At the trial of Jesus, Pontius Pilate famously exclaimed, “What is truth?” Good question! Pilate lived in a world filled with so many competing claims to truth it would make your head spin. Sound familiar? The competing truth claims of our culture cause even the strongest Christian to wonder how to sort through it all. Where does this truth claim come from? Are we looking at an opinion, manipulation, partial truth or even absolute truth? Let me present a simple, memorable way to trace the truth. Stand on creation. Take a look at how God made our world to function in the first place. Before Adam and Eve fell into sin, God’s creation functioned exactly how he intended. Our sin didn’t change God’s mind on how things should work. It still works that way. It’s just not perfect any more. To stand on creation is to acknowledge that God’s created order is absolute truth.
Natural Law
The beautiful thing about standing on creation is that you don’t have to make it up! God simply made our world to function this way. Certain truths are obvious and are shared by the vast majority of cultures around the world. Killing is bad. Adultery is bad. Stealing is bad. Lying is bad. Parents should be obeyed. Sound familiar? That’s because when God carved out the 10 commandments, he was only restating what was already embedded into the fabric of our lives – right and wrong. We call it natural law. No one needs to teach it to you. It’s our default understanding of morality. Sin just happens to do a number on us and we willfully forget it. That’s why God had to write it down.
Compelled to Speak
We sinful creatures excel in the innovation of wrong. In other words, we’re really good at being really bad. As a Christian, where do we take our stand? Of course, we take our stand on creation and we teach the whole truth in our church and to our children. We must embody the truth we teach and infuse that truth into every situation in which we find ourselves. We build relationships and speak the truth in love. Some issues compel us to speak with one voice and stand on creation together, declaring God’s natural law for everyone to hear. When we speak absolute truth in love, those who justify their sin must either get more creative or fight back. Our message stays the same, whether they dance or fight. Abortions kill children. True marriage is only between a man and a woman. Truth is truth even if we don’t like it. We must stand on God’s creation.
Creation Embodied
All this might sound rigid and insensitive, that is until we look at Jesus. Think of Jesus as Creation Embodied. Jesus lived the perfect creation in the midst of the corrupted creation. Not only did Jesus stand for the truth, he lived the truth and IS the truth. He is the way, the truth and the life. When Jesus died, he destroyed the sin that corrupted his creation! As believers in Jesus we stand on creation because Jesus embodied creation. Jesus stood for the vulnerable of our society. He stood for marriage. He loved those who were unlovable. We are called to do the same. That’s what it means follow of Jesus. When people see us, they can trace the truth right back to Jesus!