AM I HONEST ABOUT SEEKING THE TRUTH?

Article #75 by Jennifer on Monday, March 02, 2009 at 09:19 PM

Introduction
A. Text: Luke 8:15.
B. Generally, we wish correct answers to the questions we ask - and the more important the question, the more we would like to feel we are on track in getting the right answer.
C. Could correct answers be anywhere more critical than with respect to the question of religion?
D. The claims of Jesus Christ are:
1. A right relationship to the Creator should be our ultimate concern - Matthew 16:26.
2. Such a relationship is possible only through Jesus Himself - John 14:6.
E. When we are confronted with the claims of Jesus of Nazareth, we have a specific set of questions that we ought to want to have answered with nothing less than the full truth.

I. THE IMPORTANCE OF HONESTLY INQUIRING ABOUT THE TRUTH
A. Getting the right answers to the questions of religion, and of the gospel of Jesus Christ in particular, is not a “mechanical” process.
B. We cannot assume the truth is going to yield itself up automatically to anyone who pushes the right logical buttons, regardless of what his character or his intentions might be.
C. To the contrary, this happens to be a subject in which getting the right answers depends largely on:
1. Whether we are a certain kind of person.
2. Whether we are asking for a certain kind of reason.
D. Bluntly: Whether we are able to get at the truth about Jesus Christ and His church depends on what we intend to do with the truth.
E. Before we can be in a position to ask questions about the thing called Christianity, there is a more fundamental question we are required to ask about ourselves: Are we really honest inquirers who intend to do what is right about the truth, whatever it may turn out to be?
1. Jesus went beyond merely saying we must be “intellectually honest” enough to weigh the evidence objectively.
2. While the Bible certainly does talk about “loving” the truth, Jesus explained exactly what that means (and how essential it is) in John 7:17.
3. To “love” the truth is to DO the truth!
4. If we do not have the integrity and honesty to do what we know we ought to about the right answers we say we are looking for, then we may not even recognize those right answers when we come across them.
F. God will actually lead those away from the truth who are not honestly looking to obey it - 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12.
G. The armchair religionist is bound to get tangled up, often on even the fundamentals of his subject - no matter how diligent and scholarly his pursuits, his investigations will be skewed by the fact that he is merely looking for curiosities to “think” about. Cf. 2 Timothy 3:7.
H. But if we wait only for a reasonable assurance that the truth is really the truth before we are ready to render obedience to it, then we are going to get the information we are seeking.

II. HOW CAN WE KNOW WHETHER WE ARE HONEST OR NOT?
A. It is very important, then, that we be honest about the truth - the trouble is, we are often not willing to be honest about whether we are honest!
B. As a person claiming to want the truth about the questions of religion, how can I know whether I am honest or not? If I am not willing to search for, accept, and act on the truth about myself, would I do any better about other truths?
1. One good place to begin testing my own honesty is asking: What am I doing about the religious truth I already possess?
a. The person deserves no additional light that is wasting what he presently has.
b. If I am studiouly avoiding dealing with obligations that have been in plain view for quite some time, their is little point in debating the finer points of the law.
2. Then, am I capable of being persuaded, or is my mind already “made up”?
a. “Easy to be entreated” (James 3:17 KJV).
b.Cf. “Open to reason” (RSV), “ready to be convinced” (Knox), “willing to yield” (NKJV).
3. Do I tend to believe that the truth is whatever I want it to be?
4. Am I fair-minded, just, impartial, etc? Cf. Acts 17:11.
5. Am I a person who decides questions on the basis of evidence, or am I guided by prejudices and preconceptions?
6. How careful am I in approaching weighty issues? Cf. 2 Timothy 2:15; 2 Peter 3:16.
7. How hard am I willing to dig for truth? Cf Proverbs 2:4,5; 1 Timothy 4:15.
8. Do I harbor any reservations about how far I would be willing to go in accepting the implications and consequences of the truth? “Beware of the inclination to dictate to God as to what you will allow to happen if you obey Him” (Oswald Chambers).
C. These kinds of questions ought to tell us some significant things about the level of honesty at which we approach the issues of life.

Conclusion
A. Jesus taught that His word germinates in the “noble (honest) and good heart” (Luke 8:15) deciding to have just that sort of heart has got to be the beginning point for any serious quest for truth.
B. It is the truth that will make us “free” (John 8:32) - but the truth is a maiden who will not be wooed by just anybody.
c. Anything less on our part than a bona fide commitment to be faithful to truth - whatever that may entail, at whatever cost - and truth will disguise herself from us.
D. It is an honestly obedient heart that gives us a chance to make progress - John 7:17. Without it, we are as lost intellectually as we are spiritually.
E. If we are serious about getting the right answers to all the issues that pertain to life’s deepest meaning, we can ill afford to have anything other than the attitude of the Psalmist: “Show me Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me” (Psalm 25:4-5).
~Steve Stilwill