Absolute and Relative: June 2014
Table of Contents
The Absolute and the Relative
The Absolute is God; all else, including us, is the Relative. If we do not recognize and accept this, all our thoughts, attitudes and actions in spiritual and moral things will be distorted and result in a wasted life and eternal separation from God. God, not us, should be the starting point and the reference point of our hearts, our motives, our thoughts and our actions. The wisest man among men said, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Prov. 1:7). Having true knowledge begins with God having His right place in our hearts — He is Lord (supreme over us) and He is to be feared (given His place of respect as supreme and the One to whom we must give account for our works). Rebellious man, not wanting to be subject to God and so not wanting to retain the knowledge of God, has become the fool and is morally lost and dead toward God. We live in a society in which man’s thoughts largely begin and end with himself. He does not want to be judged by God or man as to his attitudes and actions. Unconsciously such attitudes can creep into and find a lodging in our minds and hearts. Some of the material in this issue may be hard to understand, but may the Lord enable us to be forewarned and forearmed by the truth.
Absolute and Relative
The words absolute and relative are very important to each of us, for at various times in our lives, we must all deal with issues that involve both of them. Let us define the terms and then discuss them.
The word absolute can have many different shades of meaning in the English language, but for our purposes it means free from imperfection; that which is unquestionable and is not dependent on or affected by circumstances or anything outside of itself; something that is independent of human perception, valuation and cognition. It refers to the truth concerning everything.
On the other hand, the word relative signifies something that has a connection with or a necessary dependence upon another thing; existing in connection with something else, and thus not independent, because its nature, value and other qualities are determined by reference to something else.
In divine things, the words become very important, for there are things which are absolute and others which are relative. That which is absolute can emanate only from God, for only God is absolute. All that He is, says and ultimately does are free from the variability and error natural to human knowledge, perception and ways of thinking. That which is relative takes into consideration the limitations of the human mind and thus adjusts itself to admit subjective thinking and varying perceptions of the human mind.
God Is Absolute
In considering the subject in divine things, we must recognize first of all that only God is absolute, while man as a creature is essentially relative. Nothing is absolute in the creature; the only right thing for him is dependence and obedience. If man fails in these, he gets out of his relationship with God, who is absolute. Since man cannot be absolute, if he is without a relationship with God, he finds himself adrift in his thoughts and actions. God’s knowledge is absolute; man’s knowledge, of necessity, must be relative. God’s power is absolute, because of who He is; man’s power is relative and derived. God’s view of all things is absolute; man’s view is relative, first of all because he is a creature, but also because of culture, experience and differences in perception, as well as the effect of sin.
Man must recognize the need for absolutes, for having been created as a moral being, he must live and move in relationship with God and in obedience and dependence. This was all spoiled when sin entered this world, for it took man out of the path of obedience and dependence. Seduced by Satan, he disobeyed the one command God had given him and acted with an independent will. Since then his history as a natural man has been one of estrangement from God.
Absolutes Abandoned
The effect of all this has been that man has tried to abandon the absolutes that God has given and to make things relative to himself, for he is essentially a relative being. Refusing God and His absolutes has two effects. First, it denies man’s ultimate accountability to God, and second, it gives him an excuse to sin. (It is for this reason that Pilate raised the question, in John 18:38, “What is truth?” when the Lord Jesus told him, “Every one that is of the truth heareth My voice.”) However, he finds that he must come to terms with his moral nature and his conscience, which he acquired at the time of his fall. He finds that he cannot live or be governed without some kind of absolutes, yet he seeks, in his sinful state, to make things relative to his condition. The result has been the chaos in which we find the world today.
What are some examples of absolutes that man has made relative? Among the things that are an abomination to the Lord, God lists “a lying tongue” (Prov. 6:17). Yet man has created a so-called “white lie,” justifying the telling of such a lie because of extreme circumstances. God says, “Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed” (Gen. 9:6), while man presumes to make exceptions for crimes of passion and other types of murder. In many nations the death penalty for murder has been abolished. God’s Word says, “Thou shalt not steal” (Ex. 20:15), yet some, while hesitating to steal from an individual, would feel justified in stealing from a large corporation. God’s Word says, “Render to all their dues” (Rom. 13:7), yet man excuses his non-payment of taxes by alleging that his taxes are too high and that the government often wastes the money.
