What is the opposite of fake news? There’s so much of it in the media today that we might forget what we’re really looking for. Those political views we disagree with, stories on the television that don’t ring true, we label as fake news, and spend our keystrokes on social media, or conversations by the water cooler, defending our positions against the other guy’s “fake” facts and opinions. But the opposite of fake news isn’t hard facts, or balance, or even wisdom. That thing that counters fake news is far more valuable: objective truth.
Objective truth is that truth which cannot be denied. As Christ-followers we believe the source of objective truth is God, and His Word, the Bible, contains the ultimate record of objective truth on earth. Knowing truth, hearing it, understanding it, and being able to speak it yourself is among the most powerful tools you’ll have in business, and in life. Your direction, decision making, advice you give and receive, even the purposes for which you live and work, are all based on your foundation of objective truth. Here are a few things to know about real Truth.
God is the author of real Truth. Psalm 119:160 says of God, “All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal.” To believe in God is to believe in the One Who not only created the world and everything in it, but Who also defines all things according to His will. To put it simply, if you believe that God made everything and knows everything, then you also must believe that everything God says and does is true. God cannot lie because God knows everything and therefore cannot deceive Himself, or you. When God says it, then it is true. And when God does something, it is done in the context of His Truth.
The Bible is the book of real Truth. If you want to know what God has said that is true, then read the Bible. Jesus said, “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17). All of the instruction, history and law of the Bible is true. Sometimes we can be confused by the language or context of the Bible, which was penned by 40 men under the inspiration of God over a period of 1,500 years. The Bible is a long, complex book of history, poetry, biography, narrative and correspondence. When we read it, we must also study it. The Bible reminds us that as Christ-followers, God Himself will help us understand the Truth of His Word. John 16:13 says, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” The Holy Spirit, living in the Christ-follower, will reveal God’s Truth to us as we grow in the knowledge of His Word, the Bible.
Wisdom is the result of living by real Truth. When you study and know the Word of God, the result is the knowledge, combined with your experience, to make good judgements. In other words, wisdom. 2 Timothy 2:15-16 says, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. But avoid irreverent and empty chatter, which will only lead to more ungodliness…” When the Word of God fills your mind, you will know objective Truth, and this will help you not only speak wisely, but avoid “empty chatter” (fake news) proceeding from your lips. If you’re tired of fake news, build wisdom for your own life and to speak objective truth into the lives of those around you through thorough study of God’s Word, the Bible.
