Lent Day 31: What is Truth? (John 18:33-38)
Lent Day 31
What is Truth?
John 18:33-38
What is Truth?
John 18:33-38
35b "... Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?"
36a Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world...
37 Then Pilate asked him, "So you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me."
38 "What is truth?" Pilate asked.
◇ According to the records, during Passover, hundreds of thousands gather in Jerusalem to observe the festival. It is a chaotic and unsettled time when anything could happen. The Roman governorship, in charge of maintaining order in Jerusalem, would likely be on high alert. Pilate, the man in charge, might have been on emergency duty. It was during this time that the Jewish leaders brought Jesus to him, accusing him and demanding his execution.
In the encounter between Jesus and Pilate, Pilate asks four questions. The first is whether Jesus is the king of the Jews. The second is what Jesus has done. The third is whether he is a king. The fourth is what truth is. Jesus replies, "My kingdom is not of this world," indicating that he came into this world to testify to the truth, and that everyone who belongs to the truth listens to him. Through these answers, Jesus clarifies that he is not a king of the Jews but a king of a different realm, one who has come to convey the truth. Jesus responds to three of Pilate's four questions.
Pilate, after asking his fourth question, "What is truth?" went out to the chief priests who were accusing Jesus. He did not stay to hear what truth is. He missed the opportunity for truth to change his life. Had he heard what truth is, might not his life have been transformed?
We know very well what truth is. It is Jesus Christ himself. Jesus, the Son of God, came into the world with human flesh and nature. He is the one who brought God's truth to the world. Pilate missed his chance to know the truth, but we have seized it. We know who Jesus is and what he has done. Therefore, we acknowledge and believe that he is the truth itself. What remains for us is to walk the path Jesus walked, the way of the cross, carrying our own crosses. That is the way of truth.
God, thank you for revealing the truth to us, for enabling us to believe and to confess it. Now help us to walk the path of truth. Holy Spirit, lead us in truth! Amen.