The best place to hide the truth is in the open. Many people think truth is hidden and one must search for it. Most truth is on display right in front of us. Why don’t we see it? There are many reasons. The first is, are you looking for the truth? Looking for the truth requires a new way of thinking and believing. Humans are creatures of habit. We create our own reality. Sociologists refer to this as a social construct of reality. Part of this reality is based on where we live. What country do we live in? What religious beliefs do we hold? What political party do we identify with? How much schooling have we completed? This is not an exclusive list, but you get the point.
We use this reality to make sense of our world. Most of us have dealt with people who we characterize as, I don’t know what planet they’re from, but it sure isn’t earth. There are similar characterizations, but they all mean we’re not sharing the same reality. There’s a disconnect happening somewhere. Psychologists call this cognitive dissonance.
To recognize truth requires being open to new ways of thinking and believing. Everyone is prejudiced in their personal beliefs. The way I believe may not be the right way, but it is right for me. In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus challenges this way of thinking. He uses the phrase; “You have heard that it was said,” five times to highlight a tightly held societal belief. In contrast, he says, “But I say unto you,” and what followed was electrifying and startling. Matthew says, “And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” Jesus didn’t change or challenge the Word of God. He challenged the erroneous human response to God’s Word.
The modern world has rejected the thousands of years held belief that humans live in a spiritual world. Science and reason, they say, is what should guide humanity instead of religious superstitions. Trust the science we are told. The Intelligentsia declared God is dead. But is he?
Jesus said “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. The Bible says God created everything. Most by speaking it into existence. God used the dirt which we call earth to fashion a human being from. He breathed into man, and he became a living soul. Science cannot imitate God and create something from nothing. Modern science has swept aside God and created other science—falsely called—to explain how everything came into being without God.
Since the American Revolution, citizens living in the Western World of nations have thrown off the medieval shackles of being ruled by Lords and Kings and embraced democracy. Democracy over the centuries has proven to be to be just as bad for the populace as kings were. In ancient times, rulers were subject to whatever religion they practiced. Democracy answers to no higher power. It has declared democracy their religion. For thousands of years, the state and religion complemented and supported each other. Not anymore. Separation of church and state is the order of today.
We are living in a time of unparalleled rapid social change and upheavals. Every news cycle announces another crisis. Polls show many people believe the news media is untrustworthy. Journalists and TV networks are more interested in shaping the news and public opinion than reporting the news. If there ever was objective reporting, it has gone with the dodo bird. Newspapers are mere propaganda outlets for those who seek to control us. The question to ask is, who are those/them/they? The answer is right in front of you.
There is some truth to the notion that if you want to know who is controlling you; ask who can’t you criticize? Those who seek to enslave us use tactics such as “cancel culture” to destroy a person’s character and livelihood. Say something the cancel crowd doesn’t like or publish the wrong post on social media and you can find yourself quickly without a job. Flash mobs show up to disrupt events the cancel crowd doesn’t like with impunity. Banks have canceled accounts; business such as PayPal have frozen account holder funds; YouTube and Facebook have arbitrarily suspended and/or deleted accounts because of posts or public statements that do not reflect “their corporate policy.” You can have all the freedom of speech you want, but only in your own mind. And they are coming for that as well.
Finding the truth is akin to the story of “the Emperor Wore No Clothes.” You must be brave to step away from the crowd and think for yourself—most people aren’t. The crowd that rejoiced when Jesus’ rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday was the same crowd days later that said “away with him, crucify him.”
You will stumble onto the truth like a person stumbling in the dark. It is only when you turn on the lights do things become clear. In the light, things become clearer IF you accept the truth. The Bible says in 2Co 4:4 the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the likeness of God.
Jesus said the world hates him. Truth begins when you discover who hates him. Once you identify the who he is referring to, you are on the path of illumination. The gods of this world want you to stay blind to the truth until it is too late. Who are the gods of this world?
I could write a long treatise explaining the who, but you wouldn’t believe it. The disciples asked Jesus why he spoke in parables. Why not just speak plainly for all to understand? His answer is enlightening. Mt 13:35 gives us the answer. You have to seek after the truth. God has placed it right in front of you. If you don’t earnestly seek after it, you will remain in darkness.
Jesus faced this blindness everywhere he went. He said, people hear but do not understand, and see yet are blind. Nothing has changed between then and now. It is time to wake up and come into the light of Christ and he will give you light.