The other day I heard a rather chilling radio interview. Two people were talking about how a lot of false information is being deliberately created, posted, and re-tweeted. One person said–and I’m paraphrasing–“What’s really dangerous is if people just assume that nothing they hear is true.” In other words, if the facts are so hard to come by, don’t put your faith in anything you read online–or hear on the media.
See how chilling this is? Every day we make decisions based on what we think is true. That traffic light just turned green, so I’m accelerating through the intersection, because I’ve found it’s true that the lights at right-angles are red. I’m going to give Amazon my credit card number, because I’m pretty certain it’s true that they won’t raid my checking account when I’m not looking.
But if we abandon trust based on experience, on trust that is continually re-evaluated, where are we? Can you think of a more dangerous idea, especially about matters of faith? Pilate may have been a victim of “distrust overload” when he cynically asked Jesus, “What is truth?” (John 18:38)
Jesus had several things to say about truth. In the verses just before Pilate’s comment, the Savior indicated that there was such a thing as truth, and that He had come to bear witness to it. Then He said, “Everyone who is of the truth hears My [Jesus’] voice.” So not only is there such a thing as truth, but there are people who are “of the truth”–in other words people whose hearts incline toward the truth and are hungry for it. And four chapters earlier, in John 14:6, He told Doubting Thomas “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
Feeling a bit of “distrust overload”? Move forward, stay calm, and in the words of Ronald Reagan, “trust but verify.” And when it comes to matters of faith, remember another of Jesus’ promises, this one about the Holy Spirit, who would arrive more powerfully than ever after Jesus’ ascension. “When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth.” (John 16:13)