The Reality

of Truth in a
Postmodern
Culture
Joe Morecraft, III
And if the sons if Issachat) men zvho
understood the times zvith knowledge if what
Israel should do... - I Chronicles 12:32
I
f we are going to be effective in defending the
faith and in evangelizing our culture as Christ
commanded us (Matthew 28:19) then we must be
as dle sons of Issachar, who understood the times
with knowledge of what Israel should do. We must
have a solid knowledge of the revealed will of God
in Holy Scripture widl the wisdom to apply it to our
times; and we must have a correct understanding of the
nature of the time and culture in which we live. Both
- an understanding of the Bible and an understanding
of our particular place in history - are essential to
our mission of making the world's nations Christ's
disciples.
\'Vhat is the nature of our times? What are we to speak
from God to our culture that specifically addresses
their point of controversy with the Christian Faith? As
Martin Luther said:
If I profess JJ!ith the lottdest voice and clearest expositioll
every pOl1ioll oj the tmth oj God except preciselY that
little poillt JJJhich the JPorid alld the devil are at that
IllOlllellt attackillg, I am !Jot cOlifessillg Chlist, hOJPevel'
boldlY I may be professing Chtist. n;;rhere the battle
rages, there the loyalty oj the soldier is proved, and to be
steady Ofl all the battlefields besides, is mere flight alld
disgrace if he flinches at that point.'
A Sketch of the Mindset of the American
Culture at the Outset of the 21
st
Century
To understand our times we must understand the
basic perspective of Christianity, Modernism and
Postmodernism with reference to the relation of truth
and reason. Christianity, as we shall see in more detail
later, holds that truth about God, man and the meaning
of life in the universe does in fact exist and that it may
be known by divine revelation. Modernism believes
that truth about life and dle universe exists and that
it can be known by the proper use of reason unaided
by divine revelation. Postmodernism holds that
truth does not exist. In the last decades of the 20
th
Century a transition has taken place from a Modernist
consensus to a Postmodernist consensus.
"Truth" according to postmodernism is either an
individual or a social construct, with absolutely no
correspondence to objective reality, if there is indeed
such a thing. For postrnodernists statements are
"true" if they are consistent with one another, if they
internally cohere. But when they speak of "truth"
they do not mean that those statements are in accord
with objective facts. Hence, whatever viewpoint
works for you, and which internally coheres, is the
viewpoint you should choose, and use your power
to get others to prefer. "Truth" then becomes merely
"a function of power relationships of many kinds.
Ideologies, philosophies and moralities sanctioned as
true in a given culture really reflect only varying types
of discourse, which are shaped by social arrangements.
These belief systems do not indicate anything about
reality itself but only how reality is contingendy
constructed under certain conditions."2
''According to the postrnodernists, all reality is virtual
reality. We are all wearing helmets that project our
own separate litde worlds. We can experience these
worlds and lose ourselves in them, but they are not
real, nor is one person's world exacdy the same as
someone else's. We are not creating our own reality,
however. Rather, we accept a reality made by someone
else. Just as the corporations that manufacture virtual
reality technology program the fantasy, the so-
called objective world that we experience is actually
programmed by large, impersonal social institutions.
Despite our heroics in fantasy land, zapping space
aliens and freeing the holographic princess, we are
only playing a game. We are actually passive and at the
mercy of our programmers."3
That we live in a postrnodern world is becoming
more and more obvious. And we must learn how to
present the gospel to postrnoderns, because "it is hard
to witness to truth to people who believe that truth is
relative (Jesus works for you; crystals work for her.')
It is hard to proclaim the forgiveness of sins to people
who believe that, since morality is relative, they have
no sins to forgive."4
According to recent polls: 66% of Americans believe
there is no such thing as absolute truth; 72% of
adults between 1 8 and 25 do not believe absolutes
exists. 53% of iliose who call iliemselves evangelical
Christians believe no absolutes exist. This means that
ilie MAJORITY of those who profess to believe ilie
Bible and who profess faith in Christ as Lord and
Savior agree iliat there is no such thing as absolute
truili! While 88% of evangelicals believe iliat the Bible
the COUNSEL of CHALCEDON 19
I
The Reality of Tmth in a Postlllodern Cttltllre
is the infallible word of God, bizarrely 53% do not believe in
absolutes! In fact, 70% of all Americans claim to have this
high view of the Bible, and 66% of all Americans do not
believe in absolutes! "Holding mutually inconsistent ideas is
a sure sign of believing that there are no absolute truths."s
Only 33% of Americans reject premarital sex. 56% of single
fundamentalists engage in sex outside marriage, which is
about the same percentage for liberals (57%). 66% of Roman
Catholics are sexually active. While 67% of Americans accept
premarital sex, 83% of Catholics do. 49% of Protestants
and 47% of Catholics consider themselves "pro-choice"
with reference to abortion. 49% of evangelicals and 71 % of
Catholics say they believe in euthanasia.