Man an Absolute?
However, these failures involve man’s relationship to his fellow man. Far worse is the denial of God’s supreme power and authority and man’s daring to set himself up as being absolute. For many centuries man has tried to make himself the absolute, and the New Age movement of the past few years is the latest example of this.
Absolutes can be known only by revelation, and for this, man must recognize and honor the existence of God. More than this, man must recognize his accountability to God and also the fact that God has chosen to reveal Himself. At every point in the world’s history, “He left not Himself without witness” (Acts 14:17), for He wanted the relationship with His creature man. God has now given us a revelation of Himself in Christ and in His Word.
Even without acknowledging God, man as a moral being has a conscience, which gives him some sense of right and wrong. However, the conscience, like the eye, depends on light. The eye cannot function well in natural darkness; so the conscience does not function well in moral darkness. Man’s conscience functions well in the light of God’s absolutes, but it can be defiled by sin and moral darkness so that it fails to guide according to God’s absolutes.
The Absolutes of God
This brings us to the absolutes of God, of which there are really only two — light and love. All of the practical things God brings before us flow from these two entities. As another has aptly remarked, “God is light, and we make Him a judge by our sins. But God is also love, and none have made Him so.” While His absolutes cannot be compromised, the love of God found a way to reveal Himself in that character, while not compromising His holiness. The sacrifice of Christ on the cross has made it possible for God to say, “Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other” (Psa. 85:10). The light of God reveals our sin and makes God a judge, but what the light reveals, the blood covers, so that God can say, “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Now, with a new life in Christ, God works in the heart of the believer to receive the light and to walk in it, for he has been brought into the light.
Relative
We have seen how the absolutes of God are most important, but what about that which is relative? Does that which is relative have a right place in man and, more importantly, in the believer? As we have seen earlier in this article, man as a creature must recognize that all that he is in his essential being is relative. He cannot be absolute, but rather he must recognize the One who is absolute. However, that which is relative still has a place.
First of all, man must recognize that, being a creature, he cannot talk in absolutes unless he has it as a revelation from God. Man’s reasoning powers are given of God and stand him in good stead in practical life. However, man is always a discoverer, never a creator. His reasoning may lead him to say what must be — a good thing in everyday life; however, in moral and spiritual matters, he can never say what is, except by divine revelation. Again quoting another, “Truth is the declaration of what is. ... It is not a conclusion of what must be [which is only a result in my mind], but it is the declaration of what is.” Thus, while there is nothing in divine revelation contrary to reason, there is much that is beyond reason. As a finite creature, man’s reasoning can go only so far; then he is shut up to revelation. For example, man cannot reason about what lies beyond death; he must have a revelation from God.
Second, when man deals with his fellow man, he will find that many things in this world, that are not of a moral or spiritual nature, fall into the realm of relativity. A man may consider himself rich if he is among those poorer than he, but then he will have to adjust his thinking if he finds himself among those with more than he. A man may seem clever if he is among inferiors but will realize his weakness if he comes up against those of superior intelligence. So it is with many things in our lives; one entity becomes relative to another.
Third, in the matter of the practical application of that which is absolute, some relativity may be possible, and God Himself allows for this. For example, King David’s sin with Bathsheba demanded the death penalty according to the law, yet the Lord could say to him, through the mouth of the prophet, “The Lord also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die” (2 Sam. 12:13). The law as given of God was absolute; it could not be altered without compromising God Himself. Yet that same God could show mercy to David under the circumstances. Likewise, God allowed man, in certain cases, the same relativity. Ruth was readily taken into the congregation of Israel and became the wife of Boaz, when the law stated clearly that a Moabite was not to come into the congregation of Israel, even after ten generations (Deut. 23:3). Yet we do not read of a single objection in Ruth’s case, although the matter was brought before the elders of the city. However, in such cases, there is one important point. God never allowed man to set aside the absolute, nor was man permitted to pretend that he himself was the Absolute. Occasional variation in application might be allowed, in fellowship with God and as a result of His grace. But that which was absolute must remain so.
