TITLE: How to Avoid Deception
• TOPIC: The Easy Burden of Truth
• TEXT: John 8:31-36
• THEME: In following Christ we have the
source of eternal truth.
People Smarter than me.
People Smarter than me.
• Dave Ross
People Smarter than me.
• Dave Ross
• John Storkel
People Smarter than me.
• Dave Ross
• John Storkel
• John Kohlenberger III
People Smarter than me.
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Dave Ross
John Storkel
John Kohlenberger III
Almost Everyone Else
Michel Horton
“We live in a world that assumes reason is
unbiased, when in fact our reason itself is
enslaved to naturalism: a denial of the world's
dependence on God for its creation and
preservation, much less redemption. Any valid
argument or evidence that suggests otherwise
must have a naturalistic explanation, even if
that explanation is the least reasonable
Michel Horton
To be a rational person is to be a practical
atheist, whatever spiritual hobbies one takes
up on the weekends. Reason rests on public
facts; faith, on private values. When it comes
to faith, you can believe whatever you want,
as long as you don't think it's true for
everyone else. You can have faith in whatever
makes you happy, as long as you don't
presume to evaluate my faith.”
Key Questions
• How do we know what really matters in life
and who can we trust to tell us to the truth
about it?” How smart must a person be
before we can trust them on life issues?
Key Questions
• How do we know what really matters in life
and who can we trust to tell us to the truth
about it?” How smart must a person be
before we can trust them on life issues?
• The Christian answer is very clear- we can
only know the ultimate truth trough Jesusno one else is smart enough.
What is the benefit of being
faithful to the teachings of Jesus?
I. You are a disciple of Christ.
John 8:31-32
To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said,
“If you hold to my teaching, you are really my
disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth,
and the truth will set you free.”
I. You are a disciple of Christ.
A. A disciple was a learner.
I. You are a disciple of Christ.
A. A disciple was a learner.
B. A disciple took on the identity of his master
John 15: 4-7
“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No
branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain
in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless
you remain in me… 5 “I am the vine; you are
the branches. If you remain in me and I in
you, you will bear much fruit…7 If you
remain in me and my words remain in you,
ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for
you.”
What is the benefit of being
faithful to the teachings of Jesus?
II. You will know the truth.
John 8:31-32
To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said,
“If you hold to my teaching, you are really my
disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth,
and the truth will set you free.”
Truth is that which is real
A magician is skilled at twisting our
perceptions so that we do not see that which is
really true it only appears to be true. It is
part of the fun.
There are times when deception is
not fun.
• Wrong medical diagnosis
There are times when deception is
not fun.
• Wrong medical diagnosis
• A false guarantee on a wristwatch.
There are times when deception is
not fun.
• Wrong medical diagnosis
• A false guarantee on a wristwatch.
• We can be fooled --and fooled often
II. You will know the truth.
A. Jesus is the source of all Truth.
Who determines what is real?
• The question of authority has a lot to do
with determining reality.
Who determines what is real?
• The question of authority has a lot to do
with determining reality.
• If a wild looking man in tattered clothing
with drool chasing down his chin were to
leap at us with his claims of truth we
probably would not believe him.
Who determines what is real?
• The question of authority has a lot to do with
determining reality.
• If a wild looking man in tattered clothing with
drool chasing down his chin were to leap at us
with his claims of truth we probably would not
believe him.
• If a sophisticated gentleman in a white lab coat
came out with his claims of truth, backed by a
Harvard medical degree, we might tend to lean
toward his view of reality.
Who determines what is real?
• The question of authority has a lot to do with
determining reality.
• If a wild looking man in tattered clothing with
drool chasing down his chin were to leap at us
with his claims of truth we probably would not
believe him.
• If a sophisticated gentleman in a white lab coat
came out with his claims of truth, backed by a
Harvard medical degree, we might tend to lean
toward his view of reality.
• Authority matters in the quest for truth.
John 1:1-4,
“1 In the beginning the Word already existed.
The Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
2 He existed in the beginning with God.
3 God created everything through him,
and nothing was created except through him.
4 The Word gave life to everything that was
created,
and his life brought light to everyone.”
