It is often said that there is no such thing as absolute truth. There is no truth that applies universally to all of us. Truth is an individual thing. Each person has their own truth. Each person must pursue and discover their own truth.
On the surface this may sound attractive but there is a problem with this kind of reasoning. It has a fatal flaw. To say there is no absolute truth, is to make an absolute statement, thus wiping out the very statement itself.
But let’s carry it further. If there really is no truth that applies universally to all of us, then it would be impossible to judge anyone for their behavior. Hitler, for example, who sought to exterminate an entire race of people, would be un-judge-able by a system based on absolutely no absolutes. Hitler’s “truth” led him to seek the destruction of the Jewish people. We appeal to a higher truth, a super truth, to condemn Hitler’s actions, and rightly so.
On a more personal level, in a society with absolutely no absolutes, a man gunning down your mother, for example, would be free to do it again and again. That kind of society would have no basis for judging the murderer.
Someone might say, “But people choose to do the right thing for the ‘good of humanity.’” I would have to respond with the questions: What is “right” and what is “wrong”? What is “good for humanity” verses “bad for humanity”? How will these things be determined? What about the people, and there will always be some, who choose not to follow the credo the rest of us follow? What authority would we have, without any absolutes, to judge these people?
On the surface, we may find the concept of no absolutes attractive. But few of us are prepared to live with the real consequences of such a system. What we really want is the freedom to live however we want to individually, without consequence or interference from anyone else. Unfortunately, in that kind of world only one individual would really be able to live that way. Everyone else would be interfered with in some way and would have to subjugate to the one with total freedom.
If it is possible for only one to have complete freedom, who should it be? You? Me? Someone else? I think we would want someone who is completely trustworthy, fair, wise, loving, and selfless. I don’t know of any mere mortals that would fit that description. The only one that completely satisfies all the criteria to possess complete freedom is God. As a result, God is the only one who can establish absolute truth.
Jesus Christ said about himself, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). What did he mean when he said he was the truth? Jesus embodies the truth. Jesus represents the truth. Jesus personifies the truth. Jesus defends the truth. Jesus stands for the truth. Jesus tells the truth. There is no falsehood in him.
He is the most real and absolute thing you will ever encounter. He is God in human form. Come to Jesus Christ and you will begin to know and understand the truth that can set you free (John 8:31-32).