Truth decay, again.

OK, I know it's old. But, I remember how fresh and accurate it was when I first saw the phrase on a church sign in rural South Carolina. It's slightly comforting to encounter so many new references right now. Do a Google search and you'll access 31.4 million possible hits in .47 seconds. Maybe it's not just Geezer memory after all. Some pretty current minds are writing books and articles about Truth Decay at the moment. My take is that it is still in the public domain because it's still a element of cultural concern. Day by day and moment by moment we find ways to skew deeply held beliefs. My personal take is that we twist them. They still have meaning. But, it's not the meaning that identified the concept in the first place.

Truth Decay is "diminishing the role of facts and analysis in American public life" (see Jennifer Rand and Michael Rich, Rand, 2018). In this space, let me take a more limited view. Truth decay in this sense in the abandonment of the authority and inerrancy of Scripture in church and religious life. This kind of twist is so visible in our secular world, where truth is defined as science and the personal views of the people in it. In a broad sense culture exists today under the question marks of human opinion rather than the dictates of Scripture or any other established spiritual guidelines. Yes, most churches have statements maintaining the authority of the Bible in religious and personal life. But, the decreasing influence of Christian principle and precepts in daily life leaves room for interpreting truth. Even those affirming a biblical Christian worldview will hedge in the discussion of absolute truth.

The truth decay is our nation right now extends farther than biblical authority. Many scholars and historians question the reliability of our founders thoughts, the ruling documents of our nation, The Constitution of the United States and the Declaration of Independence. Each twist challenges our population with an anything goes mentality that threatens the basic tenets of faith, our system of government, the laws that guide us, our judicial system and courts, economic policy, educational processes, and nearly every dimension of American life.

Basic to any understanding of truth is the existence of truth as a governing human principle. And, ultimate truth is that which is provided by our Creator---

Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.

Proverbs 30:5, ESV

Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait

all the day long.

Psalm 25: 5, ESV

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as

of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 1: 14, ESV

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you abide in my word, you are

truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

John 8: 31-32, ESV

Yes, our culture lives under the whims of truth decay. And, we must grasp truth, God's truth, if we are to live in harmony under a rule of law.

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...and all that is in them.

So, I've been gazing at the Atlantic Ocean all week. That's not a complaint. What a blessing to tune out the rest of the world for a few days and just stare at the sea, great and wide (see Psalm 104: 25). Even more than the storm-free calming motion it is a teaching plan about life. When King David wrote the Psalms he often referenced the sea because he saw the physical, emotional, and spiritual lessons God laced into the currents and waves. As Harriet and I have enjoyed our week in our beach front condo, staring at the sea has been devotional time. God's eternal Word in one hand, and his forever sea lashing the coast in front of us, inspiring and challenging moments of Bible study and thought have given spiritual underscore to some time away. Glory. Nice!

Many of King David's Psalms honor God for the masterful work of creation. One of his texts spoke to me early this morning---

Blessed is he whose help in the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord God, who made

heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever...

Psalm 146: 5-6, ESV.

Mr. Quibbler was especially captured by the phrase "...the sea and all that is in them". So, there I am, staring at the Atlantic Ocean wondering at the tenses of this verse..."the sea, and all that is in them". Of course, that was before scientific classification and the numbering of our oceans, seas, and other water systems. The meaning of Psalm 146: 5-6, references the water that covers more than 70% of our earth, the sea, representing all of them. That was a quick quibble. What captured my heart and mind was the simple phrase "...all that is in them...". King David wanted to honor God for the seas, and the creatures he had created to occupy them.

Today, I stared at the sea. Right up front this morning Harriet and I saw dolphin grazing just offshore. Meaning that, there were also smaller aquatic creatures, perhaps fish, in those same waters. On the beach were shells tiny animals called home, beach worms, minnows swimming in the shallows, and a few star fish washed ashore. Now, we know nothing of fish species or the vast array of sea life. We do know flounder, shrimp, scallops, oysters, crabs, and some of the other edibles. Still, it's a mystery world to us, life under the currents and waves.

Scientists estimate more than 1,000,000 species of sea life, mostly invertebrates with no backbone, like jelly fish or shrimp. Common vertebrates are the bristlemouth, a tiny fanged glow-in-the-dark fish. There are Jaws, whales, eels, rays, sea lions, sun fish, and thousands more. Scripture mentions sea monsters like Leviathan (see Job 41:1; Psalm 104: 26, and others for example). But, there is only debate about them.

The point? Staring at the Atlantic this week has given me new appreciation for the lessons King David learned from the sea, His mention of "...all that is in them..." is another wonder of our creator God, the God who thought of everything and prepared his earth for you and I to occupy and govern.

Here is the sea, great and wide, and here am I thankful.

Truth down deep...

The Psalms reveal King David's highs and lows. They resonate with us because our lives are punctuated with question marks and exclamation points too. A profound element of the Psalms is the deep spiritual education David received after times of personal trial. Just knowing that the man after God's own heart could fall so low so often is a reminder of human limits. Like the rest of us, King David was flesh and bones, subject to pain, ailment, mystery, and temptation. Like us, he often allowed circumstances to define life. When challenged by doubt, fear, loneliness, or depression he would usually go deep. In the depths he would discover truth that lifted him above the trying conditions.

In moments of trial and test, he often wondered why God was hiding from him---

How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from

me? 2 How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the

day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

Psalm 13: 1-2, ESV

Why, O Lord, do you stand far away? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

Psalm 10: 1, ESV

Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?

Psalm 44: 24, ESV

Evidently his human nature prevailed when circumstances turned toxic or harsh. There were moments of crisis when his broken spirit felt distant from God.

Thankfully, there was eternal truth to steady and balance David when life had taken difficult turns. Psalm 139 celebrates God's eternal presence even when circumstances are overwhelming. Verses 1-10 are compelling---

O Lord, you have searched me and known me! 2 You know when I sit down and when I

rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. 3 You search out my path and my lying

down and are acquainted with all my ways. 4 Even before a word is on my tongue,

behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. 5 You hem me in, behind and before, and lay

your hand upon me. 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot

attain it.7 Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? 8

If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! 9 If I take

the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, 10 even there your

hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

Psalm 139: 1-10, ESV

So, what is this human motion, the hidden God in one minute, the truth of the ever-present God in the next? It's a spiritual discipline the King confessed often as well, the truth that "...those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you" (Psalm 9: 10, ESV). When circumstances shifted his eyes downward, King David knew to look upward, to seek God.

I'm staring at the sea now. Life is often tossed like those currents and waves. But, even If I am hidden by them, he is there, even when I "dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea".

Glory!