Leroy Garrett
When Jesus said, “You shall know the truth and
the truth shall make you free” he was referring to
his own entrance into history and into the lives
of his disciples. He and only he is the truth.
When one knows that truth, when he knows
Jesus, he is free, not until.
Leroy Garrett
It doesn’t matter how full his head may be of the
many truths of Scripture or how faithfully he
interprets all the doctrine or knowledge. If his
heart is empty of the truth, which is the Person of
Jesus dwelling in our hearts through faith, then
all else is vain.
I. You will know the truth.
A. Jesus is the source of all Truth.
B. All Truth is God’s Truth.
When a supposed conflict about
truth claims exist between
naturalism and the Bible
When a supposed conflict about
truth claims exist between
naturalism and the Bible
1. The “facts” are wrong.
When a supposed conflict about
truth claims exist between
naturalism and the Bible
1. The “facts” are wrong.
2. The interpretations of the facts are so
biased by the naturalistic or philosophical
underpinnings that they are misleading.
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When a supposed conflict about
truth claims exist between
naturalism and the Bible
1. The “facts” are wrong.
2. The interpretations of the facts are so
biased by the naturalistic or philosophical
underpinnings that they are misleading.
3. Someone has misunderstood or
misinterpreted the scriptures.
A. You will know the truth.
A. Jesus is the source of all Truth.
B. All Truth is God’s Truth
C. Ultimate Truth can only be known through
Jesus.
Two Spheres of Stephen J Gould
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Science
Deals with Facts
Objective
Deals with the physical
(only what can be tested or
observed).
Rational
Example: Laws of Gravity
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Religion
Deals with Faith
Subjective
Deals with metaphyscial
(beyond what can be tested
or observed).
Irrational
Example: Santa Claus
The Biblical Position
Robert Jastrow
“At this moment it seems as though science
will never be able to raise the curtain on the
mystery of creation. For the scientist who has
lived by his faith in the power of reason, the
story ends like a bad dream. He has scaled the
mountains of ignorance; he is about to
conquer the highest peak; as he pulls himself
over the final rock, he is greeted by a band of
theologians who have been sitting there for
centuries.”
What is the benefit of being
faithful to the teachings of Jesus?
III. The Truth will set you free.
John 8:32-36
32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will
set you free.”
33 They answered him, “We are Abraham’s
descendants and have never been slaves of anyone.
How can you say that we shall be set free?”
34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone
who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no
permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to
it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be
free indeed.
John 14:6-7
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No
one comes to the Father except through me. 7
If you really knew me, you would know my
Father as well. From now on, you do know
him and have seen him.”
I.
The Truth will set you free.
A. Everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
III. The Truth will set you free.
A. Everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
B. A slave has no permanent place in the
family.
John 1:11-12
“11 He came to that which was his own, but
his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who
did receive him, to those who believed in his
name, he gave the right to become children of
God.”
I. The Truth will set you free.
A. Everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
B. A slave has no permanent place in the
family.
C. As His disciples Jesus accepts us as sons.
The problem for devout Jews in
Jesus' day wasn't naturalism but
Jesus' assumption of the titles,
works, and identity of God. To
them, this was blasphemy.
Gentiles had a different problem with
Jesus. Their world was shaped by Plato
and the Stoics. In their culture, the
Logos (the Word) was the rational
principle that pervaded all reality; by
rational contemplation, one could
ascend from particulars of the
everyday "lower world" to the "upper
world" of universal ideas.
APPLICATION:
1. Regarding ultimate reality avoid following
men, no matter how smart, follow Jesus.
Trust me as pastor only to the degree to which
I direct you to Jesus and His Word. I am not
smart enough to be a source of truth but I can
direct you to the source of all truth.
APPLICATION:
2. Understand the value but also the
limitations of science and philosophy.
APPLICATION:
3. Value your freedom in Jesus. Realize
people who do not follow Christ are not truly
free. They are enslaved to their spiritual
blindness, pride, intellectual limitations and
ignorance.
Professor Wengert
"By using words like should and ought, you
betray your alleged conviction that truth is
relative. If you were a true relativist, you
would realize that there is no external
standard to which my grading should
conform. If my truth and my ethic lead me to
an alternate grading system that you deem
inappropriate, c'est la vie! I will grade
however I wish."