| Pontius Pilot Asked Jesus What is truth? John 18:38. | | | | God who overlooks the sinful nature of man for the |
| The World keeps asking the same question with the | | | | sake of good deeds. |
| same inquisitive persistence, and there is yet an | | | | The Bible says in Isaiah 64:6, our Good deeds are like |
| answer to be found that would not be contradictive | | | | filthy rags. And indeed they are. As outside of Jesus |
| in itself. Jesus told Pontius Pilate; everyone on the | | | | our deeds steal the Glory from God and give it to us. |
| side of truth listens to me. John 18:37b; and yet, as | | | | If we are familiar with the sin of Adam, we |
| we search inside and outside the boundaries of our | | | | understand that by nature it is impossible to satisfy |
| realm for a truth that would satisfy the search, so | | | | God's requirements on our own, that although we do |
| many of us end up settling for a partial truth, for | | | | have a way to get to him outside of Jesus, this way |
| acceptance of inadequate responses to a life | | | | has been blocked by two cherubs with large flaming |
| question, what is truth? | | | | swords. Gen 3:24. The commandments were given to |
| The world religions offer a variety of answers to this | | | | us not because we could obey them but to make us |
| most critical question, and they all seem to come up | | | | aware of our sinful nature. Romans 3:19-20; Psalm |
| with some sort of mystical answer which does not | | | | 14:1-3; Ecclesiastes 7:20 |
| resolve the contradiction. | | | | If the above is true according to the Bible, how can |
| Christians are often criticized for their "harsh | | | | any other religion offer a way to reach heaven? Any |
| intolerance" in arguing that we have the only truth, | | | | way to accomplish this would be putting an imperfect |
| yet in their accusation, those "liberals" are themselves | | | | man in front of a perfect God. That is a dichotomy, |
| showing a hypocritical intolerance of our position. | | | | a contradiction in itself. |
| The explanation should be sought from a different | | | | Hence the solution presented by God through Jesus |
| perspective. | | | | is the only viable way. We need to be clean to get |
| How do we Christians receive the statement of | | | | to him and we cannot do it on our own, so we need |
| Jesus in John 14:6 and How do the rest of the world | | | | a substitutionary lamb to open that door for us. |
| read this statement. If we look at the options I | | | | In the old covenant God presented the Jewish |
| would say let us bring forward our understanding of | | | | people a way to cover their sins before him through |
| God and His perfect righteousness and his perfect | | | | the shedding of the Blood of a lamb without blemish |
| Justice. | | | | before their sins could be forgiven. Lev 4; Hebrews |
| If God is perfect How could he welcome an | | | | 7:18. In the new covenant the Lord Jesus Christ, the |
| imperfect being into his presence, and the one truth | | | | only man without blemish, born of virgin, had to shed |
| we all seem to agree on, is that "nobody is perfect". | | | | his blood in order for our sins to be cleansed once |
| Jesus said to the young rich man when he inquired of | | | | and for all; Hebrews 7:23-28, so we could be clothed |
| the way to inherit eternal life; Why do you call me | | | | with the garment of His righteousness. |
| good? No one is good except God alone. Luke 18:19 | | | | Christianity offers the only known option to get to |
| The world agrees that we are all flawed, although | | | | God with a clean slate, through repentance and |
| many live in a self righteous unconsciousness, | | | | baptism for the forgiveness of sins by believing in the |
| wrapped up in the flag of their apparent goodness | | | | Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 2:38-39 |
| justified by works, they themselves live in a world of | | | | If anybody on this earth was able to present a way |
| lies, as that self righteous deception itself is | | | | that would allow a person to come to God without |
| surrounded by pride and arrogance; two capital sins. | | | | blemish, in a sinless form, then we would retract our |
| And if we pretend to agree that we are justified | | | | position, but because that is not humanly possible, |
| before God because of the good we do on this | | | | except through Jesus, because only the Lord Jesus |
| earth, then we are begging for the question, how | | | | Christ is the way the truth and the life, and no one |
| can a perfect God accept before him an imperfect | | | | can come to the father except through Him. John |
| person? This God would be anything but perfect, | | | | 14:6. We can categorically affirm. We stand on truth! |
| because perfect Justice implies perfect judgment. I | | | | Rev. Jose A. |
| for once would not want to serve a tarnished God, a | | | | |