HER FAITH INSPIRES 041: Your truth, my truth and absolute truth

Hey guys! Welcome back to Her Faith Inspires podcast. We are just getting into season 4 and I want to ask you a favor. It’s more like a deal than a favor. I’m asking you to please screen shot the podcast and tag me in your stories. 

I am really trying to hit my goal of 10,000 downloads this year and I am almost there but I need your help. If you tag me, I will put you in a drawing for a Starbucks gift card and I will have it in your inbox by Friday. I am going to give away 3 of these this week. 

 

Also, I have an opportunity for you to learn from me in a more intimate setting because I am offering a 90 minute online course on Sept 29th.

 

If you’re looking to expand your knowledge of the Bible and know truth for yourself while understanding the Word, I got you. 

Got to shandafulbright.com/resources to get on the waitlist because the space for this class is limited so that I can answer all of your questions and give you all the materials you need. 

 

What we’re talking about today: 

 

Today we are going to talk about Truth. It sounds simple enough, but this is actually more complex than what it should be. 

Our ideas of truth are what shape our worldview. What we believe determines how we behave. 

This is topic of confusion in our culture today. It’s where the narrative of “What’s true for you isn’t true for me” … or vise versa, comes from. And it’s rooted in the self-love culture. It’s rooted in “me-culture”. 

As Christians we must ask ourselves what we believe and why and does what we believe and why we believe it shape how we live, how we vote, how we confront the hot topics of our culture such as racism, abortion, sex and the hook-up culture, how we raise our kids, and in general … life itself. 

 

This episode can go on forever, but I am going to give you some resources I have read and am reading that will help you as you research the topic of absolute truth. 

 

Some of you already know that Voddie Baucham is one of my favorite Bible teachers, and he has a book called “The Everloving Truth” that is amazing. There is also a book by Nancy Pearcy called “Love Thy Body” and she goes into great detail about the post-Christian era and why we value humanism, and why personhood theory is the idol of our culture. 

I am going to share Bible verses with you today and about what Truth is according to God’s word and why YOU must know Truth for yourself. It is imperative in the times we are living in to challenge yourself to think beyond what mainstream culture is feeding you.

 

So, I want to ask you a question before we get into today’s episode: Are you shaping culture or is culture shaping you?

 

Because Christianity will never fit into culture’s mold and as a Christian, you either have a biblical worldview or you don’t. 

If you aren’t sure if you have a biblical worldview, then I suggest going back and listening to episode 31, “What’s shaping your worldview” and take the quiz that will let you know if you have a biblical worldview or not. 

 

What we’re going to tackle today: 

 

1. Is Truth absolute? How do we know and why does it matter? 
2. How is the “me-culture” tied to the “my truth” narrative? 
3. What will happen if we don’t uphold truth? 

 

Is Truth absolute? How do we know and why does it matter? 

 

When I was in junior college, I was in an undergrad class that I had to take to fulfill a requirement. I can’t quite remember the course but it was either sociology 1A or psychology or some class that ended in ology. 

Anyway, I showed up for class like any other day and it was in an auditorium, so it was full and had hundred of students. Prior to this, I had to write a paper and to this day, I cannot remember the assignment but somehow my biblical worldview was evident in the paper. 

I’m sure I made reference to God, the Bible (which another professor told me was not a reliable source but that’s a different class), and the professor caught wind of who I was and what I believed and he was in rare form that day.

 

I was completely unaware and caught off guard when he called my name. 

 

My head shot up and I waited for him to say my name again because I thought for sure I was mistaken. What did he want with me out of all these other students? 

Nope. I wasn’t mistaken. He called my name again, and then asked me a question I’ll never forget. 

He asked, “Shanda, you wrote in your paper about some of your beliefs. What is your belief on abortion?” 

I was 20 years old. When I say I was nervous, I mean I was shaking, sweaty, and my face probably turned bright red. 

I sheepishly said, but loud enough for him to hear me, “I do not support abortion.” 

 

He wasn’t satisfied. 

 

He went on …. 

“What about when a woman is raped?” 

Let me also add here something I didn’t know at the time … this is one of the most asked questions when it comes to abortion because people always want to find a way to break down the abortion argument. And less than .01% of women have abortions because of rape. 

