Who said it?
Match the quote with the person who said it, (answers next month)
1) Adolf Hitler (WW II German ruler) “Fine words and insinuating appearance are seldom
associated with true virtue.”
2) Blaise Pascal
(Famous mathematician) “Many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on
our point of view.”
3) Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
(Author- Sherlock Holmes) “Truth is truth, to the end of reckoning.”
4) Aristotle (Philosopher) “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all
men are created equal, and that they are
5) Thomas Jefferson endowed by their creator with certain unalien-
able rights, that among these are Life, Liberty,
6) William Shakespeare and the pursuit of Happiness.”
7) George Lucas (Star Wars) “You can’t handle the truth!”
8) Confucius “We know the truth, not only by the reason, but
by the heart.”
9) Jack Nickolson
(Actor-“A Few Good Men”) “When you have eliminated the impossible,
whatever remains, however improbable, must
10) Mark Twain be the truth.”
“Liars, when they speak the truth, are not
believed”
“The victor will never be asked if he told the
truth.”
“The truth is stranger than fiction.”
It’s funny that even when we don’t know who said something, we still largely base our beliefs about something on what another said about it. So many people say that truth is relative- depends on the situation. By the very definition of the word “truth,” there can be only one “truth.” Truth is not subjective, that is, it does not depend on circumstances or people’s views to be verified, it simply is. There can be a lot of things that are true and there can be a lot of true statements, but there is only one ultimate truth.
Most of the time when Jesus spoke, he began the statement with the words, “I tell you the truth,” (just look in your concordance in the back of your Bible under “truth” and see how many times the guy said it). If we know anything about the character of Jesus, we know that statement was consistent with his character- he always told the truth. Very noble of the dude, but what makes him unique among all other people who have ever breathed air on this planet, was the fact that he said he was the truth (John 14:6). That’s a pretty bold claim, not that he knew the truth, or that he knew some true things, no, he said he was the truth. Have you ever wondered at the magnitude of that statement? The word truth appears in the Bible hundreds of times, but only once does someone say that he is the truth.
Why would someone make a claim like that? Well, he either was an idiot, or he was lying, or it really was true, those are thee only explanations. It doesn’t seem consistent with his character to always tell the truth except in that one instance. It also doesn’t seem consistent with what we know about the guy through historical writings that he was a raving lunatic either. So what does that leave us? The only possibility left is that he really was the truth. What does that mean? It means that he is the measuring stick for truth. If he said it, it was true, because he is the truth. If he did it, it was true, because he is the truth. If he told people to follow his example, it was because he is the truth.
What are some instances in the Scriptures where you can see examples of Jesus not merely being true, but being the truth?
How did Jesus being the truth, impact those around him?
How did Jesus being the truth, change the way people looked at truth?
Some passages to consider:
Luke 8:26-39. John 11:1-44. Matthew 5:1-12.
In preparation for Breakthru, I would challenge you to keep a journal. What you say, a journal? Yes, a journal, and in this I would challenge you to observe around you all of the world’s attempts to mold your idea of what is true and what is not. My challenge to you is to observe the world’s dastardly way of defining truth and how in his day the person of Jesus countered those ideas with some new radical ideas of his own, namely himself. If you want to get yourself ready for truth, then I can think of no better way than to start getting to know the person of Jesus- I mean really getting to know him, because, after all, he is the truth.
Looking forward to rocking with you all at Sumatanga, God bless.
Your “zany” pal,
Greg Taylor
