In today’s world, we have to work harder to figure out what is true and what is not. The noise on social media and now AI have made it hard to decipher what is true. Here’s an example. Last month, online users claimed a video authentically showed a frozen, Hydra-like sea monster, like the one in the Godzilla movies, spotted in the side of an ice shelf. The 10-second clip featured a zooming-in shot purportedly depicting a dark creature appearing to have multiple tentacles. It got 10 million views. Turns out (shocker!) it was AI-generated.
On a more serious note, a local news station reported that First Presbyterian of Allegan was suddenly shut down by our presbytery (our regional governing board of PC(USA) churches). This local news station did not contact our presbytery to clarify details, and the first clue that this wasn’t true is that First Pres Allegan was “suddenly” closed down by the Presbytery. We Presbyterians work in committees and present amendments that have to be approved at a presbytery meeting, of which there are only four a year. Nothing happens quickly, much less suddenly, in our denomination. Plus, what happened at First Pres Allegan was literally years in the making, and our presbytery had to do some damage control.
There’s a lot of stuff we have to sift through to find the truth, and most of the time we can’t do this face-to-face as we’re usually dealing with a post from some random person online.
Pilate had the opportunity to be face-to-face with Jesus as he tried to determine whether the charges brought against Jesus were, in fact, true.
Jesus was arrested by the Chief Priests and the Temple guards for making blasphemous claims about being the Messiah that all of Israel longed for. They were alarmed that crowds hailed Jesus as “King” as he made his way into Jerusalem on a donkey, while the crowds waved palm branches to show their adoration.
I just want to add that this does not justify antisemitism. Not all Jewish people wanted Jesus to be killed. Only those whose power felt threatened were after Jesus.
Pilate was not Jewish so he didn’t care to understand why these particular Jewish leaders were against Jesus. What does perk up Pilate’s ears is that Jesus is claiming to be a “king.” Such language could be a threat to the Roman Empire, for whom Pilate works and whose values he lives by. He wants to make sure that Jesus isn’t here to start a revolt against Rome. Pilate is about protecting the system of which he is a part and from which he benefits. The same can be said for the Jewish officials who felt Jesus’s growing number of followers was a threat to their power as religious authorities.
Because of Pilate’s place of power, he is officially the one conducting this trial, but Jesus turns the tables with answers that question Pilate.
When Pilate asks if Jesus is indeed a king, Jesus answers with: “Are you asking for your own curiosity or because it’s what you’ve heard about me?” Here, Jesus is acting more like a judge than the one on trial. Pilate answers with: “I’m not Jewish, so why would I care? But the most powerful leaders in your community want you dead so what did you do?”
Jesus doesn’t directly answer Pilate’s question by describing that his kingdom is not of this world, and if it were his followers would be ending this trial now. Jesus explains to Pilate that his kingdom is not rooted in this world, but rooted in powers above and beyond this world. This perks up Pilate’s ears as he then asks: “So you are a king?”
Remember he’s trying to figure out if Jesus is planning to lead a revolt against Rome, the current Empire.
Once again, Jesus does not directly answer his question, by replying: “You’re the one saying I am a King, but the whole reason I was born was to bear witness to the truth and those rooted in the truth will hear my voice.” As with others who questioned Jesus, Jesus holds his own with Pilate. It’s as if Jesus is inviting Pilate to truly hear what Jesus is declaring about himself. Jesus seems to be implying: “Pilate, are you rooted in the truth? Do you hear what I’m saying?”
It’s clear that Pilate does not, as he responds to Jesus with: “What is truth?”
Biblical scholar, Dale Brunner, writes that we’re not sure of Pilate’s tone, so we don’t know why he is asking this question. Is it because Pilate is skeptical of absolute truth or that he desires to know the actual truth? We don’t know for sure. What we can infer from Pilate’s question is that truth is relative. It seems to change depending on who you talk to, so why try to seek the truth?
What Jesus is communicating, however, is that if we want to find the truth, we need to seek out Jesus. The truth of Jesus never changes. We may change, but Jesus does not.
The truth is usually hard to accept. Because the truth of Jesus Christ disrupts a narrative we’ve accepted and lived by until we find out it’s not true. The truth of Jesus Christ is a threat to one’s beliefs about God, about the nation, about the government, and about others. Jesus is always expanding our understanding of him.
This is why the Jewish officials felt threatened by Jesus. Jesus called out their hypocrisy and their failure to provide for the people God had called them to care for. To proclaim he was the Messiah meant their leadership in Jewish society was no longer needed.
Pilate is defending his power and the power of the Empire he was a part of. Neither the Jewish offials or Pilate were interested in truth, but were more interested in preserving their power. They are more concerned with protecting what they’ve come to believe is right rather than the truth.