My answer was simple and quick. “I don’t believe in abortion even if someone is raped.” 

The deeper we got into the discussion, if you want to call it that, the more vocal the other students became around me. Some started to gasp at the thought of me not agreeing to kill an innocent baby as a result of rape. 

 

And again, the professor wasn’t satisfied. He went on and asked the final question. 

 

He asked, “Let’s say a mother and father are in a delivery room and there’s a complication. You have to choose between the mother or the baby. Who do you choose?” 

This man was relentless. He had the upper hand because it was his class and I was a young and vulnerable college student. He wouldn’t stop until he got me to say, “Kill the baby!” 

But I didn’t. I said, “That is not for me to choose. Let the mother and father decide.” 

He was disgusted as were many other students in the class. When I got up to walk out the door I was truly scared someone was going to jump me for my beliefs. 

 

I was still shaking and my knees were wobbly. But I do not believe in killing innocent children because of the Word of God. 

 

But you know what? I passed the class. I didn’t get beat up. No one arrested me and I went on to a university and got my degree. There was no price to pay, save some nerves.

And when I look back to that moment, I am glad I stood for truth. I am glad I didn’t allow the intimidation of a professor cause me to compromise. 

If you are listening to this podcast you are either a Christian or are searching out Christianity in some way. That means we have a belief system. We do not get to say “This is true for me so it is acceptable.” 

We do not get to formulate our own truth. It is our responsibility to uphold the Truth of God’s word and it MUST shape our beliefs, our words and our response to current events in our culture.

 

Is truth absolute? How do we know and why does it matter? 

 

The simple definition of TRUE: Is something in accordance with fact or reality. 

But when it comes to religious truth, the meaning goes so much deeper. 

In order to fully understand why absolute truth is so important in our belief in God and to ensure we are not persuaded by culture, we must know what culture says about absolute truth. 

Every one of us has presuppositions that influence our beliefs. Many times these presuppositions are influenced by what we’re taught at school, how we’re raised, who we surround ourselves with, etc … and we don’t even realize it. 

 

These presuppositions affect how we view absolute truth and what the Bible says about it. 

 

I don’t have time to go into all of the ideologies affecting our culture when it comes to absolute truth, but I will dive into some of them today. 

The first thing you must understand is that absolute truth is and has been under attack because of postmodernism. 

I mentioned this statistic on the episode “What’s shaping your worldview?” But only 4% of Christians actually have a biblical worldview where they believe Jesus is without sin, the Bible is the infallible word of God, and Jesus is the only way to heaven. 

 

That means that only 4% of Christians believe in absolute truth! Think about it! 

 

What does that mean? It means they have been influenced by the culture and postmodern philosophy which says that pluralism is not only acceptable, but anyone who does not agree with it is intolerant. 

Today, to say that Jesus is the only way to heaven is not only intolerant but hateful. 

 

What is pluralism?

 

It’s the adoption of many different belief systems. It’s what Oprah means when she says all religions are like the spokes in a wheel … at the center is God and any spoke, or religion, will get you to Him. So pick one or a few, and get on with it.

During the era of modernism, everyone latched onto the ideology that anything that could be proven scientifically was worth being taught as a fact. If it couldn’t be proven with science then it was considered false. 

Since then we have taken the teaching of creationism out of the schools and teach evolution as though it is scientific fact. 

Schools do teach on the Christian religion, but they do it in passing while compiling all religions into one lump as if thy are all the same.

 

They start doing this in 6th grade. 

 

By the time kids get to high school, they are only taught evolution in science and to even think about the possibility that God could have created the universe is laughable and a considered a lack of intelligence. 

When I taught my youth on creationism, unsurprisingly several of my students came to me with presuppositions because the educational system constantly told them that the earth is billions of years old, evolution is how they got here and that materialism is all that matters. 

They asked me, “Can’t a Christian believe that God used evolution to create?” That’s a wonderful question. But the answer is no. What is this an example of? Pluralism. 

The pluralist will tell you there are no absolutes. The absurdity in that proclamation is that to say there are no absolutes is an absolute. 

