when doing science is a category error - and the fact that science started with philosophy doesn’t change that.

You say that you are “searching for truth.” How, exactly are you doing that, and what objective tests do you expect to apply to see if what you’re finding is “truth”? You may not be interested in science, but it at least has a clear set of ways to recognize and reject failed theories. What do you believe that science is?

Russell Gold in comment thread for The Big Three

Philosophical Truth

Aristotle defined truth, and what everyone does in fact mean by truth, in the most simple and commonsensical possible way when he said, “If a man says of what is that it is, or of what is not that it is not, he speaks the truth, but if he says of what is not that it is, or of what is that it is not, he does not speak the truth.”

-Aristotle as quoted by Peter Kreeft (Socratic logic : a logic text using Socratic method, Platonic questions & Aristotelian principles page 144)

Russ speaks of ‘philosophical truth’, or the philosophical definition of truth, so I thought I would start there…. start with a famous modern philosopher quoting a famous ancient philosopher.

And as far as it goes, this is what I mean when I say ‘truth’. There are times in Russ’s answers when he makes it sound like he is saying, “Even if that is actually what happened, it isn’t scientific. To which I can only say, “Too bad for science”.

When Jordan Peterson expounds the Scriptures, you can almost hear him saying, “This isn’t what really happened, but it expounds some deeper truth.” When Russ speaks about science and the origin of the universe, I can almost hear him saying, “This isn’t what really happened, but it is the only explanation we are allowed to believe.”

Would he expect to be able to do scientific research on where the fire and brimstone that destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah came from? What would have been the alcohol level of the water turned into wine?

God is Truth

Deuteronomy 32:4 

He is the Rock,

his work is perfect: for

all his ways are judgment:

a God of truth and

without iniquity,

just and right is he.

Psalm 33:4-5

For the word of the LORD is right; and

all his works are done in truth.

Lead me in thy truth, and

teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.

Exodus 34:6

And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD,

The LORD God,

merciful and gracious,

longsuffering, and

abundant in goodness and

truth,

Deuteronomy 32:4

He is the Rock,

his work is perfect: for

all his ways are judgment:

a God of truth and

without iniquity,

just and right is he.

The most fundamental thing we can say about truth is that God is truth. Which is a poetic way to put it, but not sure how to put it better. His very essence is correspondence with reality. He is its creator and sustainer. To depart from Him is to depart from reality.

Truth Comes from God

1Kings 17:24

And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that

the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth.

From whence do we get truth? Well, first and foremost from God.

The Fear of God leads to Truth

Psalm 25:5

Lead me in thy truth, and

teach me: for

thou art the God of my salvation;

on thee do I wait all the day.

Proverbs 16:6

By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and

by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.

I have spoken many times of problems with hyper modern science, but chief among them is this: they reject the fear of the Lord. As a body (although not some individuals), they reject it so hard that any hypothesis or theory which includes the word ‘God’ is denied by definition.

And yet, without the fear of the LORD, their eyes are blinded. As it is written, “Professing themselves to be wise, they have become fools.”

God Rewards Truth

Isaiah 26:2

Open ye the gates, that

the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in.

Christ is Truth

John 1:17 

For the law was given by Moses, but

grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

John14:6 

Jesus saith unto him,

I am the way,

the truth, and

the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

God Requires Truth

John 4:24 

God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit

and in truth.

John 8:32 

And ye shall know the truth, and

the truth shall make you free.

Conclusion

John 17:17 

Sanctify them through thy truth:

thy word is truth. 

Sorry, I didn’t get around to the various other definitions of truth. I’m really only interested in the Biblical definition of truth, which seems pretty close to Aristotle.

So when it comes to the ‘scientific’ question about evolution, what I wish to know is, “Did evolution happen?” Was there ever a time when there was only one little life form floating around in some warm pond? Or did God create all life in six days? Was Eve made from the rib of Adam, or was Eve a glorified monkey?

And when it comes to truth, I will say, there is more truth in the Torah than there is in all of the ‘scientific’ studies ever created. There is more truth in the pages of Proverbs than in the pages of Scientific American.

And there is more truth in Christ than in all of the Scientists who have ever lived.