Which is truly tragic. Had they asked more questions of Jesus and been more curious about him, they would’ve found the truth. The truth of God’s love that is beyond this world. The truth that God’s kingdom is not one built by force or coercion, but by love and justice. In God’s kingdom, one does not have to fight to prove one’s self-worth or fight for one’s piece of the pie. In God’s kingdom, there is an abundance for all; therefore, all are secure, and all are loved. Equally.
It would be wise for us to keep asking Pilate’s question: “What is truth?” But instead of walking away from Jesus as Pilate did, we stay with Jesus and listen. We do that by continuing to read and learn from God’s word.
The truth of who Jesus is doesn’t change. The cross and the resurrection remain true, and their repercussions continue.
But how we respond to the truth of Jesus does change. Jesus is constantly expanding our limited view of his love. He is constantly opening our eyes to who we can love better and who God sees as made in God’s image even when the powers that be say otherwise. Therefore, how we love God, ourselves, and our neighbors continues to evolve and widen. We are constantly challenged by God to love better.
The truth of Jesus also exposes what is not true. Those whose understanding of Jesus is to treat others unkindly and to use God’s name to justify war or violence against others, are not of the truth. Our evolving understanding of the eternal truth of God’s love should lead us to love God and others better. To evolve in the truth of Jesus is to understand just how all-encompassing God’s love is, even when we try to limit who is in and who is out.
I look back on my own faith journey and reflect on how God has challenged me to see how I put limits on God’s love. I once thought the United States was God’s chosen nation and Christ’s light in the world. That our country is elevated above all others. This changed when I began to think about the Philippines, where my family is from. The family I still had there were good people who just wanted to provide for their families, as we do here in the U.S. They were also faithful Christians who loved and served their neighbors. I began to see that being American gave one more opportunities to thrive, but that didn’t make us any better than any other nation in God’s eyes. While I’m thankful for the opportunities I received here that I would not have had in the Philippines, I no longer think it’s because the US is elevated in God’s eyes. We are loved by God, but not more so than any other country.
I also used to believe that homosexuality was a sin. This changed when I got to know people of the LGBTQAI+ community and heard their stories. Several years ago, a dear friend, whom I still consider a mentor in ministry, disclosed to Matt and me that he was gay. It pained me that this friend thought he had to live a life of celibacy in order to honor God. But I wanted this friend to experience the kind of deep relationship that God wants each of us to have. I also began to revisit the key bible verses that people use to justify homosexuality as a sin. I won’t get into it now, but my understanding of those passages was expanded, and plus, there are thousands more verses about how we are called to love and care for the poor and speak up for those who have been unjustly treated. There are about half a dozen passages people tend to use to justify homosexuality as an abomination.
When my view on homosexuality changed, some of my past ministry mentors and some friends felt I had fallen off the deep end of liberalism. Many had left the PC(USA) because our denomination decided 20 years ago that one’s gender identity did not exclude them from the church. It was hard for me to lose some friends and mentors, but I couldn’t deny that God was challenging me to have a more expansive view of God’s love. But it did cost me something, and that hurt. At the same time, I was humbled by how God showed me I was wrong about certain people and a better way to love others. Loving well is much more freeing than carrying the burden of judgment and prejudice.
To be rooted in the love and truth of Jesus Christ means being open to God showing us how we’ve put limits on his love. This usually means realizing the views we carry about certain people were wrong. But we receive the truth instead, which is far more freeing than whatever lies or misconceptions we once held.
The preservation of the truth is one of the Great Ends of the church, according to our denomination, the PC(USA), because we are called to live out the love of Christ. This includes calling out what is not of Christ. Especially those who invoke the name of Jesus to further their own personal kingdoms.
Our denomination accepted a document in the 80s called A Presbyterian Understanding and Use of Scripture that states, when interpreting Scripture, we must do so with the rule of love, specifically God’s love. It states:
“The fundamental expression of God’s will is the two-fold commandment to love God and neighbor.” It goes on to say: “Any interpretation of Scripture is wrong that separates or sets in opposition love for God and love for fellow human beings, including both love expressed in individual relations and in human community (social justice). No interpretation of Scripture is correct that leads to or supports contempt for any individual or group of persons either within or outside of the church.”
This is not a popular view today as we live in a time when Christ’s name is used to justify racism, violence, war, and all sorts of injustices. But this is what we as Presbyterians (and many other Christians) believe. My prayer is that we would remain rooted in the truth of Jesus even if it costs us something, because it will cost us something. And that we would never be afraid of how Jesus calls us to love others more widely and deeply so that we can see for ourselves just how wide and expansive God’s love is.