Writing Truth in a Secular Society

by Emme Gannon @GannonEmme

“What is truth?” Pilate posed this question to Jesus after hearing His proclamation of His divinity. Rather than wait for an answer, Pilate turned from the Lord of the universe and walked away, deciding to come to his own conclusion.

Eve was faced with this all important question when Satan came to her in the garden and challenged what God told her to be true. She did what we all do when we forsake truth. She leaned on her own understanding. She abandoned the edicts of God, instead weaving a web of deceit to fit into her desires. And her husband, who was with her, joined in. 

We all know where that led. We suffer from it still. Down through the ages there have been those who are willing participants in Satan’s scheme to replace God’s truth with lies. Lies always lead to brokenness and strip us of the purpose for which we were created. They divert us to another path, one that leads us away from the will of the Lord. 

As society leans more left, truth is often obscured to fit the will of the individual and presented as a platform of freedom. We do well to pull back and reacquaint ourselves with the ever present question mankind has asked since Creation. “What is truth?”

What is truth? Truth is what scripture said it is. Truth is embodied in Jesus Christ and His Word. Truth exists because God exists. It is the foundation of who we were meant to be. The filter through which we were meant to live our lives. Truth produces light because we live beyond our understanding, trusting in the One who is all truth. 

As society discards God and crafts its own reality, truth becomes subjective. Truth becomes what one believes it to be. Some look to science for truth. Science, however, is not truth as it is constantly evolving by creating hypotheses that are forever changing as new information emerges. Subsequently one person’s truth collides with another’s idea of truth producing anger. It’s when individual’s lies join together, form a cohesive unit, and seek to thrust their ideas on others that society is threatened. Does that mean the loudest voice wins? The most forceful take control? Does anger cause we who know truth to shrink back for the sake of peace? 

Russian dissident and novelist Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn did not shrink from speaking truth. Even though he suffered for his faith, he made “live not by lies” the core of his resistance to the oppression surrounding him. He lived outside the mainstream of society and was willing to endure the consequences. He chose truth over conformity.

While we may never suffer the abuse of a totalitarian regime as did Solzhenitsyn, the winds of darkness is always at the ready—always eagerly attempting to swallow truth and extinguish the light. Truth is that light that shines in those darkest of places, bringing hope to those who have no hope. A way where there was none. A view beyond the storm clouds to the heavenly realm.

God’s truth exists whether we embrace it or not. As religious liberty becomes a code word for intolerance, our words are ever a beacon to the lost, the hurting, and those imprisoned by lies. There are always those yearning to hear what we have to say, waiting for truth to tear down the walls of deception that darken their world. As we write, truth cannot help but erupt from a heart yielded to God and nurtured by His Word. Dare we challenge the false rhetoric thrust upon us by the world with the gentle declaration of truth.

“You can resolve to live your life with integrity. Let your credo be this: Let the lie come into the world, let it even triumph. But not through me.” Alexandr Solzhenitsyn.

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Emme Gannon is a wife, mother, and grandmother who loves to write stories that stir the heart. Her award-winning writing has appeared in Focus on the Family magazine, several anthologies, and numerous newsletters. She just completed her first novel.