God, on the other hand, does not contradict Himself. He is specific in His word on how He created all things and how He continues to hold those things together today.

 

I am not telling you that there is no evidence for God.

 

Our responsibility as Christians is to know what we believe and why we believe it. 

Hebrews 11 tells us that faith is the SUBSTANCE of things hoped for, the EVIDENCE of things not seen. Do you know what substance and evidence are? They are proof. We do not have blind faith that God exists. Therefore, we do not have blind faith that what He says is absolutely true. 

The warning is that we cannot compromise the Word of God so that we “tolerate” and accept the beliefs of others so that their feelings aren’t hurt.

Their souls are more important than their feelings. And feelings do not dictate truth. With that being said, I am not telling you to grab your bible and bash people over the soul with it. Not at all. 

But in our day and age, truth is under attack. And we must know why. 

 

So how do we know that there is absolute truth? We have to break this down for a better understanding. 

 

First and foremost, absolute truth can be applied cross culturally, and applies to anyone no matter when or where they live. 

We all know this. I’ll explain why.

The Bible is a book for every human being on this earth. It was written by the Jews for the Jews, but it was also given to all so that all may come to God through the Word of God. Therefore, it is for all of humanity.

Romans 1 gives us insight into the moral law of mankind and how it is written on the heart of every human who has ever been born, is living today or will be born after this day. 

Romans 1:18-20 says, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood though what has been made, so that they are without excuse.” 

 

You can say that these verses are the foundation to absolute truth or every soul that has ever lived.

 

This shows that men don’t even have to have the word of God in order to believe because the word, or law, or Truth, was written on their hearts by God. 

First, it tells us that men suppress the truth. They want to get rid of the truth and put an end to it. 

This is why people say there are no real atheists because deep down they know the Truth.

Why? How do we know they know there’s a God? And if there’s a God there’s absolute truth? 

Secondly, because that which is known about God is evident within them. His invisible attributes are seen. 

Are seen in what? Creation! We see His eternal power and divine nature in everything that has been made.

And what does that leave us? Without excuse! 

 

Sounds easy enough, right? I wish! 

 

Mankind knows the difference between right and wrong innately. That means they were born with the knowledge of right an wrong, which means they have the moral law written on their hearts. 

What is the moral law? The 10 commandments. I taught my students about Hammurabi, the king of Babylon who is known for Hammurabi’s code. History says there were no rules and people were stealing from one another, killing for each other’s land, and there was chaos in Babylon.

Hammurabi established a code, or should I say laws, 282 of them to be exact, to help people get justice for crimes committed against them.

Why would that matter in a place like Babylon if “What’s true for you may not be true for me?” 

Why does that matter if there are no absolute truths? And you might be surprised to know that Hammurabi’s laws have similar laws as the Ten Commandments. 

Romans 2:15 tells us, “They show the work of the law written on their hearts, their conscious bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them.” 

Again, the law of God is written on the hearts of every man. That’s why we want justice for wrong-doing. Because there’s a standard we want to hold everyone to. 

 

As Christians, We must know that: 

 

Jesus is the way, truth and life. John 14:6

His word is truth. John 17:17

The Holy Spirit guides us into all truth (John 16:13)

If we don’t, we do not have a biblical worldview and we don’t understand absolute truth. 

 

How is the “me-culture” tied to the “my-truth” narrative? 

 

What seems true in the moment, may not be true or trustworthy at all. We all have experiences that shape who we are, but they do not define moral truth. 

For example, just because I had a bad high school experience and didn’t get voted most likely to succeed, doesn’t mean I won’t. 

And just because I often thought I was a mistake because my parents got pregnant with me when they were teenagers doesn’t mean I am. 

I have to take all of these things and line them up to what the word of God says because His word is my source of Truth.

As Allie Stuckey says in “You’re Not Enough and That’s Okay”, many Christians don’t read the Bible so they have a faith that’s a mixture of God’s truth and their own truth. 

Ligonier did a study in 2018 and found that 32% of Christians believe that religious belief is a matter of personal opinion: it is not objective truth. 

51% said that God accepts the worship of all religions, not just Christianity. 

 

That’s truly sad! 

