Pilate's question to Jesus is, unfortunately, one that has resonated throughout every epoch of man's existence. Man has always been searching for truth. Failure to find truth has led many to conclude that a) there is no truth or b) man makes his own truth. Neither conclusion is valid. The problem does not lie in the existence of truth, but in man's failure to see and acknowledge what is right before his eyes.
Jesus said that he had come into the world to "bear witness of the truth." Did He do that or not? He said he did. One can only come to one of two conclusions: either truth exists and He bore witness of it or He was delusional. Jesus further said "everyone who is of the truth hears my voice." Can one be "of" something that does not exist?
So the question remains, "What is truth?" Jesus had answered that question just hours earlier as He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. In John 17:6-19, Jesus prayed to God on behalf of his eleven disciples. In verse 17, He requests that God the Father will "Sanctify them in the truth. Thy word is truth." So we see that the answer to Pilate's question is very simple: the truth is the Word of God.
When we apply this principle to what Jesus said in John 18:38, it makes perfect sense:
- When Jesus said "I came to bear witness of the truth," He was saying that he came to bear witness that the things God had revealed in His word are true. Jesus came to bear witness that the Messianic prophecies made by God through Moses, David, and the prophets were true. He came to bear witness that the seed of woman would truly "crush the head" of Satan. He came to bear witness that God would establish a New Covenant, allowing those of all nations to be citizens of His kingdom. And the list goes on and on . . .
- When Jesus said "everyone who is of the truth hears my voice," He is saying that those who recognize that God's Word is the truth will also listen to and obey the words and teachings of Jesus. Why? Because they will understand what Jesus said in John 14:10: "The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works." They will understand that Jesus also speaks the truth because what He speaks is from God.
It is on this basis, then, that we can begin to examine our responsibility to the truth. When we learn our responsibility to the truth, we can then see how the truth affects every aspect of our lives and, most especially, our relationship to God.
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