I am the way, the truth, and the life (3)
I am the way, the truth … (John14:6),
“What is truth?” was Pilate’s question to Jesus in John 18:38. Interestingly, he did not wait for the answer. Not only great thinkers, but also the most ordinary of people, have asked the same question. Today, the fashion is to think that truth is no longer absolute, but open to interpretation depending upon how we feel or think. John 14:6 teaches us that truth is found in a Person – Jesus Christ. Jesus had told Pilate that He had to come into the world to bear witness to the truth and that everyone who is of the truth heard His voice. Truth has been described as the reality lying at the basis of an appearance – the essence of a matter. In Romans 15:8 we read about the “truth of God” and how God, in Christ, had fulfilled His promises. All the Old Testament promises and prophecies were centred on Christ. On the road to Emmaus, in Luke 24, Jesus went through the whole of the Old Testament expounding the things concerning Himself to the two disciples who were walking with Him. Later they spoke of their heart burning within them (Luke 24:32) as He opened the Scriptures, so they could understand. They were “of the truth and heard His voice” (John 18:37).
In Ephesians 4:21 we read that “the truth is in Jesus”. This means that truth in all its fullness and scope is embodied in Him. He was the perfect expression of the truth. The Devil is described as having “no truth in him” and as a “liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44, ESV). He had deceived man from the very beginning of creation, and the consequences of that deception were catastrophic. Down the ages, God’s truth had its effect in the lives of many of His people. However, despite all their faithfulness, failure was always present.
At the beginning of his Gospel, John describes the Lord Jesus as the Word – the manifestation of Deity: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). As the truth, all God’s promises are summed up in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. His words, actions and thoughts were all perfect. In this world, the Lord Jesus showed us the truth of salvation, healing the sick and broken-hearted and bringing forgiveness. At Calvary, He displayed in the most profound way possible the truth of God’s love. From the tomb, He showed the glorious truth of the resurrection. His ascension witnessed the reality of His glory. In glory, as the Head of the Church and our Great High Priest, He bears testimony to the truth of His constant love and care for His people. The One who has done all this will also return to bring us into the Father’s house, establish His millennium kingdom, and fulfil all the purposes of God, that God may be all in all (1 Corinthians 15:28).
The Lord Jesus has brought us to know Him as the truth. He prayed that the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, would be with us and in us (John 14:17). He glorifies the Lord Jesus and empowers us to live for Him. And the Lord Jesus also prayed to the Father, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth” (John 17:17), so that we would walk in holiness and witness to the One who is the way, the truth and the life.