Here is where man fails today, for in exalting himself, he seeks to throw off God’s authority and to act in his own supposed right. This God cannot condone, for man as a creature does not have this right, nor can he live and move without his Creator.
We can thank God that the day is coming when, in the words of the hymn:
All taint of sin shall be removed,
All evil done away:
And we shall dwell with God’s
Beloved
Through God’s eternal day.
When God shall be “all in all” (1 Cor. 15:28), all that God is will permeate everything, everywhere, and all will be according to His mind. Our present responsibility is well stated in the words Peter gives us by inspiration: “Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot, and blameless” (2 Peter 3:14).
W. J. Prost
The Irrationality of Moral Relativism
During the past few years moral relativism has become very fashionable, especially in the Western world. Although the view has permeated all of society, it is more prevalent among younger people, for a poll done in the U.S.A. a few years ago revealed that 83 percent of American teenagers claimed moral truth depends on circumstances; only 6 percent of teens said objective moral values exist. Further, 75 percent of adults (ages 18-35) claimed to embrace moral relativism. As the trend continues, older members of society are embracing the same outlook.
With the rejection of God and Christianity in particular, absolute truth is being abandoned. It seems that Western society wants to avoid the idea that there really is a right and wrong. This is evidenced in our deteriorating judicial systems that have more and more trouble punishing criminals, in our entertainment media which continues to push the tolerance of immorality and indecency, and in our schools which teach evolution and “social tolerance.” Moral relativism is encouraging everyone to accept homosexuality, pornography, fornication and a host of other sins that were once considered wrong but are now being accepted and even promoted in society. More serious, if you venture to speak out against this “anything goes” philosophy, you are labeled as an intolerant bigot, guilty of “hate” crime.
Examples of Relativism
Consider the following quotations, taken from popular books and Internet sites:
“Who are you to impose your moral values on someone else?”
“Western culture is imperialistic and must be stopped.”
“Who are you to say another’s values are wrong?”
“In today’s society, moral values are relative. Society constantly changes from what is acceptable and to what is not. Absolutes would not work because society is changing all the time. People tend to go against what they are told and what should be done. Absolutes simply won’t work. ... Deciding what is right or wrong depends on YOU and your beliefs. It is not something someone can answer simply.”
“Morality is always relative and never absolute. Within the framework of our society, we choose our own, personal code of moral conduct.”
“If one believes that there is a global set of absolute morals which everyone must follow, then the immediate questions arise: what are those morals, and how do we know? Since no religion in history has ever agreed on a set of absolute morals, and even members of the same religion often disagree as well, we think that the concept of absolute morality is useless. Since anyone could declare that their particular moral beliefs are absolute (and many do), and no one can demonstrate the validity of those claims, the whole thing is arbitrary. Anything goes in that system of belief, for any rule can be declared absolute.”
“EVERYTHING in this life is relative, including truth!”
We could multiply quotations, but these will serve to show the kind of thinking that is gradually overtaking society, not only in Western countries, but also in other parts of the world. In this article we would like to show the irrationality of moral relativity.
Truth Is Not Relative
First of all, the term moral relativity is itself illogical, for morals, to be right and thus enforceable, must be true. Further, what is true must be absolute, or it is not truth. One of the quotations above represents a rather common outlook, namely, that “everything is this life is relative, including truth!” If this statement stands, then you may have “your” truth and I may have “my” truth, even if they contradict each other. If truth is reduced to being relative and subject to mere opinion, it ceases to be truth. Two contradictory propositions cannot both be true at the same time.
