On May 11, 2024

NOTES ON THE CORNERSTONE OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH: TRUTH, THE WHOLE TRUTH, AND NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH SO HELP US GOD! – (WITH VIDEO)

THE TEACHING

SCRIPTURE. “‘Sanctify them in the truth’ [set them apart for Your purposes, make them holy]; Your word is truth … ‘that they all may be one;’ just as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be one in Us, so that the world may believe [without any doubt] that You sent Me.”– JOHN 17:17, 21, AMP

KEY TERM: “TRUTH.” ‘Alétheia’ [ἀλήθεια]: “‘Verity; that which is not concealed; Conformity to the Final Reality of God and Nature;’ i.e., truth, but not merely truth as spoken; truth of idea, reality, sincerity, truth in the moral sphere, Divine Truth revealed to man, straightforwardness; as evidenced in relation to facts; ‘purity from all error; True Religion … Sincerity of mind and integrity of character, or a mode of life in harmony with Divine Truth.’”

QUOTATION. “If someone is able to show me that what I think or do is not right, I will happily change, ‘for I seek the truth, by which no one was ever truly harmed.’ It is the person who continues in his Self-Deception and Ignorance who is harmed.” ― MARCUS AURELIUS, Meditations, c. 160-180; edited

COMMENTARY. “‘Sanctify them through Thy truth.’—Truth was the sphere in which their sanctification was to take place. They had through Christ received the Father’s Word, which was truth, and had passed into a ‘New Region of Life,’ separate from the world (John 17:6-8; John 17:14-16). He has prayed that the Father would preserve them in this, and now He prays further that the Father would in this new region of life ‘set them apart’ for the work to which He had sent them (John 17:18).

‘The idea at the root of the word rendered “Sanctify,” is not holiness, but “Separation.’” It is opposed not to what is impure, but to what is common, and is constantly used in the Greek of the Old Testament for the consecration of persons and things to the service of God. Hence our Lord can use it of Himself in John 10:36, and in this context (John 17:19; these are the only places where it occurs in St. John’s writings). He was Himself ‘set apart and sent into the world.’ He has to send them [and us] into the world in the same way (John 17:18, and John 10:36), and prays that they may be in the same way consecrated for their work.

‘Thy word is truth!’—There is a strong emphasis in the pronoun, ’Thy’ Word is truth! This Word they had kept (John 17:6-8). It had become the Region of their life. They are to be the channels through which it is to pass to others (John 17:20). They are already in the higher sphere of truth, in which their entire consecration is to take place, when the gifts of the Holy Spirit shall descend upon them …

‘That they all may be one’—i.e., both ‘these’ (the Apostles) and ‘them also’ which shall believe on Me through their word’ (the whole body of believers in all times and places). He expresses in this grand thought of the unity of the whole Church the fulness of the purpose of His prayer.” – CHARLES ELLICOTT, A New and Old Testament Commentary for English Readers, 1878, 1897; edited

II. THE ORIGIN OF TRUTH

DK. So here’s the deal: I have been forever fascinated by, no, obsessed with this unique, universal concept: THE IDEA OF TRUTH. Even before I became a Christian in 1979, there has always been something down inside me about the existence of, the terrible and wonderful Concept of Truth that operates by its very nature as a ‘Uniter or a Divider.’

This Transcendent Conceptualization is what science would call a ‘Grand Covering Law’ that would explain everything in the Universe according to the same, Overarching Worldview. Such a Phenomenon does in fact exist, beloved. It is called by various names. The Biblical Canon. The Gospel. The Orthodox Doctrines of True Religion, or True Church of Jesus the Christ. It is, however, most commonly known across the entire World of Man as:

‘The Holy Bible.’

As a lifelong research scholar and professor of philosophy and social theory, I can tell you with some authority that whether one is an atheist, agnostic, or religionist, Man has been searching for the Truth as long as there have been human beings trapsing around Planet Earth trying to figure out how to effectively deal with all its pleasures and dangers. Therefore do we have thousands of countless millions of theoretical frameworks and thousands of religious sects.