While people have always committed sins, they at least
acknowledged these were sins. A century ago a person may
have committed adultety flagrantly and in defiance of God
and man, but he would have admitted that what he was doing
was a sin. \Vhat we have today is not only immoral behavior,
but loss of moral criteria. This is true even in the church.
We face not only a moral collapse but a collapse of meaning.
"There are no absolutes."6
The Self-contradictions of
Modernism and Postmodernism
Modernism trusts implicitly in human reason unaided by
divine revelation to obtain truth and meaning. But it has no
reasonable foundation for its faith in reason.
Postmodernism believes that truth does not exist, that
meaning does not exist, and that no absolutes for thought
and life exist. And they make these statements absolutely and
as expressing truth. Therefore, they refute themselves.
Christianity is perfectly self-consistent in full correspondence
with all the facts of reality because its origin is the Creator
of the universe. Christianity is not the most reasonable
of all the worldviews and religions of the world, it is the
only reasonable worldview and religion. In fact, we know
Christianity is true because of the impossibility of the
contrary. In other words, if it is not true, then we have no
basis for knowledge or morality.
"It is the Christian's contention that all non-Christian
worldviews are beset with internal contradictions, as well
as with beliefs which do not render logic, science or ethics
intelligible. On the other hand, the Christian worldview
(taken from God's self-revelation in Scripture) demands
our intellectual commitment because it does provide
the preconditions of intelligibility for man's reasoning,
experience and dignity.
"In Biblical terms, what the Christian apologist does is
demonstrate to unbelievers that because of their rejection of
God's truth, they have become vain in their reasonings,
Romans 1:21. By means of their foolish perspective they end
up opposing themselves, II Timothy 2:25. Their philosophy
and presuppositions rob one of knowledge, Colossians 2:3,8,
leaving them in ignorance, Ephesians 4:17-18.
20 the COUNSEL of CHALCEDON
"In various forms, the fundamental argument advanced by
the Christian apologist is that the Christian worldview is
true because of the impossibility of the contrary. When
the perspective of God's revelation is rejected, then the
unbeliever is left in foolish ignorance because his philosophy
does not provide the preconditions of knowledge and
meaningful experience. To put it another way: the proof
that Christianity is true is that if it were not, we would not be
able to prove anything.
"What the unbeliever needs is nothing less than a radical
change of mind - repentance, Acts 17:30. He needs to
change his fundamental worldview and submit to the
revelation of God in order for any knowledge or experience
to make sense. He at the same time needs to repent of
his spiritual rebellion and sin against God. Because of the
condition of his heart, he cannot see the truth or know God
in a saving fashion."7
The Biblical View of TruthS
Without embarrassment or hesitation or equivocation, the
Bible gives us a unified perspective on the reality, content
and nature of truth. The Hebrew word, 'elllet, involves the
ideas of support and stability, faithfulness and conformity to
fact. God is the God of truth, Psalm 31 :5, who speaks the
truth, Isaiah 45:19, and who is near to all who call on Him
in truth, Psalm 145:18. The Hebrew word also denotes
"that which is conformed to reality in contrast to anything
which would be erroneous or deceitful" and "that which is
authentic, reliable and right," I Kings 17:24, Psalm 119:142,
Proverbs 8:7. "Truth" in Hebrew is NOT another word for
"belief" or "social custom," since some beliefs and customs
can be false and opposed to the revealed will of God - The
LORD detests lying lips, but He delights in those who
are faithful, Proverbs 12:22. So then, the Old Testament not
only condemns all lies and deceit, it also commends truth to
us as FAITHFULNESS AND VERACITY.