Second, those who claim to believe in moral relativity actually believe in absolute truth! For example, a “moral relativist” may well say, “All views are equally acceptable,” or, “You ought not to impose your morality on others.” However, these statements, by definition, are absolutes, since the moral relativist claims that they are true for everyone, not simply him/her. On a different question, we frequently hear the statement, “You may do whatever you want, as long as you do not hurt anyone.” But then a true relativist may ask, “Why is it wrong to hurt someone?” And if it is wrong, then this is, in itself, making up an absolute moral standard. They are really trying to use absolute truth to support moral relativity.
A Belief of Convenience
Third, those who are proud to be “moral relativists” are often rather selective in choosing their subjects; their relativistic thinking usually concerns God, religion and issues of right and wrong. Why is this? Simply because bringing God into our lives threatens our basic wish to exercise our own will. Scripture says, “The carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be” (Rom. 8:7). The moral relativist rarely questions everyday things that do not judge him, such as health issues, geography, and traffic rules. It is moral issues that cause the problem. But then, even in moral issues most relativists are selective. Most relativists would condemn such things as oppressing women, genocide or ethnic cleansing, denying certain races civil rights, and terrorism. If one presumes to do this, he cannot claim to believe in moral relativity. It seems that relativity in moral issues is a belief of convenience.
Coupled with this selectivity is the fact that all relativists are inconsistent when their theories affect their own persons. Some time ago a believer was speaking in the dormitory of an American university. After the speech, the student called the speaker to his room for further discussion and made the statement, “Whatever is true for you is true for you and whatever is true for me is true for me. If something works for you because you believe it, that’s great. But no one should force his or her views on other people, since everything is relative.” As the believer was leaving the room he casually unplugged the student’s stereo system and started out the door with it. When the student protested, the believer remarked, “Surely you are not going to force on me the belief that it is wrong to steal!” (As a result of this encounter, the student later accepted Christ.)
God and the Conscience
Finally, we cannot escape the truth. To ignore absolutes is to live in an unreal world; it is to deny what, to an unbiased mind, is obvious. Such entities in the world as AIDS, poverty and famine, to name a few, cannot be dismissed by saying that they may be a problem for you, but not for me. More than this, man’s conscience, even though defiled by sin, innately tells him that certain things are wrong. Finally, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handiwork” (Psa. 19:1). Man cannot logically escape the fact that there is a God, and a God to whom he is responsible. The knowledge that there is a God makes moral relativity impossible.
W. J. Prost
The Absolutes of God
A teacher made a remark once that often comes to mind these days. After having heard of his need of the Saviour, he remarked, “You cannot be sure of the things of which you speak, as there are no absolutes. Everything is relative.” He went on to tell of the “gray areas” of life, in which it is impossible to know with accuracy what is true.
It makes my heart sing to think of the absolutes of God. We are not left in the world to wander about in “gray areas,” indecision, “ifs” or “maybes,” or in our own experiences and opinions. As those who have accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour, have we taken time today to thank God for the faith to know and be persuaded of His verities? Have we paused to thank Him for the Scriptures which present the Saviour simply and clearly as the only One able to meet our need? Have we thanked Him for a book which gives clear answers and principles for every question, problem or trial with which we shall ever be confronted?
Confidence in God
It is a grand thing to rest upon the absolutes of God. It is this which lifts the believer’s spirit and gives settled peace in a turbulent world. This confidence in God’s Word is the very thing Satan attempted to undermine from the beginning, when he posed the subtle question to Eve, “Yea, hath God said?” This implies that God has not really spoken to mankind; we are free to live independently of Him. The political, economic and moral conditions in the world today reflect the tragic results of man’s refusal of God’s absolutes.
Nowhere else are the great questions of life unlocked but in the Holy Scriptures. The look of faith will find our relationship with a loving God, our purpose for being on planet Earth, and our eternal destiny. Indeed, our hearts ought to be full of praise for His love in revealing His mind to us.