But as I would thankfully discover beginning on October 30, 1979, I would increasingly discover this massive ‘Law of Everything’ in the personalized, Divine form of a single, unique Individual who goes by the name of JESUS CHRIST, also variously referred to as The Advocate, the Almighty, the Alpha and Omega, beloved Son of Yahweh, the Chief Shepherd, the Consolation of Israel, the Great High Priest, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Morning Star, the Prince of Life and Peace, the Root of David, Savior of Mankind, the Living Word. Or more simply:

The Truth! “Thomas said to Him, ‘Lord, we do not know where You are going; so how can we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the [only] Way [to God] and the [real] Truth and the [real] Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. If you had [really] known Me, you would also have known My Father. From now on you know Him, and have seen Him.’” – JOHN 14:5-7, AMP

THE PREINCARNATE CHRIST. Which brings me straight to a subject I have always wanted to investigate: ‘Where was Jesus before the Incarnation?’ I mean, since the Holy Trinity is immortal, just what was the Son of God doing before He manifested Himself to all humanity some 2,000 years ago?

I found a wonderful essay by CAMERON D. CONWAY, founder of Conway Christian Resources Inc. He holds a degree in Theology from Pacific Life Bible College. He is a Christian apologist, author, podcaster, and teacher with 20 years of experience disciplining believers.

I go once more to the BULLET POINT SUMMARY of his main points in addressing this fascinating matter in a piece from his Blog (ret. May 9, 2024; edited).

Where Was Jesus Before the Incarnation? For many this is an unpopular question to ask even in light of contemporary viewpoints on the Trinity. Typically, Christians believe that Jesus suddenly sprang into action in the Fall of 5 BC when He was born in a manger and became Immanuel (‘God with Us’) and was called Jesus (‘YHWH Saves’). However, a grander look at the Old Testament presents to us a different view of what we would call the Second Member of the Trinity. Not as one waiting in line to be incarnated but rather as an active and integral part of God’s interactions with His covenant people and Creation in general.

In the Beginning in the Garden of Eden. We encounter not an ethereal deity floating amidst The Garden in the “cool of the day,” but ‘One who walked beside His Creation.’ From this point on we have many instances of the supreme, omniscient, omnipotent God and Creator interacting with His Creation. How God goes about this however is a matter of debate: Do we see God as in all places at all times, or do we see Him as a Singularity at limited places at limited times, or in the language of the Trinity is it somehow ‘both?’

If We Follow Trinitarian Language. We would ascribe the First Member of the Trinity (the Father) as the One being all places at all times in the fullness of Eternity. We then could see the Second Member of the Trinity (the Son in New Testament language) as being a limited corporeal (viewable by natural eyes) version or ‘Expression of God’ which is able to coexist and interact with Creation while maintaining the fullness of His Divinity without unleashing His full presence and glory. It is still God yet a distinct Person who takes on the role of a Physical Mediator or point of contact between the Heavenly Realm and the natural realm and is distinct from the Holy Spirit who is a Spiritual/Ethereal point of contact between the two realms.

With the Christian, Jewish and Ugaritic Foundations Established. We can now begin to see how God through the Second Member of the Trinity which is equated with the Preincarnate Christ interacted with Creation at critical points in the development of the “Redemption Narrative.” Since God in this case could trust no one but Himself to accomplish the task through the guise of the Word of the LORD, ‘the Angel of the Lord’ or even the Name of the LORD. In the case of Abraham in Genesis 22, we encounter a blurring of the lines between YHWH and His Messenger. The Angel speaks to Abraham in verse 11, and so is distinguished from God. But immediately after doing so, he commends Abraham for not withholding Isaac “from Me.” There is a switch to the first person which, given that God Himself had told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac (Gen 22:1–2) seems to require seeing YHWH as the Speaker. Michael Heiser advocates strongly in favor that many (not all) instances of the Angel of YHWH point towards the visible Second Member of the Trinity who became Jesus of Nazareth.

Given These Manifestations of the Angel of the Lord. One begins to question the adherence of Israelites to their Monotheism. The use of ‘Elohim’ and the appearance of a Being who seems to share YHWH’s attributes may spark some theological confusion. Heiser comments: “One would assume in the context of a zealous Monotheistic Revolution that a term like Elohim (‘gods’) would be used with great care after the Biblical Period so as to avoid any hint of earlier, subsequently offensive, Polytheism. But this is precisely what does not happen.” Instead we see that this kind of language, interpretation and expansions by the Prophets continues unaltered, either in the language of the Angel of YHWH, theophanies and even in Divine Council language.