The Greek word for truth is aletheiawhich denotes conformity to
fact, veracity, genuineness, the opposite of what is false, John 7:
28,8:16. The Greek adjective,pistos, should be translated faithful,
reliable, trustworthy. The New Testament often combines these
two words as in Revelation 3:14 where Christ refers to Himself
as the Amen, the faithful and true witness. So then, truth in
the New Testament is that which is in conformity to reality and
in opposition to lies and errors. Truth is accuracy over against
falsehood, Ephesians 4:25, I Timothy 2:7.
" ... such a view of truth [as presented in the Bible] collides
with postmodernist notions of the social construction of
reality and the relativity of truth. Nicole concludes, 'The
Biblical view of truth ('eme!, aletheia) is like a rope with several
intertwined strands'; it 'involves factuality, faithfulness
and completeness.' The Bible does not present truth as a
cultural creation of the ancient Jews or the early Christians.
They received truth from the God who speaks truth to His
creatures, and they were expected by this God to conform
themselves to this truth."')
The Reality of Tmth ill a Post modem Cllltllre
Now we come to the distinctives of the Biblical view of
truth.
First, truth comes from God. It is revealed by God. It
is not invented or constructed by individuals or societies.
Beliefs may be constructed by individuals and societies, but
truth is the revelation of the personal and infinite Creator
of the universe. He has revealed Himself in creation and
in human beings, Romans 1:19f, who suppress the truth in
unrighteousness and are therefore under God's judgment,
Romans 1:18. Although they worship the creature rather
than the Creator and exchange the truth of God for a lie,
they are totally inexcusable before God their Creator and
Lawgiver, Romans 2:14-15. God has also revealed Himself
incarnationally in the Lord Jesus Christ, John 1:18, who
not only speaks the truth, but who is Himself, the Truth,
John 14:6. And God has revealed Himself verbally and
propositionally in the Bible, which is the written Word of
God, produced by God not man, II Timothy 3:15f. It is
a book of Spirit-produced thoughts from the mind of
God, written in Spirit-produced words, I Corinthians 2:13.
Therefore, the Bible is in its entirety the Word of God and
therefore in its entirety is the truth of God. Jesus prayed:
we affirm that the Bible is a revelation from God, we do not
simply assert that God as a person is known in and through
it. We also mean that God has revealed understandable,
objectively true propositions. ...God has revealed truth to us
and not just Himself.'!O
Second, "Objective truth exists and is knowable. The
claim that God has revealed Himself to us presupposes
objective truth as the cognitive content of revelation. God
is the source of objective truth about Himself and His
creation. ...But truth is also objective because God is the
final court of appeal, the source of all truth, by virtue of
His nature and His will. Objective truth is truth that is not
dependent on any creature's subjective feelings, desires or
beliefs. ...God's truth is not dependent upon any individual's
or group's experiences or interpretations, however strongly
felt or culturally entrenched they may be."l1 As the aposde
Paul said in Romans 3:3-4 - What if some did not have
faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness?
Not at all! Let God be true, and every person a liar.
Sanctify them in the Truth; Thy Word is
Truth,John 17:17. It is the divinely-revealed
and divinely-inspired inerrant standard of
divine authority by which all truth claims by
Third, revealed truth is absolute in nature. It is
invariant, of universal and unchanging authority. It is true
without exception. It is unrevisable, unalterable, in need
.-________ -L __________
of no supplementation, correction or
abridgement, Deuteronomy 12:32. It is not
subject to criticism or veto by individuals
or societies. This insistence on truth as
absolute is "a massive and sharp stumbling
block for postmoderns - given their absolute
abhorrence of the absolute - but it cannot
The Creator of the
man are to be evaluated.
The Creator of the universe has spoken to us
in words and sentences that are meaningful
to Him and meaningful to us in accord with
the facts of the universe as He has created
them. By means of this spoken, written
Word we can understand the truth, meaning
and purpose of life in the universe.
universe has
spoken to us in
words and
sentences that are
meaningful to us ...
be softened or avoided if believers are to
remain faithful to the truth of God."12
Fourth, revealed truth is of
comprehensive authority and universal
"The Christian worldview, contra postmodernism,
understands language not as a self-referential, merely human
and ultimately arbitrary system of signs that is reducable to
contingent cultural factors, but as the gift of a rational God
entrusted to beings made in His own image and likeness,
Genesis 1:26. In the beginning was the WORD, and the
WORD was with God and the WORD was God, John 1:
1-2. Communication has eternally existed between all the
members of the Trinity and continues as God speaks to us
- through creation, conscience and Scripture and as we
speak truth to each other and to God. Human language has
been wounded by the fall and fractured by the judgment at
Babel, Genesis 11, but it is not thrown down for the count.
