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Do you remember when you learned that Santa Claus wasn’t real? I do.
It was a moment of truth, but it hurt, didn’t it? The non-existence of Santa Claus is a shocking truth for some people because it requires a re-set of our presuppositions and our worldview.
A friend told me he punched the girl that told him Santa was a hoax. He disliked the truth so much that he abused the truth-teller. Does that sound familiar in today’s world?
As our country deals with the current political turmoil, it’s apparent that a lot of people are believing things that are untrue. Maybe everybody.
Many Christians are praying that the truth will be told. Are we praying that way because we love truth, or because we feel the truth will vindicate us?
My friend Curt Klingerman posted a blog this week that asks this question about dealing with truth: Are We Willing to Change?
What if the actual truth is not what we want it to be?
When a Christian is shown a truth from the scriptures that does not fit with his own ideas or understanding, he only has one Christian option: Repentance, which means changing how you think and act.
Non-Christians, on the other hand, have a number of options when facing truth.
- They can accept it and change how they think and act (repentance).
- They can refuse to believe it despite any evidence or logic (unrepentance).
- They can accept it but not change how they act (inconsistency).
The second option is what we are seeing in the political realm. Despite the evidence of history and the proof of current errors, many just refuse to acknowledge the truth. It’s inconceivable to them that their worldview could be erroneous, so any conflicting evidence cannot be believed.
The third option is to acknowledge the truth but claim that it doesn’t matter. This response rests on the the ridiculous standard that there are no absolute standards. Their response is “OK, that may be true. So what?”
The Nature of Absolutes
The main political battle in America is over truth and the nature of absolutes.
Let me be clear. The gospel of Jesus Christ is Truth. All truth is based on God. He has expressed Himself in Jesus Christ and through the Bible. The Bible is the only self-authenticating absolute standard of truth. Any other truth or absolute must be consistent with the Bible, or it is not true.
The Bible tells us that mankind is sinful and separated from God. We need the free grace of salvation by faith in Jesus to restore that relationship. Most people do not want to acknowledge this truth. They prefer their sin, their darkness, their self-sufficiency. But when they do change, they become believers in Christ (Christians).
Unbelievers do not value truth. If they say they do, but do not believe the Bible, they are deceiving themselves. Truth is absolute. It cannot contradict itself. It’s called the law of Noncontradiction.
The Nature of Antagonists
Political antagonists oppose each other because they have different ideals about truth. Their ideals form their worldview. Sometimes the difference in politicians’ worldviews are minor. In our current political climate the difference in worldviews is significant.
Some worldviews include a presupposition that any person’s value to the world can be measured by their agreement with our presuppositions. That presupposition may also dictate how we treat others who disagree with us.
The biblical worldview states that all men are created in the image of God, and by virtue of that creation, their lives have value and they should be treated respectfully (Genesis 9:5-6). In the law, when God commanded the Israelites to treat strangers in their midst with respect, He told them to remember what it was like when they were strangers in Egypt (Exodus 22:21, 23:9, Leviticus 19:33-34).
The Nature of Strangers
In the Christian church, Paul reminded the Corinthians that they (and we) were all unrighteous and unable to inherit the kingdom of God.
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11
Every believer in Jesus had to change their mind about Him. Every believer in Jesus had to accept a different presupposition and alter their worldview. Every believer in Jesus had to realize that they were believing things that were not true, and replace those beliefs with truth.
That’s the advantage that Christians have over unbelievers: we’ve been where they are.
What Happens When Truths are Told
In our current political situation, the battle between the Democrats and Republicans over the Presidency focuses on the truth of the claims about election fraud. If evidence of fraud is unquestionable, the question will be whether that truth matters.
To many, a proof of fraud will only mean they got caught, but not that anything should change (see option 3 above). By others, proof of fraud will simply be ignored (option 2). By those who desire truth, proof of fraud will required corrections (option 1) and restoration.
Our prayers that the truth be told must be coupled with prayers for those whose current worldviews oppose the truth. Because we were in opposition to the truth before we repented, we understand where they are, and how hard it is to rebuild your worldview when your presuppositions collapse.
It’s like the first time you heard that Santa Clause doesn’t exist. It was difficult because it affected other beliefs in your worldview.
What We Must Do
We must treat those who have been deceived like God wants them to be treated: with value, meekness and fear.
But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear… 1 Peter 3:15
By His calling, in His strength,
Dean
P.S. I dug a little deeper into how Santa effects our presuppositions and worldviews in the Introduction to our book Families from the Beginning. Sign up for our newsletter and read the Introduction.
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