When God’s absolutes arrest us, we are led to the very Person and presence of our Lord Himself. It is sadly true that too often our lives give evidence that this is not our experience. We readily receive the promises and assurances of God’s Word, but give less attention to His commands. We want to enjoy the Lord’s blessings, but resent anything that might reach our consciences. Yet for blessing, God’s promises are linked to obedience.
Enjoyment
To enjoy and be consistent with the absolutes of the Word of God, we must give more than a casual assent to New Testament Christianity. It must possess our hearts and affect our entire manner of life as well. Separation, obedience, humility, simplicity, modesty, self-control and cross-bearing must be made a living part of our everyday conduct and come fully under the control and authority of our risen Lord. There is no other course open to those who claim His name and desire to testify of Him and experience blessing in their lives.
Adapted from J. K.,
Christian Truth
God Is Love
An old brother, long since with the Lord, used to make this remark: “Philosophy may puzzle your mind, but it will never answer your questions; it never made anyone happy.” This is true, and while it is occasionally necessary to look at subjects (in the light of Scripture) that may exercise our minds, yet in all of this we must firmly remember that God ultimately created us (and the entire creation, for that matter) for His enjoyment. Revelation 4:11 tells us, “Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created.” God takes delight in His creation and in His creatures, although sin has spoiled all this. But as we have seen in another article, it was the love of God that found a way to bring us back into favor with Himself, while preserving His essential purity and light. Again quoting what has been said before, “God is light, and we make Him a judge by our sins. But God is also love, and none have made Him so.”
Man Is Relative
As we have seen, man is a relative being, with a relative outlook on life. As such, he is not absolute, and if he is honest with himself, he must admit that he is not absolute (although he may try to persuade himself that he is!). Yet, as existing in a relative condition and having been created in the image and likeness of God, he is able to realize that there are entities that can and do exist, even if he cannot understand them fully. More than this, he can and does know that there is an absolute, even if he cannot understand Him fully. For example, man as a finite creature is accustomed to that which has a beginning and an end. However, he can understand that something may exist infinitely or from eternity, although it may be beyond his finite mind to grasp it. Thus man cannot conceive of that which is eternal, but he is able to understand that eternity exists. In the same way, as a relative creature, he is used to dealing with cause and effect, for in his experience with other creatures, everything is relative. Yet he is able to conceive of an absolute, although his understanding of Him may be limited.
God Has Revealed
Himself to Man
But what has this “Absolute” done for us, His creatures, who not only brought sin into His creation and spoiled it, but crucified His Son? In the words of Scripture:
“God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6).
The God who dwells in infinite light “which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see” (1 Tim. 6:16) has revealed Himself “in Son” (Heb. 1:2 JND). God became man in order to reveal Himself to His creature, not only as light, but also as love, in order that He might once again have the communion with His creature man that was spoiled when sin came in. In the beginning of man’s history, it was God’s delight to come down “in the cool of the day” (Gen. 3:8) to enjoy the company of Adam and Eve, but after their disobedience, a bad conscience made them hide among the trees of the garden. Such has been sinful man’s mode of relating to God ever since — either to deny His existence or to hide from Him. When the Lord Jesus came down into this world, He could say, “Me it [the world] hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil” (John 7:7).
More than this, man rejected the love of God. It is one thing to refuse light because of sin, but it a far more serious thing to refuse love. The Lord Jesus could say prophetically, “They that hate Me without a cause are more than the hairs of Mine head: they that would destroy Me, being Mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restored that which I took not away” (Psa. 69:4). While the Lord’s love, as divine, continued to flow even in the face of His rejection, yet as a perfect Man He felt the rejection from His creature whom He had come to save.
Relationship With God
For those who, by grace, have come to know God and to know Christ as Saviour, their relationship with Him is one that subsists in love and grace, not in philosophical semantics or theological arguments. We must realize that, as to knowledge, even in divine things, “we know in part, and we prophesy in part” (1 Cor. 13:9). We wait for that day when “that which is perfect” will come, and “that which is in part shall be done away” (1 Cor. 13:10). However, in the meanwhile, we have a relationship, not with a body of truth (although this is very important!), but rather with the One who is the truth! We have been brought to know the One who has revealed the Father and who as man will enjoy our company for all eternity! His work on the cross has brought us into relationship with the Father, so that we will spend all eternity in the Father’s house.
