Love of the Truth
And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. (2 Th 2:10)
Pilate (John 18:38), talking to Jesus, asked the rhetorical question, "What is truth?" The truth is what God says. If He said something, that becomes the baseline for comparing all things. If we do not like it or do not agree, we cannot produce a new truth. A person either agrees with God's truth or he opposes it. There is no your truth and my truth. Truth belongs to God alone. We either agree with it or we do not.
Obviously, we do not know God's truth with infallible knowledge in our minds. We study the Bible the best we can. There are differences of opinion and interpretation. We may be unaware of something or be mistaken about some point of truth. But there is a difference between honest ignorance and deliberate opposition to God's truth. People who do not know God's truth or do not have the Bible all have the intuitive knowledge of the Creator who demands accountability from us. This is the truth Paul is talking about in 2 Thess 2:10. Naturally and instinctively, people love their sin and therefore do not love the truth.
Jesus said, "I Am the Truth" (John 14:6). This is the very first thing that a person who wishes to love the truth must know. Jesus is the God-approved Way to the Father. Not only that but He is the only path to God. All other methods of reaching God, no matter how sincere, are ineffective. Many people find the message about Jesus and His work on the cross interesting. They may embrace that to a greater or a lesser degree. Trusting in Jesus' Person and His work has His promise of eternal life. But what does it mean to love the truth?
Thy Word is Truth
Jesus said that the Scripture cannot be broken. Even the semi-accurate translation (LXX) that He used was the Truth. When we see something in the Bible that we disagree with, we must instantly change our mind, which is the definition of the word repent. It does not mean tears or promises, necessarily. That word means to turn from our current path and go the opposite way. We must immediately say, “I am wrong”. Do we love the Truth that much? Perhaps what we really love, as religious people, is our tradition and doctrine. Can I honestly say that I am a lover of the Truth?
The Spirit of Truth
As New Testament believers, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Jesus called Him, "The Spirit of Truth" (John 14:17, 15:26, 16:13). We actually are possessed by Him because He owns us. He paid for us. We are not our own property. If a person is possessed by a demon, he will display the characertistics of the evil spirit. As Holy Spirit possessed people, we should manifest the nature of the Spirit, the Spirit of Truth. It should be impossible for us to embrace any error. Of course, the Holy Spirit does not force us to do anything. He flows out of our reborn human spirit to influence us for good. In theory, it should be impossible for the believer to hold onto anything that is in opposition to the truth of God. Can I say that I am a lover of truth or are my pet doctrines reigning as supreme reality?
How Much?
As a Christian we may think the story about Jesus is really good literature. It is nice to have the threat of hell removed from in front of our face. The Bible has some good bedtime stories for children. But are we lovers of the truth? How much do we want the truth above our personal preferences?
Let's say that an author of several books sees that he has been wrong about a particular subject. Is he willing to refund all previous book sales? Let's not be fanatical.
Is a pastor willing to resign his position and salary if his church or denomination is requiring him to teach a particular point that he sees is in contradiction to the Bible? Is a person willing to give back the proceeds of a lawsuit if he has to admit it was gained by telling falsehoods? If a person has received disability payments by faking a disease, is he willing to give back all the money he has been falsely paid? I guess we really are not a lover of the truth after all, we just kind of stomach it a little bit sometimes.
(God may not be requiring this of anyone. But are we willing to give up deception and its gains?)
I believe there is a special benefit to being a lover of the truth. It is a general principle of the Scriptures that if we responsibly use something that God has given us, we will receive more (Matt 13:12). If we are irresponsible in what God has given us, we will lose even the little that we do have. If we hold to the truth, especially against resistance to it, we will be given more understanding. If we reject the truth, we give permission to evil spirits to pull us father down into deception. It is quite serious. This is not just a matter of having our personal preferences. The Truth really does matter. And so does rejecting it.
Jan 30, 2025