What we have witnessed from Michael Heiser. Is how if Jesus is Divine and Eternal then His role in the History of Creation did not begin in 5 BC. Rather we can argue that Jesus the Second Member of the Trinity has ‘always been the Point of Contact’ between YHWH and Creation at key moments in history. Appearing either as embodied YHWH, the Angel of YHWH (at times), the Name of the YHWH, or even the Word of YHWH (1 Samuel 3).

Through the Rabbinic History and Ugaritic Writings. We see the Foundations of a Co-Regency Model and type of Bi-Trintarian Fluidity which the early Christians recognized and used as proof of Jesus’s claims of Divinity. Heiser through his attention to the Intertestamental Theological Records and Ancient Near Eastern studies provides a compelling framework to recognize the Trinity in a greater way in the Old Testament without sacrificing Monotheism. Instead, Heiser has returned our attention to YHWH as the One seeking to reconnect with humanity through the Person of the Second Member of the Trinity – JESUS THE CHRIST.

RESOLUTION OF THE GODHEAD. “‘For I am the Lord, I do not change’ [but remain faithful to My covenant with you]; that is why you, O sons of Jacob, have not come to an end … Jesus Christ is [eternally changeless, always] the same yesterday and today and forever … Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above; it comes down from the Father of lights [the Creator and Sustainer of the heavens], in whom there is no variation [no rising or setting] or shadow cast by His turning [for He is perfect and never changes].” – MALACHI 3:6; HEBREWS 13:8; JAMES 1:17, AMP

Selah. Selah.

III. LAST THOUGHTS ON TRUTH, ORDER, & HOPE

When I was in graduate school, I came upon a concept that was so compelling, I have found that it goes to the very heart of everything from Science to Politics to Theology. That concept is “ENTROPY.”

“‘Entropy is a measure of disorder and affects all aspects of our daily lives.’ You can think of it as nature’s tax. Entropy naturally increases over time. Problems Arise: Your house gets messy, your garden gets weeds, and the heat from your coffee spreads out. Businesses fail, crimes and revolutions occur, and relationships end. ‘In the long run, everything naturally decays, and disorder always increases.’ Disorder is not a mistake; it is the default. Order is always artificial and temporary.”

THE LAWS OF DEATH AND LIFE. Somewhere in a place far, far away in a time long, long ago I read a quotation by astronomer, physicist and mathematician SIR ARTHUR EDDINGTON who argued that “Entropy is the Supreme Law of the Universe.” That is to say, the simplest of observations of virtually anything inarguably demonstrates, to put it bluntly: “Everything Dies.”

However, there is a Universal Antidote to this inexorable Law of Death, and that comes in the form of “INFORMATION.” If the right kind of Information is injected into the System, it not only arrests the Decay of that System, but stabilizes it and gives it what I will choose to call “Extension” or better, “LIFE.”

THE ORIGIN OF ORDER. “In the beginning God (Elohim) created [by forming from nothing] the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void or a waste and emptiness, and darkness was upon the face of the deep [primeval ocean that covered the unformed earth]. The Spirit of God was moving (hovering, brooding) over the face of the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. God saw that the light was good (pleasing, useful) and He affirmed and sustained it; and God separated the light [distinguishing it] from the darkness. And God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.” – GENESIS 1:1-5, AMP

In this massive, nearly incomprehensible Divine Act of God (‘Elohim,’ the Jewish name for The Godhead), ORDER was interposed upon CHAOS, thus bringing Light to the pervasive Darkness that was the ultimate expression of Primordial Entropy. Then we move straight to its Parallel in the New Testament and find this concerning Jesus Christ.

THE ORIGIN OF TRUTH. “In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself. He was [continually existing] in the beginning [co-eternally] with God. All things were made and came into existence through Him; and without Him not even one thing was made that has come into being. In Him was life [and the power to bestow life], and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines on in the darkness, and the darkness did not understand it or overpower it or appropriate it or absorb it [and is unreceptive to it].” – JOHN 1:1-5, AMP

Now then, what has all this to do with our subject matter, beloved, concerning the dynamic relationships that exist between Order, Truth and the American Church? Everything! Absolutely everything!