These are the things that God has given us to enjoy, and He has sent down His Spirit in order that we might have our present delight in them. God the Father’s delight is in His beloved Son — the One in whom all His purposes are centered. Now we, having a new life in Christ and having been brought into relationship with God as Father, are privileged to enjoy what God enjoys and to have common thoughts with Him about His Son.
W. J. Prost
Jesus and the Blind Man
The Absolute God has a perfect plan and purpose in all things, even in the allowance of the various causes of evil in the world. The Lord Jesus by opening the eyes of the blind man proves this and, in so doing, also proves He is the Sent One to complete God’s work. The source of the evil that caused the man to be born blind in John 9 brought this issue to the forefront. The disciples saw only two reasons for him to be born blind, his parents and/or himself. Reasoning in this limited way could not resolve the issue. If the cause were his parents, how could it be right to hold the man responsible for what his parents had done? If the man was born blind because of some cause in himself, how could he be responsible before his birth? The disciples were perplexed, for neither of these reasons seemed right. Life is filled with many similar variables that cannot be rightly pieced together without considering God — His purpose and order. This dimension is revealed by the Lord Jesus when He said, “Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him” (John 9:38). This explanation not only resolves the difficulties, but proves that Jesus is the Light of the world. Jesus is the Son of God who works out everything perfectly. He completed the work whereby God was glorified; He healed the blind man and made him a worshipper of God. No mistake had been made in the man’s being born blind, for more glory was given to God than would have been possible without his being born blind. The Absolute God has a purpose for everything, even in the allowance of evil.
The Clay and Spittle
Jesus anointed the man’s eyes with clay and His spittle. His action and the results verify who He was, as stated in the beginning of the book. “All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made. In Him was life; and the life was the light of men” (John 1:3-4). There was life in His spittle to give sight. Jesus as the Creator from the beginning was there present as the Sent One to complete the story in this man’s life. He said, “I must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day” (vs. 4). He had come from God to complete His purposed work in this man for the glory of God. The reason for all that happened is made clear; God is just and perfect in every way; the man and his parents are exonerated, and he is blessed.
Throughout the rest of the story those who reject Jesus stumbled over the clear evidence before them, because of their unbelief. There are factors in every situation of life that are affected by and dependent on one another, but it is not possible to put together these relative issues without taking into account the “God factor” — the Absolute God. What Jesus did proved where He came from and who He was. His works made it evident that He was sent from God. Later on, the blind man concluded, “Why herein is a marvelous thing, that ye know not from whence He is, and yet He hath opened mine eyes. ... Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind. If this man were not of God, He could do nothing” (John 9:30-33).
The disciples showed no indication of difficulty in understanding the Lord’s answer, but the unbelieving Jews continued to stumble over the facts. It was not a lack of evidence, but they were prejudiced against what was before their eyes and would not believe the witness given them. They could not fit together the issues of life because of rejecting the Light from God — the Absolute. All this unbelief really clarifies the reality that Jesus was the Son of God here on earth completing God’s work as the Sent One for a blind man’s blessing. We must accept God as absolute to understand the relative issues of why things happen in our lives.
The Pool Siloam
The process of going to the pool of Siloam and washing gives us practical instruction as to how we come to receive blessing. The Lord could have simply touched the blind man’s eyes or spoken a word and his eyes would have been opened, but He chose a method that would teach us the necessity of obedience. The act of going to the pool and washing was a matter of the obedience of faith. When he obeyed by going and washing in the pool Siloam (Sent) and his eyes were opened, it proved the power of Jesus, who was the Sent One from God to give sight to those who obey His word. Obedience is the means of healing and understanding. How many believers since then have proved the same truth. We first obey and then understand. “Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?” (John 11:40).