Language is God's vehicle for conveying truth, although it
may be clouded in much of our experience (as evidenced
by the density and outright unintelligibility of much
postmodernist writing.)
"God's disclosure of Himself through revelation is not an
existential experience devoid of rational, knowable content.
God reveals objective truth about Himself. J.P. Moreland
makes this point with respect to Biblical revelation: 'When
application. "The gospel message and
the moral law of God are not circumscribed or restricted
by cultural conditions."!3 Peter declared in Acts 4:12,
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other
name under heaven given to people by which we must
be saved. Therefore, all individuals and institutions and
societies everywhere ought to bow to the claims of revealed
truth in Christ and His Word. If they do not they will perish
under His judgment for rejecting the truth, Acts 17:30,31; II
Thessalonians 1:7f.
Fifth, divinely revealed truth is "eternally engaging and
momentous, not trendy or superficial. In postmodern
times, our sensory environments are saturated with bright
images, intrusive words and blaring sounds - all vying for
our attention (and our funds). Fads, whether in advertising,
politics or sports, come and go with increasing rapidity. It
seems that nothing is settled or rooted or stable over time.
- ... for many people (and the state), religion is little more
than a hobby, something with which to amuse oneself, a kind
of curiosity for when the mood strikes but not something to
take all that seriously, especially in matters of legality." 14 In
contrast to this postmodern attitude stands the written \'Vord
lhe COUNSEL of CHALCEDON 21
The Reality of Tmth ill a Postmodem Cllltllre
of Almighty God. The grass withers and the flower falls,
but the word of God stands forever, Isaiah 40:8. Your
word, 0 LORD, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens,
Psalm 119:89. The word of God cannot be broken; it is
eternally relevant and applicable, because its author is One
who said of Himself, I the LORD do not change, Malachi
3:6; Hebrews 13:8.
"God's truth is grounded in God's eternal being. It has no
expiration date and needs no image makeovers. Moreover,
it is a living, personal and dynamic truth - a truth that
transcends the transient trivialities of our age and touches
us at the deepest levels of our beings by including us in an
eternal drama. This truth transforms us, as David knew well:
I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not
sin against You, Psalm 119:11. - Far from being trivial, the
truth of God made known to a rebellious planet is perennially
engaging. .. As Os Guinness said, 'Hell is nothing less than
the truth known too late."'15
Sixth, revealed truth is "exclusive, specific and
antithetical. What is true excludes all that opposes it. This
is why God declares, You shall have no other gods before
Me, Exodus 20:3. If there is but one God,
consistent, self-contained, fully self-conscious can produce
truth that is systematic, self-consistent and unified and
comprehensively applicable.
Revealed truth must be systematic "if men are to tllink
intelligently and logically. Without the concept of systematics
and the God it sets forth, we cannot hold to a rational and
understandable universe nor to any meaningful order therein.
Unregenerate man's reason and logic operate against the
background of chaos and meaningless void, so that reason
and logic are in essence more than irrational: they are
absurd. Systematics not only makes reason reasonable, but it
declares tllat there is a necessary and meaningful connection
between all facts, because all facts are the creation of the
sovereign and omnipotent God and are thus revelations of
His purpose and order. The idea of preaching the whole
counsel of God is only a possibility if systematics is a reality.
Otherwise, tllere is no necessary and real connection and
unity in the word of God, and we have instead a developing,
changing word and plan under different dispensations. We
have then a fragmented word, nor a whole counsel which is a
necessary and authoritative unity."18
Eighth, revealed truth is "an end, not
all other claimants are impostors. The
inexorable logic of antithesis is also behind
Jesus' fearful utterance, Enter through the
narrow gate. For wide is the gate and
broad is the road that leads to destruction,
and many enter through it, Matthew 7:13.
