“Truth” Speakers

2 Peter 1:21 For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

There are so many places to gather information these days. I remember when I would go to a place called a “library” and look up information in a “card catalog” and then walk “shelves” and find a “book,” sit down and flip the “pages” to find what I was seeking.

Now all we do is pick up our phone and slide and tap. The world of information comes flooding into our hand. Both facts and fiction, that which matches reality and that which matches imagination.

The biggest problem with having so much information in our hands is that far too many people have no way to determine what is fact and what is fiction. In fact, there is a whole segment of society that is in the process of rewriting reality. They are changing the definitions of the most fundamental elements of a society, and in the process altering it to the point that it is becoming unrecognizable.

Is it necessary to have “truth,” or is this something that is optional? What would happen if language, and reality itself, was untethered from itself, if at any moment something could mean multiple things at the same time? Life and death. Love and hate. Abundance and want. Everything means everything else. Yikes!

But there is an objective reality. It starts with the Creator of the universe. This Creator determines the rules of the game, what is and isn’t, what comes into being and what goes out of existence.

And this Creator has chosen to communicate with his creation, that’s us. And he has communicated clearly enough that we can know what he means and what he expects of us. We don’t have to live in the dark. We can walk in his light.

Our text and the words that follow it claim that there are prophets, spokesmen for this Creator, who faithfully speak what He wants communicated. There are also false prophets whose motives and means are gravely suspect. And these two distinct groups could not be more different in the outcome of their messages. Life and death.

At the birth of Jesus, which we celebrated just under two weeks ago, the angels proclaimed the birth of Jesus to the shepherds. The wise men studied the Scriptures and heard the message which was confirmed with a heavenly sign. A faithful witness spoke through both sets. The Holy Spirit was that speaker.

We can today hear the Holy Spirit speak to us, confirming what has already been revealed in the Scriptures. His will in not a mystery, but has been revealed clearly enough that we can faithfully walk with our Creator in love.