 

The Bible is the only thing we have to help us differentiate between our truth and THE truth. 

You and I need to know it because the enemy comes to deceive us with a distortion of truth. He takes part truth and trust me when I tell you, those who don’t know the word of God will always take the bait. 

The wonderful thing about discovering God’s truth and staying in His word is that we learn more and more each day. I always say, if you are in the word and you learn from Him, when you look back you will be further along in one year than you ever though you’d be. 

If we have no standard or moral truth, people are left to their own devices to determine truth. And that’s how you get no standard at all, but the “What’s true for me may not be true for you” philosophy. 

 

Society changes truth based on what’s socially acceptable.

 

That’s why we have cancel culture today. If society doesn’t like the way you said it and it doesn’t align with their truth, you’re canceled! 

Today, hate crimes are based on what’s true for someone else. If you don’t call someone by their preferred pronoun, legal action can be taken against you in some states because you’re not falling in line with someone else’s “truth”. 

Are people’s feelings what we’re basing morality on now? Are people’s feelings our compass for objective truth the days?

In the current “me-culture”, the answer is yes. 

As Allie Stuckey puts it, “Whoever controls our means of communication and information arbitrates what’s true and what’s false, what’s right and what’s wrong, and who’s canceled and who’s not.” 

That’s why when you look at news articles and headlines, they are filled with hyperbole. They are strategically written to get you to feel so that you will move and act in accordance with what they get you to believe is true. 

And that brings me to my final point ….

 

What will happen if we don’t uphold truth? 

 

As I stated before, truth is under attack. And I pray to the good Lord on the daily that I do like I did when I was 20 and stand for it no matter who uncomfortable I get. 

Because the day we stop standing for truth is the day we get to be like the people in Judges when the very last verse says, “And the people did what was right in their own eyes.” 

Why did they do that? Because no one stood for truth. No one upheld truth. No one set the standard. 

Because we are Christians, we are indebted to the truth. 

Jesus stood before Pilot before He died and Pilot asked Him if what he heard about Jesus was true. 

He asked, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

Jesus asked him, “Are you asking for yourself or did someone tell you about me?” 

Pilot was intrigued. He knew there was something different about Jesus. His wife warned Pilot to have nothing to do with Him because He was just. 

And Jesus went on to explain to Pilot that His kingdom is not of this world. And Pilot makes this statement … “You are a king then!” 

 

And Jesus makes a final statement that is just as relevant for today as much as it was in the first century. 

 

He says, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

Jesus basically said … you confessed that my kingdom is not of this world … meaning you know I am God. I have come to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me. Do you hear me, Pilot? Do you recognize truth? 

I believe there was a sobering moment for Pilot. There was a moment of pause. Would he accept God’s absolute truth or would he walk away? 

But once this moment was over, he could not say he didn’t know truth. It had been revealed. He would be forever guilty because he knew truth and wouldn’t accept it. 

And Pilot answers like many in our culture today. He said, “What is truth?” 

And he walked away and washed his hands of the whole situation. He didn’t want to lose his political power or influence. His “truth” meant more to him than God’s truth and Pilot paid the price. 

 

Close

 

Before you can stand for truth you have to know it. You have to know that God’s truth is absolute and there is no compromising it. 

It is the standard in which we live by and if you say you belong to Him, get into the word and know it. 

The kingdom of God needs your voice. And people want to know truth.

When you speak truth, I find that people will either love it or hate it. And that means they will either love or hate you too. I’ve mentioned before that I’ve lost friends because of what I believe. 

That has to be OK with me. I have been called names and people have threatened to pull my podcasts off their lineup. My advice to them is, “Do what you gotta do.” But I won’t compromise truth for likability. I can’t because I will answer to God for how I handled His word. 

 

The truth is what sets us free. 

 

I learned a long time ago that God wants us to be truthful with Him so He can heal us. And if God wants that and we are made in His image, deep down we want that too. 

Again, if you struggle with how to study the Bible and want to learn, go to shandafulbright.com/resources and you’ll see the drop down link to get on the waitlist. 

Speak truth and uphold it. Stay on a trajectory of absolute truth and you will change the world. I can promise you that! 

Until next time, I’ll catch you on the next one.