A Good Word – ἀλήθεια (Truth)

"Truth" is increasingly perceived as a dirty word in the modern Western world. We can speak of "preferences" or "viewpoints", but truth is an outmoded concept for many and not to be spoken in polite company. But the Bible tells us that truth (Hebrew אמת; Greek ἀλήθεια) originates with the true God, the creator who made the world by his wisdom and wants his creatures to know him intimately and live in his ways (Genesis 1:1; Proverbs 8:22-31). He sent his Son to earth as the embodiment of that truth (John 1:14; 14:6) and gave his people the Holy Spirit to guide them in understanding and walking in truth (John 14:17; 16:13). By his Spirit he moved his prophets and apostles to write the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments; He makes his truth available to us through the generations (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21). To know what is real and unshakable about our nature and the wider world, we can and must look to God.

As college students in the late 1960s, my wife and I witnessed firsthand the explosion of the drug culture, the sexual revolution, the political riots, and the assassinations of leaders. Thankfully, we chose to be countercultural by committing to live according to God’s truth revealed in Scripture instead of all the "new truths" offered to our generation. Such choices face us all today in other forms, but God’s true way proves itself over and over.

Human ideas of truth—however well-intended—sometimes devolve into arrogant intellectualism, sterile skepticism, or a pretext for harshly asserting our authority over others. Instead of drawing seekers of truth closer, such distortions push people away or make them converts with the same negative traits. But God’s truth is liberating, life-giving, and leads to true human flourishing in submission to him alone (John 4:23-24; 8:32; 17:17; 2 Timothy 1:10). As James 3:17 says, God’s "wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, accommodating, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and not hypocritical" (NET). This truth comes to us in the gospel, the message of truth, as revealed in the Scripture and preached by God’s servants (Colossians 1:5-6; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; James 1:18). We as followers—and our churches—must prove faithful to that true message (1 Timothy 3:15; 2 Timothy 2:2, 15). We can unashamedly preach and teach God’s truth and hold to it firmly. But while doing so, we must also show others the love and compassion God has shown us (Galatians 6:1; Ephesians 4:15; Colossians 4:6).

This is why the focus at DTS on "teaching truth and loving well" is so important. Humbly searching the Scriptures and carefully maintaining sound doctrine about God’s character and his saving work in Christ is foundational to Christian service and witness. And this firm commitment to God’s truth leads us to care for other people deeply and help them to know the true God personally.