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'Christ in You...'

    by Dale Krebbs

The Unanswered Question
Date Posted: November 20, 2022

“Then Pilate said, ‘So you are a king!’ Jesus replied, ‘You say that I am a king. For this reason I was born, and for this reason I came into the world - to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.' Pilate asked, ‘What is truth?” - John 18:37

To the world, truth is either scientific, or something is true only if the world accepts the evidence as true. This is the reason many do not accept the Bible as a basis for truth. Perhaps Jesus knew that Pilate was the consummate "postmodernist" of his time. He certainly would not have accepted Jesus’ pre-emptive answer, "I am the Truth..."! Postmodernism believes that "truth" in any context is whatever the "I" makes it as of this moment. It is pure personal subjectivism. Pilate asked "what is truth"- not WHO is truth. Asking what is truth is a dead end, and leads to circular reasoning. The world is drowning in a sea of questions as to what truth IS. It is asking the right question but headed in the wrong direction. It is only in the "who" of truth that truth is found. All else is only futility (Ecclesiastes 1:1-2).

When it comes to what (or who) is truth or true - excuse the word play - another question arises: what is PROOF - and where is it? Something can be undeniably true, and not considered as truth for proof. For instance, believing the Bible as proving that God exists (which it does), will not convince some that it is proof that God exists, if they do not accept it as proof, even though they believe the Bible is true. The truth is not proof, as far as they are concerned, even if it is true. Pilate did not recognize the Truth standing before him - he did not consider Jesus as proof of truth.

This leads to the difficulty for many of accepting the Bible as the word of God, and as truth. The Bible witnesses that it is the truth ("your word is truth"), and Jesus has stated that He is "the way, the TRUTH, and the life", and that His words are life. Therefore, it is impossible to separate Jesus, the Word of God, the Bible, and the Truth. There cannot be one without the others. The truth that is the Bible, the Word of God, the truth that Jesus is the Truth, are all summed up in Jesus Christ! Everything that is true, everything that is proof, is in Jesus Christ. But for the answer to Pilate's question, Jesus must have known that the answer would not constitute proof to him. Jesus silence speaks volumes! There must be another element in the answer to his question - a master key to the proof of truth.

“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13).

Outside of the office and power of the Holy Spirit, there is no access to truth - even truth in its broadest sense. The meaning and reality behind even seemingly self evident facts, cannot be assessed correctly without the Spirit of truth. I knew a man who purportedly could quote the entire Bible verbatim (I never heard him do so). There are many who know about truth. But it is not convincing truth for proof - to them. This is the reason there is so much confusion as to the real meaning (“truth”) about anything that exists - mankind, in both his ethical and ethereal entity as well as his physical existence, the earth, the universe, and all that relates thereto. The only way to the true meaning of anything is through the Truth. The Holy Spirit will convict and convince as He bears witness to Jesus, the Truth (John 15:16), and as He works through the word of God, the Bible (John 17:17,19; Luke 24:27,32,45). Even the hallowed concept of freedom is utterly dependent upon truth - the Truth (John 8:32-36)! Specifically Jesus was speaking to the Jews concerning spiritual freedom. Throughout all the history of man, his freedom of body, mind and soul coincides precisely with the degree of acknowledgement and adherence to the truth of God, from God, and by God whether he realized it or not. The biblical history of Israel is an object lesson on this truth. It was so for all nations. It has been so for the ones created in God’s own image. It will always be so.

So the Holy Spirit, who is the Spirit of truth as well as Jesus, must lead one to truth, convict that one that the truth is proof, and in so doing that person is convicted by the Truth of his condition in God's sight. Being convicted by the Holy Spirit through God’s Word sometimes is very traumatic. One man pleaded with Jesus in prayer over and over to show him what he really looked like to Him.The answer came. While on his knees behind his desk, he began to vomit uncontrollably, over and over. When conviction occurs, however God must do it, another world will begin to dawn. It is a new world - of truth. All things will become new (2 Corinthians 5:17-19). Now, the darkness will begin to disappear. Light - the light of Truth - will grow ever brighter and brighter (2 Peter 1:19-21). The Truth has now become Proof.

Perhaps we will never know for sure, before that day dawns, why Pilate asked, or why Jesus did not answer...

If you ask Jesus, “what is truth”, would He answer you?...

"Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name. When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation." - Psalm 91:14-16

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Biography Information:
Dale Krebbs served as an Elder, preaching, counseling, and conducting Bible studies for over 25 years in Texas, California, and Arizona. He is now retired, lives in Arizona, and continues the study and research of Gods Word.