To bring all this home, I found a brilliant, rangy essay by Christian ethicist and political journalist PETER WEHNER, who appreciates the theological nuances that accompany today’s American Decline. Writing once again for The Atlantic in his piece entitled, “Trump’s Sinister Assault on Truth” (June 18, 2019), we find wisdom, truth and restored order in what he writes. As dramatically and tragically against what I shall now call:

THE NEW AMERICAN DISORDER. I will use Mr. Wehner’s insights for my Conclusions about the Place of Truth in today’s American Culture and Church – or perhaps more accurately, the Misplacing of Truth in America today. And where it has led us. BULLET POINTS FOLLOW.

INTRODUCTION. “Like many writers I know, I’ve had a passion for words for almost as long as I can remember. I’ve admired those who use words well, who have shaped my imagination and given voice to things I wanted to express but didn’t feel like I adequately could. That is why they have to be protected against assault and degradation. At an early age I recognized their power to convey deep emotions and longings, knowledge and understanding, hopes and fears. ‘Words can be polluted even more dramatically and drastically than rivers and land and sea,’ one of my favorite writers, MALCOLM MUGGERIDGE, once wrote. ‘Their misuse is our undoing.’”

TRUTH. “Eventually, we all come to understand that words are the means by which we teach and inspire, defend truth, and seek justice. (Those of us of the Christian Faith don’t consider it an accident that the first sentence in the Gospel of John is, ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God’). So words have extraordinary power—in our daily lives most of all, but in politics as well.”

POLITICS. “Democracy requires that we honor the culture of words. The very idea of Democracy is based on the hope that fellow citizens can reason together and find a system for adjudicating differences and solving problems—all of which assumes there is a shared commitment to the integrity of our public words. ‘If you believe words can ennoble, you must also believe they can debase.’ If they can elevate the human spirit, they can also pull it down. And when words are weaponized by our political leaders and used to paint all opponents as inherently evil, stupid, or weak, then democracy’s foundations are put in peril. ‘Which brings us to the dismal, demoralizing Donald Trump Era.’”

TRUMP. “In a 2018 speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Trump said, ‘And just remember: What you’re seeing and what you’re reading is not what’s happening.’ In other words, who are you going to believe—me or your lyin’ eyes? ‘The man lies all the time, writes THOMAS WELLS, an attorney Trump once hired. In BOB WOODWARD’S book Fear, Trump’s former personal lawyer JOHN DOWD describes the president as ‘a f******” liar,’ telling Trump he would end up in an ‘orange jump suit’ if he testified to Special Counsel Robert Mueller. And the former White House aide ANTHONY SCARAMUCCI, when asked whether he considers Trump a liar, admitted, ‘Okay, well we both know that he’s telling lies. So if you want me to say he’s a liar, I’m happy to say he’s a liar.’ (In a later interview Scaramucci put it this way: ‘He’s an intentional liar. It’s very different from just being a liar-liar’).”

IMPACT. ‘Trump is not simply a serial liar; he is attempting to murder the very idea of truth, which is even worse.’ ‘The point of modern propaganda isn’t only to misinform or push an agenda,’ according to the Russian dissident and former world chess champion GARRY KASPAROV. ‘[Trump’s goal] is to exhaust your critical thinking, to annihilate truth.’”

CODA. Do you see the immensity of what we are facing, beloved, and why I rail at Pastors and Churches that participate in what shall likely prove to be the Greatest Crime against God’s Truth in all of history?

Therefore I continue to shout from the highest parapets: “Where are the Shepherds, O Lord?”

Our only Hope. Is to rediscover the magnificent Power and Unassailable Order that Jesus Christ brings to an Individual life and the life of a Nation. We shall not find it in a wretched Dictator, nor in a softened Gospel. Only in The Eternal Flame named Jesus Christ, beloved.

Either that, either Him, or ‘The Darkness.’ Selah.

YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/fAlQ8i333ew