As R.J. Rushdoony commented: 'Truth is
exact and precise, and the slightest departure
from the truth is the substitution of falsity
for truth."'16 This means that the Christian
will be wisely confrontational, for he "cannot
rest contented and happy in a world oozing
Without a concept
of systematics and
the God it sets forth,
we cannot hold to a
a means to any other end. It should be
desired and obtained for its own value.
This flies in the face of postmodernist
pragmatism, which reduces truth to social
function or personal preference. As Harry
Blamires declared, 'There is no subtler
perversion of Christian Faith than to treat it
as a mere means to a worldly end, however
admirable that end in itself may be. The
Christian Faith is important because it is true.
What it happens to achieve, in ourselves or
rational and
u ndersta nda ble
universe ...
with error. When Paul beheld the idolatry of Athens, he was
greatly distressed and so he reasoned in the synagogue
with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, Acts 17:16-17,
which led to his famous Mars Hill address."17 In Galatians
Paul's blazing antithetical response to the heresy of the
Judaizers is obvious, Galatians 1:7-8, 11-12. He is totally
unwilling and unable to synthesize the truth of the revealed
Gospel with the non-truth of religious and legalistic man.
Seventh, revealed truth is systematic and unified. The
Bible gives us a system of truth that is comprehensive,
unified and logically self-consistent with an orderly structure
in the context of the covenant in the Old Testament and
the New Testament. Its focus is on God as He has revealed
Himself. It is SYSTEMATIC because the God who gave it
is sovereign, rational, unchangeable and knowable only by
revelation. Revealed truths in the Bible "naturally" fall into
a system of relationships and harmonies which are perfectly
self-consistent, i.e., coherent, unified and non-contradictory
in perfect harmony with all the facts of creation, and by
which system of truth all the facts of creation are to be
understood. Only a sovereign, unchangeable, totally self-
22 the COUNSEL ofCHALCEDON
in others, is another and, strictly speaking,
secondary matter.' Postmodernist spirituality deems truth as
malleable and adaptable to one's perceived needs and style.
One's 'God-concept' or 'personal spirituality' is formed
irrespective of the idea of reality in and of itself. Truth,
religious or otllerwise, is what works for me or for my
social group. But Christian Faith teaches that it works (or
bears spiritual fruit) only because it is true."19
CONCLUSION: "Without a thorough and deeply rooted
understanding of the Biblical view of truth as revealed,
objective, absolute, universal, eternally engaging, antithetical
and exclusive, unified and systematic, and as an end in itself,
the Christian response to postmodernism will be muted by
the surrounding culture or will make illicit compromises with
the trutll-impoverished spirit of the age. The good news is
that truth is still truth, that it provides a backbone for witness
and ministry in postmodern times, and that God's truth will
never fail."20
The Reali!)' of Tm/h ill a Pos/lI!odem CIIi/lire
Joe Morecraft, III, Th.D. has pastored Chalcedon
Presbyterian Church in Cumming, Georgia, for almost
30 years. He and his wife Rebecca (Becky to her
friends), have four children, one still at home, and two
grandchildren. Joe is a noted lecturer on contemporary political
and historical trends in the United States and has published three
books as well as hundreds of articles.
Endnotes
1 Quoted by Francis Schaeffer in THE GOD WHO IS THERE, p.
18.
2 Groothuis, Douglas, TRUTH DECAY: DEFENDING
CHRISTIANITY AGAINST THE CHALLENGE OF
POSTMODERNIS1,I (InterVarsity Press, 2000), p. 98.
3 Veith, Gene, POSTMODERN TIJYIES, p. 61.
o! Veith, p. 16.
5 Veith, p. 17.
G Veith, p. 18.
7 Bahnsen, Greg, ALWAYS READY, pp. 121-122.
8 This entire section relies heavily upon Groothuis' analysis,
especially pp. 64 and following.
9 Groothuis, p. 64.
III Groothuis, pp. 66-67.
11 Groothuis, p. 67.
12 Groothuis, p. 69.
13 Groothuis, p. 72.
14 Groodmis, p. 74.
15 Groothuis, p. 75.
!{, Groodmis, p. 75.
17 Groothuis, p. 77.
18 Rushdoony, R.j., SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY, Vol. I, p. 61.
19 Groothuis, pp. 80-81.
211 Groothuis, pp. 81-82.
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