Truth and the Imitators of God - Part 2
Truth and the Imitators of God
A Sermon on Ephesians 5:1–10
Deceptions, Disobedience vs. Truth & Children of Light
Listen to the Sermon
"I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me." John 14:6
In Ephesians 5, Paul tells believers not to be deceived by empty words, but to walk as children of Light:
"For you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light—for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth—trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord." Ephesians 5:8–10
In Part 2 of Truth and the Imitators of God, we focus particularly on one word in verse 9: truth.
Can We Know Truth?
Romans 1:16–20 declares that we can know the truth about God and His creation. God has made His eternal power and divine nature evident through what He has made.
Yet we often hear the claim that there is no universal truth—that everything is subjective and filtered through each individual person's experiences.
Throughout history, philosophers and thinkers have wrestled with these questions.
David Hume questioned whether there was a necessary connection between cause and effect and argued that knowledge could not extend beyond experience. Auguste Comte promoted what became known as scientism: the belief that truth could only be discovered through scientific investigation.
These ideas helped shape modern secular thought.
The Christian worldview, however, stands in contrast to the idea that life is random, undirected, meaningless, and purposeless. Scripture points instead to a Creator who gives life design, purpose, and meaning.
Truth Is Necessary for Everyday Life
We apply truth to nearly every aspect of our lives.
Every day, we make decisions based on information we believe to be reliable.
We trust other people to tell us the truth so we can make decisions at work and school. We trust that prescriptions have been prepared correctly. We trust professionals who inspect and operate airplanes. We get into our cars and travel without continually questioning whether everything around us is functioning as it should.
Without trust in truth, we could not function.
Truth involves trust.
Truth Corresponds to Reality
If we say, "It is raining," that statement is true if it is actually raining.
Our physical senses work together with our intellect as we determine what is true.
The ancient Greeks wrestled deeply with these ideas. Plato recognized that created things must have a cause, while Aristotle's thought would later influence Christian thinkers seeking to understand reality and the existence of God.
Philosophy and God's Wisdom
Paul warns in Colossians 2:8:
"See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ."
But Paul also tells believers to hold firmly to the traditions they were taught.
The issue is not wisdom itself.
God's wisdom is good.
Creation speaks of God's being and glory. Christian thinkers such as Thomas Aquinas used philosophical observations about motion, causation, contingency, perfection, and purpose while looking at them through the lens of Scripture.
Aquinas argued that truth could be known and that God could therefore be known and interacted with.
Human wisdom separated from God can become a source of deception. God's wisdom leads us back to Him.
Paul writes:
"For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified... Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God." 1 Corinthians 1:22–24
How Do We Fight Deception?
Deception is one of Satan's tools to draw people away from God.
We see it beginning with Adam and Eve in the Garden, and we see it when Satan confronts Jesus in the wilderness in Matthew 4.
Each time Satan tested Jesus, Jesus answered with Scripture.
When challenged to turn stones into bread, Jesus answered from Deuteronomy 8:3: man lives on the Word of God.
When Satan challenged Jesus to throw Himself from the Temple, Jesus answered from Deuteronomy 6:16: do not test the Lord God.
When Satan offered Jesus the kingdoms of the world in exchange for worship, Jesus answered from Deuteronomy 6:13: worship the Lord God only.
Jesus' response gives us a spiritual map for confronting deception: God's Word.
The Father of Lies
In John 8:42–44, Jesus describes the devil as one who "does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him."
He calls him a liar and the father of lies.
People can be deceived into following their own understanding rather than God's teaching.
Satan's deception often appeals to selfishness and pride. He seeks to convince us that we do not need God and that we can have everything we want apart from Him.
This is what happened in Genesis 3.
Satan distorted God's instruction to Adam and Eve and then directly contradicted it. Eve rationalized what she saw and desired. Adam joined her, and both disobeyed God.
Deception takes a lie and rationalizes it until a "me-first" attitude begins to make sense.
To counter these attacks, we must protect our thoughts and pursue God's plan for our lives rather than actions that pull us away from Him.
Jesus Is the Way to Truth
After Jesus rejected Satan in the wilderness, Satan left Him, and angels came and ministered to Him.
Jesus did not contemplate Satan's offers. He rejected them with Scripture.
And ultimately, our answer to the question of truth is found in Jesus Himself.
Jesus said:
"I am the way, and the truth, and the life." John 14:6
The Apostle John tells us that Jesus is the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us:
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
And:
"The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory... full of grace and truth." John 1:1, 14
After the Resurrection, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit, the Helper, to indwell believers.
God was physically present with people through the incarnation of Jesus Christ, and He remains spiritually present with His people.
We can therefore hold closely to the truth of Jesus' words in the Great Commission:
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Matthew 28:19–20
Amen.
