By Bridget Brenton
We are in a world where questioning “what is truth?” is almost second nature. Everyone has their own definitions of truth but hardly anyone studies epistemology before making their decisions on what they think truth is. They pick up their “truth” from parents, peers, books, television and music. And then there is the argument on whether truth is subjective or objective. While those that believe in a one Holy God have always seen the objectivity of truth nowdays without God people are finding very little “truth” to grab hold of.
We are in a world where questioning “what is truth?” is almost second nature. Everyone has their own definitions of truth but hardly anyone studies epistemology before making their decisions on what they think truth is. They pick up their “truth” from parents, peers, books, television and music. And then there is the argument on whether truth is subjective or objective. While those that believe in a one Holy God have always seen the objectivity of truth nowdays without God people are finding very little “truth” to grab hold of.
Yet it doesn’t mean
that objective truth doesn’t exist – the fact that opinion doesn’t matter in
determining the guilty party of a car accident testifies to truth being
objective instead of subjective. But
while the testimonies of people have the potential to be faulty in their truth,
the word of God was always supposed to be an ultimate truth: "For the hope
which is laid up for you in heaven for which you heard before in the word of the truth of the
gospel." (Colossians 1:5).
In a similar vein
to the Use of the Word "Bible"
article where the bible has come to
mean a source of comprehensive knowledge, gospel
truth or to take as gospel has
been one of those sayings that has meant absolute truth. The American Heritage dictionary says: “The
word gospel, which comes from the Old
English god spel, "good
news," has been used to describe something that is thought to be as true
as the biblical gospel (that is, undeniably true).”
But why say it’s
undeniably true? Most people don’t take
the gospels as truth anymore but yet this is in common vernacular, even
now. Since the 13th century
the words came into use, although since before even that the gospel has been
associated with the truth ... synonymous to truth. So let’s delve into why the gospels were
considered absolutely true. First we
know the writers were intelligent and they were also trustworthy as Luke is considered one
of the most accurate of the ancient historians of his day. But that isn’t all… the gospels witness all
over the place to them being divinely inspired truth above other truth.
In Acts 20:24 it's
called the good news of the grace of God. In Romans 1:9 it's called the good
news of His Son. In Romans 15:16 it's called the good news of God. In I
Corinthians 9:12 it's called the good news of Christ. In 2 Corinthians 4:4 it's
called the glorious good news. In Ephesians 6:15 it's called the good news of
peace. And I love this, in Revelation 14:6 it's called the everlasting gospel,
or the everlasting good news. That's its character.*
So what is the
whole of this gospel? The whole of this
truth? "Moreover, brethren, I declared unto you the gospel… delivered unto
you, first of all, that which I had received. That Christ died for our sins,
fulfilling the Scriptures, and that He was buried and that He rose again the
third day, again fulfilling the Scriptures." (1 Corinthians 15:1-3). Christ dying and rising was so well
documented that it was to be believed as complete truth. And it wasn’t because the people in the 13th
century (and before) were too backward to know any better – that’s an insult to
them and an assumption with no basis. It
was because God is the author of truth and the absolute knowledge about God is
found in Jesus Christ and His death and resurrection.
I’d encourage you
to find out what the gospel is and why it is truth today.