The neighbors sought to understand how the man came to see by relying on their understanding and proximity to the situation. They stumbled over the evidence of how the Lord had done the miracle with spit, clay and washing in the pool Siloam. The process did not make sense to them. They did not know who the Lord was. The light was shining and the darkness did not apprehend it. We do not apprehend God by our own intellect in order to know how to put all the facts together; we need light to know the truth. It is imperative first of all to accept the witness of Jesus — the Light. “He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not” (ch. 1:10). “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name” (ch. 1:12). Jesus was so close to them, yet they stumbled over the evidence at hand, but the blind man was brought a step closer to seeing Him — his eyes had been opened. He was prepared to see Jesus and really know who He was — the Son of God. He was prepared to fulfill the purpose of God in his life and glorify God as a worshipper.
A More Serious Blindness
The Pharisees and Jews fell into a more serious blindness, not only because of rejecting the evidence concerning Jesus, but also because of making their own absolute statements. They went about seeking to prove Jesus was sinful because He had done a miracle on the Sabbath. They elevate the importance of the fourth commandment concerning the Sabbath above the healing of a blind man. But “the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). They also reject the Son of Man as “Lord also of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:28). In essence they reason using relative issues concerning the observance of the Sabbath as if it were the only correct interpretation — an absolute. By this they seek to prove that the miracle Jesus had done was sinful and wrong. What blindness! Jesus was the Sent One of God — the Absolute. To use relative issues to deny Him is serious. The Lord summarizes their condition at the end of the chapter by saying, “For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind” (vs. 39). No unbelief of man will ever change the purposes of the Absolute God. The Lord Jesus faithfully warned them of the consequences of rejecting the light. Those that believe on Him as the Sent One are blessed, and those who reject Him come under the judgment of governmental blindness. Their profession of being able to see without owning Him for who He was left them blinded in sin, a more serious condition.
May the Lord help us always to relate all issues of life to what God has revealed to us. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Prov. 1:7). The emphasis on education and the accumulation of information in our day may cause us to assume that with such knowledge we can do without absolutes. But we must begin with the proper respect or fear of God or else all the relevant information will not be able to be joined together correctly. The Bible we have is the Word of God, which is necessary as a standard for a proper understanding of all the issues of life. Jesus said again unto them, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12).
D. C. Buchanan
Facing Reality
Right from the beginning of man’s history, as soon as sin entered this world, man has had a habit of refusing to face reality. When the Lord confronted Adam with his sin, he tried to transfer the responsibility to Eve, and he even blamed God for giving her to him. Cain lied and made excuses for the murder of his brother Abel. So it has been all down through the ages. In the broader sense, man has always tended to have grandiose ideas and ambitions that had no hope of fulfillment. The Lord Jesus used this tendency as an illustration in Luke 14:28-30, where a man began to build a tower, but, having failed to count the cost, was unable to finish it. Today, with a few clicks on your mouse, you can edit your photos, air-brush away your defects, and describe your “would-be” abilities. A Facebook page or résumé letter appears, but it is far from reality!
All of us are very reluctant to admit our besetting sins and bad character traits, even to ourselves. As another has remarked, sometimes the truth is so awful that we refuse to face it, and this is never more true than when the truth involves facing what our old sinful self is capable of thinking or doing. How often we make excuses, cover up, rationalize, or even deny what we are by nature.
The Fantasy World
In the last few years, however, I would suggest that this penchant for failing to face reality has been greatly multiplied. Television has been with us for more than 60 years, and it has done a good job of injecting fantasy into the human mind. This is particularly true of young children, whose minds are not always capable of separating fantasy from reality. More recently, entities like the Internet, Facebook, computer games, and movies have compounded the problem. Even the world recognizes this, as is evidenced by the following quotation from an Internet site devoted to healthy living:
“Alas, the TV is not the only fantasy world that people live in; it is just the most common. Included in this fantasy world of our minds are movies, Internet games and chat rooms, comics, kids’ cartoons, Xbox, Playstation, Wii, and, to a lesser degree, novels.
