Jesus and the Truth of Christmas

The Text in Context

Bob Utley, "John 18" from the series The Beloved Disciple's Memoirs and Letters: The Gospel of John; I, II, and III John.

http://bit.ly/2iDaPeW

Raphael, The School of Athens, 1509 (detail). Fresco, Apostolic Palace, Rome.

Truth, Goodness, and Beauty— The Three Transcendentals

Excerpt from Peter Kreeft’s essay, “Lewis’s Philosophy of Truth, Goodness, and Beauty,” published by IVP Academic; Print on Demand edition, June 15, 2008.

http://bit.ly/2kgh09d

Michaelangelo, The Creation of Adam, 1508-1512. Fresco, Sistine Chapel, The Vatican.

Recovering Goodness, Beauty, and Truth

Andrew Fellows, "Recovering Goodness, Beauty, and Truth" (Excerpts from a Lecture) L'Abri Papers #AF02

http://bit.ly/2zJDvGr

Gerard van Honthorst, Adoration of the Shepherds (1622). Oil on canvas, Wallraf-Richartz Museum, Cologne

John 18:37 NIV

James Tissot, Jesus Before Pilate: First Interview. Brooklyn Museum.

Pontius Pilate

Pontius Pilate was the fifth prefect of the Roman province of Judaea from AD 26–36. He served under Emperor Tiberius, and is best known today for the trial and crucifixion of Jesus. Wikipedia article.

http://bit.ly/2Akv8Em

Living as a Christian in a Post-Truth World

Karen Swallow, "Living as a Christian in a Post-truth World" Think Christian website, December 13, 2016.

http://bit.ly/2AOU6wu

Postmodernism

Postmodernism describes a broad movement that developed in the mid- to late 20th century across philosophy, the arts, architecture and criticism which marked a departure from modernism… Postmodernism is typically defined by an attitude of skepticism, irony or rejection toward grand narratives, ideologies and various tenets of universalism, including objective notions of reason, human nature, social progress, moral universalism, absolute truth, and objective reality. Wikipedia article.

http://bit.ly/28KJYCY

The Sokol Hoax

The Sokal affair was a scholarly publishing hoax perpetrated by Alan Sokal, a physics professor at New York University and University College London. In 1996, Sokal submitted an article to Social Text, an academic journal of postmoderncultural studies. The submission was an experiment to test the journal's intellectual rigor and, specifically, to investigate whether "a leading North American journal of cultural studies… [would] publish an article liberally salted with nonsense if (a) it sounded good and (b) it flattered the editors' ideological preconceptions". Wikipedia article.

http://bit.ly/2iFaSa7

Gravity: It's not a social construct; it's a real thing.

1. Truth is…

1. Truth is objective— not just a private preference or subjective opinion.

John 18:37 NIV

What Does the Bible Say About Truth?

"What Does the Bible Say About Truth: 100 Bible Verses About Truth," Open Bible.

http://bit.ly/2to6Q63

C.S. Lewis on Truth

Williams, Donald T., "A Tryst with the Transcendentals: C.S. Lewis on Beauty, Truth, and Goodness – Part II: Truth," Inklings Forever, 8 (2012).

http://bit.ly/2BGzHqK

Students Have 'Dismaying' Inability To Identify Fake News

Results from a study by Stanford researchers that evaluated students' ability to assess information sources. —Camila Domonoske, "Students Have 'Dismaying' Inability To Tell Fake News From Real, Study Finds" The Two Way: Breaking News From NPR, November 23, 2016.

http://n.pr/2AJV1ym

Christmas and the Cause of Truth

John Piper, "Christmas and the Cause of Truth," Desiring God, December 21, 1980.

http://bit.ly/2zHzpOY

Colossians 1:25-26 NIV

For Reflection/Discussion: What does the 2016 Oxford English Dictionary Word of the Year "post-truth" mean? Is there such a thing as Absolute Truth or is truth relative? Why is the sentence "There is no such thing as Absolute Truth" a self-refuting statement? How do you go about determining whether something is true or not? If you were a victim of "fake news" how would you know it? Why would you be tempted to deny it?

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2. The Truth is…

2. The Truth is Personal.

John 14:6 NIV

Truth

Edgar V. McKnight, "Truth" Holman Bible Dictionary, published by Broadman & Holman, 1991.

http://bit.ly/2kiW80J

For Reflection/Discussion: What does it mean to say that the Truth is Personal? Is it a personal opinion? Or has Truth come to us as a Person? The Greek word for truth— alethia— means not concealed, revealed, or disclosed.Why does the Truth about God have to be revealed to us? In what ways does God reveal Who He is to us? What, if anything, can we know about God apart from what He reveals to us?

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3. The Truth has…

3. The Truth has consequences

God's Truth exposes…

God's Truth exposes untruth.

Amos 7:7-8 NIV

God's Truth brings…

God's Truth brings us freedom.

John 8:31-32 NIV

Matthew 7:24 NIV

A commitment to the Truth will…

A commitment to the Truth will lead to salvation.

2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 NIV

God's Truth should lead…

God's Truth should lead to godly living.

1 John 1:6 NIV

Ephesians 4:15 NIV

1 Corinthians 13:6 NIV

Ephesians 6:14-15 NIV

1 Timothy 3:14-15 NIV

John 18:37 NIV

For Reflection/Discussion: In what way(s) is Truth a "formidable force" in the world? What does the Truth do, and how does the Truth impact people who follow Jesus Christ? What is our responsibility as Christians to search out, trust in, announce, share, demonstrate, and live out the Truth found in Jesus Christ?

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Today's Moment Of Truth

7 Days

John 18:37 NIV