Absolute Truth

For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. ~Romans 7:1

We have a tendency and a desire to rely on our earthly abilities and our personal nature to make sense of the world around us. We are told by the world that we must follow our hearts at all times and to do what is good. Here Paul tells us in the book of Romans that we are incapable of carrying out good and Jeremiah tells us that the heart is deceitful above all things (Jeremiah 17:9). More than that, Isaiah tells us that our righteous acts are like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). If these things are true then how are we to live and how can we possibly approach a holy God?

First, can it be true that our hearts really are deceitful, that we are incapable of doing good, and that the good things we do are nothing more than filthy rags? These ideas go against everything that secular culture preaches to us every day. The secular world says that we are all inherently good and it is only bad circumstances beyond our control that force us to behave badly. If that is true, then where do all of the bad circumstances come from I wonder? The truth is that if you search yourself honestly, you will find that you rarely succeed in living up to your own standards, let alone those of a holy and perfect God.

Secular society gets around this question simply by stating that there is no such thing as absolute truth and therefore no higher immovable morality to hold as our standard. The concepts and definitions of morality and of what is good are simply whatever we, as individuals or as a culture, define them as at any given point in time. We, as the masters of our own morality, are perfectly free to modify the definition of what is right and what is wrong based solely on what our hearts tell us at the time or what is currently popular in our culture.

If the inherent difficulties in this point of view are not readily apparent, then take a look again at the foundational principle upon which the world view is based: There is no such thing as absolute truth. Put another way, it is an absolute truth is that there are no absolute truths. While this may sound very deep in a 60’s drug-induced counter-culture sort of way, it is a self-defeating statement which means that if the statement is true then it must be false. A world view based on a self-defeating proposition is like a house built upon the sand. It may feel great to live on the beach, but as soon as a storm hits, the house will crumble around you.

The absolute truth is that we are living in open rebellion against a holy God and there is absolutely nothing within us that is capable of bridging the gap that stretches between us and Him. Only God can defeat our selfish and sinful nature in order to close that gap and bring us into close and personal fellowship with Him. Only through the work and person of Jesus Christ, who paid the ultimate cost for us, can this happen (John 14:6).

There are those that hear this message and despair thinking that if there is nothing within them that is good, then they cannot be saved. Exactly the opposite is true. We have the ultimate cause for rejoicing because God has given every single person, regardless of what they have ever done, the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ. The only thing we must do is receive it and receive Him.

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. ~Romans 10:9

(photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/feargal/6329704686/)