“None of the above is necessary for a successful, fulfilling life, and when they begin to take over our time, relationships, work, health and imaginations, it becomes quite serious. The issue is that people are happy to watch, listen, and read about others’ lives while letting their own drift meaninglessly by. In the meantime, they are missing out on life in all its fullness!”
As the author states in this quotation, the problem lies in the fact that these things that promote fantasy and “living in an unreal world” may well take over our lives. Our time is spent on that which is not real, and thus little time is left for that which is real. As believers, we ought to be increasingly sensitive to this trend, for what goes on in the world inevitably has its effect on the church of God. A lack of reality can pervade our thinking as believers, who have so much more available to us in Christ. This can happen in the matter of earthly possessions. Paul could tell Timothy to enjoin those who were rich not to “trust on the uncertainty of riches; but in the God who affords us all things richly for our enjoyment; to do good, to be rich in good works, to be liberal in distributing, disposed to communicate, laying by for themselves a good foundation for the future, that they may lay hold of what is really life” (1 Tim. 6:17-19 JND). It is only in looking on the realities, not only as to ourselves in this life, but also as to eternity, that we can lay hold of “what is really life.”
False Armor
The individual who fails to face reality can never really honor God, nor can he really be happy. The unbeliever who refuses the knowledge of God in the gospel must of necessity live in an unreal world, where a false armor protects him from the nagging consideration of truth. The Word of God is the only book in the world that gives us reality, not only in that which can be seen, but also in those things that are not seen. Thus a believer who will not face reality must also have a false armor around him, as, for example, if he refuses to obey that which the Spirit of God may have brought before him from the Word of God. Or, the believer may not want to confess his sin and failure to the Lord, and thus rob himself of the joy of the Lord. As another has aptly said, God will always meet us where we are, if we are willing to admit where we are. It is when we pretend to be what we are not that God must occupy our hearts with our false attitude.
A Vision of Hope
Does this mean that we are never to desire a situation which is not immediately in our possession? Are we never to have a dream of something that, for the moment, God has not given us? I would suggest that Scripture does not say this at all. Rather, we read that “where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint” (Prov. 29:18 JND). This verse is being fulfilled today, as men look back with nostalgia to the past but, seeing no hope for the future, are casting off all restraint and living only for present gratification. It is right for the believer to have a vision, but that vision must be founded on the Word of God and with the Lord before us, not self. How many believers have been encouraged by the example of Jabez, who, in the midst of difficulties, had a vision of blessing for his own life! Not only did he want the Lord to bless him and enlarge his coast (1 Chron. 4:10), but he also wanted to be kept from evil. It is recorded that “God granted him that which he requested” (1 Chron. 4:10). He had a vision, and because it was according to the mind of God, it was granted. We too can have a vision of that which we would like, and the Lord wants us to have such farsightedness. But it must be connected with Himself and produced in us by His Spirit. He who lacks the enjoyment of the “great and precious promises” God has given us will not be able to escape “the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Peter 1:4), but rather is described as blind and one who “cannot see afar off” (2 Peter 1:9). It is when our vision is clouded that we cannot see afar off, and then present things take over in our souls.
In these last days, with the world living increasingly in denial and refusing to face reality, it is more and more important for believers to be real. First of all, we must be real in our relationship with the Lord, then in our relationships with other believers, and, finally, in our relationships with the world around us. If our relationship with the Lord is right, then the others will easily fall into place. The world around us looks for those who, with peace in their hearts as to both eternity and the present, can live Christ and preach Christ. It is a privilege and responsibility for all of us.
W. J. Prost
Low at Thy Feet
Low at Thy feet, Lord Jesus,
This is the place for me;
Here I have learned deep lessons:
Truth that has set me free.
Free from myself, Lord Jesus,
Free from the ways of men;
Chains of thought that have bound me
Never can bind again.
None but Thyself, Lord Jesus,
Conquered this wayward will;
But for Thy love constraining,
I had been wayward still.
Found in J. N. Darby’s Bible
after his homecall