“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

John 8:32

According to The Flat Earth Society, the earth is not round. Well, obviously, it’s flat. They even have the math equations and Bible verses to prove it.

Flatists, as they are called, have found reasons to believe the earth is flat.

Others might base truth on tradition.

We’ve all read about the three wise men, right?

Oops … the Bible never mentions how many wise men brought gifts to Jesus.

And we all know that Adam and Eve sinned by eating the apple.

Well, not exactly. They ate the forbidden fruit, but no where does the Bible identify the fruit as an apple.

A 2018 Barna report found that 56% of Americans don’t believe that any one religious text has a monopoly on truth. Instead, they see them as different expressions of the same spiritual message.

The same report found that 44% identify truth with feelings.

Still others might determine what’s true based on their experiences or emotions.

We can’t base truth on experience, emotion, reason, tradition or even general revelation. As Christians, we must base truth solely on scripture.

As it says in John 14:6, Jesus is Truth.

In today’s era of fake news and moral relativism, we can have a difficult time discerning truth if we don’t refresh our minds with God’s Word daily.

We can start to believe the lies. They can sound so reasonable.

We read stories, and one person’s experience becomes truth for everyone.

We can start to see abortion as healthcare.

We might not be able to see the difference in worshiping earth as opposed to caring for God’s creation.

We can confuse people selling their possessions to help the poor in Acts 2:45-47 with communism.

We may miss the significance of God’s design of marriage between a man and a woman.

Lord, help us to discern the truth and not let the lies of the culture pervade our thinking. Help us to teach our children and grandchildren these truths.

Stacy