Unchangeable Truth

A proper view of truth is a necessity in theology. It has become the common view today that truth is not absolute but relative. Since the Bible is unchangeable truth, if unchangeable truth is questioned then the truth of the Bible loses credibility. Furthermore, if absolute truth is denied, then the truth of the Bible cannot be fully embraced as truth, nor communicated as truth.

Examples of relative truth

“It is true because I believe it”

The most common perception regarding truth is that truth is defined by the person. Truth then is not discovered but it is constructed by the person. Yet belief in itself, regardless of sincerity, does not define what truth is and sincerity does not create truth. Truth is that which corresponds to reality. A person can believe something strongly and yet be wrong.

“It is true because most people think so”

In the age of public opinion polls, when most people believe something it carries more weight. If a person can persuade enough people, then truth can be created. Yet sheer numbers of followers do not create truth. Many people can be wrong.

“Two contradictory truths can both be true at the same time”

The law of logic known as the law of non-contradiction is not taught in the bible, but it is clearly presumed. Yet more and more people are willing to adhere to two or more opposing ideas. This is the case because of the mistaken notion of relative truth. This then allows people to claim to accept the truth of Christ without denying competing ideas that contradict Christ. This syncretism allows people to “accept Christ” without true faith. While more common outside the U.S., it is becoming more common in our society.

Definitions of unchangeable and relative truth

How relative truth can best be understood:

All truth is relative to time and space (true now but not then)
all truth is relative to people (true for me but not for you)

What unchangeable truth implies:

Whatever is true at one time and in one place is true at all times and in all places.
Whatever is true for one person is true for all people.

False claims of relativists

Truth is relative according to perspective. What is true from one observer's perspective may not be true from another observer's perspective. For example, “the book is lying on the right side of the desk” is true or not true depending upon the perspective of the observer.

Truth is relative according to the person. What is true about one person may not be true for another person. “I feel sick” is not true for everyone but only for me.

Truth is relative according to time. What is true at one time may not be true at another time. For example “Reagan is the President” is not true though it once was.

Truth is relative according to meaning. The same statement can mean two different things when said by two different people. For example, “Jesus is God” means something different to a Mormon or a Muslim than to a Christian.

Critique of relativism

1. Critique of the belief that truth is relative to people

What is true for one person is true for all people

If ancient men believed the sun moved around the earth, then it is true for all men

that ancient men believed this.

This does not mean that it was true in ancient time sand false now that the sun

moves around the earth.

It will never be true for anyone anywhere at anytime that ancient men did not

believe the sun moved around the earth.

What is true for all persons all the time and everywhere is an unchangeable truth, by

definition.

2. Critique of the belief that truth is relative to time and place

What is true at one time and place is true always and everywhere. “Reagan is President”

(said in 1982) will always be true. It will never be true that Reagan was not President then.

Each statement must be understood in its context. If the statement were made in a country

other than the USA in 1982 it would not be a true statement, unless it was clarified to mean

the USA.

If the statement is true at all times and places, it is by definition unchangeable.

Additional critiques of relativism

1. To say “all truth is relative” is a self-defeating statement.

It in effect says, “there is one unchangeable truth, that all truth is relative.” Therefore, all

truth would no longer be relative for there would be at least one unchangeable truth.

2. If relativism were true, then the universe could contain contradictory conditions and truths

(which is impossible). It is impossible for what is true and its opposite, what is false, to both

be true.

For example, “I am Randall” and “I am not Randall” cannot both be true.

Jesus could not be born both in Bethlehem and in Nazareth.

3. If relativism were true then nothing could be true.

One could not claim that it is an unchangeable truth that something is not only a relative

truth for him.

That relative truth claim is not enduring,l since it can be changed at any point in time.

4. If relativism were true, we could never be mistaken, learn or lie.

For everything would be true, even when I am wrong.

And one cannot be wrong unless there is an unchangeable truth that is different from what

he believes. There is no need to learn truth.

Misunderstandings of Unchangeable Truth

One does not have to have absolute evidence in order for there to be unchangeable truth. Truth itself is unchangeable even if our grounds for believing it are not absolute.
Borderline or in-between conditions (i.e. “the water is cold”, “he is a weakling” do not make truth relative. What is in-between to me is an unchangeable truth for all men everywhere that it is in between to me. The difficulty of determining where something is on a scale is irrelevant to the truthfulness of the statement.
When someone claims only t6o believe something is true, but not that it is true, then they make no truth claim as to what they believe at all. Their statement only regards their belief, not in regard to its accuracy.
A date does not have to be stated in order to be implied in the truth claim. For example, if I say “Reagan is President” on December 31, 1982, my statement is then true for all time because of its context.
If no time is meant at all in a statement about who the president is, then the statement is neither true nor false. In outer words, statements that are too ambiguous or vague carry no meaning.
If I make the same statement at different times, then two different truth claims are being made, not one. For example, if I say “Reagan is President” in 1982, my statement is true. If I say “Reagan is President” in 2015, my statement is false. What is said by these identical words differs.
Just because truth is changeless does not mean there cannot be any “new truth.” For example, when January 1, 2222 arrives it will be a true statement to say, “today is January 1, 2222.” That statement made at that time will be forever true.

Application of Unchangeable Truth

1. To the Bible

If truth is unchangeable, then if the bible is true then it is also unchangeable.

If the truth of the Bible is unchangeable, then it cannot change with the reader.

If biblical truth cannot change with the reader, then what is true in the Bible for me

(given proper interpretation) is true for everyone.

2. To Morality

If truth is unchangeable, then truth about morality is unchangeable.

If truth about morality is unchangeable, then it does not change from person to

person.

If truth about morality does not change from person to person, then we are all

obligated to the same moral code. When the Bible describes us as having a

conscience, this conscience ought to be identical to God's moral desires. To the

degree that our conscience deviates form God's moral desires, it is weak. We ought

not to act against our weak conscience, but God's ideal is for our conscience ought

to mature (Romans 14). In no case is it ever right to depart form God's moral code

on the basis of our conscience.