Scripture – John 16:13-15: “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you” (NRSV)
A while back, one of my parishioners gave me a boardgame called Telestrations, and it is one of family’s favorite games to play together (mostly because it is short, and everybody wins). The game is essentially a new spin on the old “telephone” game, where someone would come up with a word or phrase and then whisper it into a person’s ear. That person would pass it along to the next person, and so on down the line. At the end, the last person would say the word, and nine times out of ten, it would be ridiculously garbled, and everyone has a laugh.
However, sometimes garbling a message is not so funny. As many of you know, there are many historical errors in the Bible and several contradictions. Academics chalk these up to the text being written and edited over many years and by many hands, and even those who believe in biblical inerrancy will admit a scribal error here or there. So how do we know, after the whispers of two thousand or more years, that we are getting the truth about God from our scriptures?
Truth is one of the major themes in the Gospel according to John. In chapter 16, Jesus describes the coming of the Holy Spirit and the truth that the disciples will understand later. Whatever the Spirit says at that time will come from Jesus, whose truth comes from God. Since God, Jesus, and the Spirit are one, humanity is also one through this truth. Through our faith, we recognize the Spirit working and speaking through us. We can use the Spirit as a test and guide to understanding what God is trying to tell us and discern truth in our confusing world. In this way, we discover not just the facts of what happened in the lives of Moses or Jesus, but the timeless truths that are transmitted through those who wrote about them.
Of course, during Jesus’ trial, as Jesus’ described the importance of truth, Pontius Pilate simply dismissed him saying, “What is truth?” To the powerful, truth can be very relative and subject to interpretations that maintain their power. As they say, history is written by the victors. Today, we have become so jaded in respect to the truth given through various media that many of us only seek out media that confirms what we already believe. In a public health crisis, such as the one we are still deeply embroiled in, this can have dangerous consequences.
It is more important than ever that we are able to discern the truth, to use our brains and our faith to get us back to the original message of truth that was spoken before it was passed along the telephone chain. We must be a little suspicious about who gains from a particular message. If it is a message of love, life, and justice for all people, that is a good sign it is probably from God. Fortunately for us, figuring these things out is not impossible, it just takes some critical thinking and work. After all, with God all things are possible.
Prayer – God of truth, help us to discover your word and will for us through the encounters we have with the world, with nature and with other people, and through our daily prayers. Strengthened by the truth, we can go out and serve you and your Kingdom. Amen.
Comments